The Cavalier daily :: Thursday, March 18, 1971 :: University of Virginia Library

The University of South
Carolina basketball team, best
in the ACC by one point, will
reap the rewards of their recent
tournament victory tonight in
Raleigh's Reynolds Coliseum at
nine p.m. with an NCAA
regional tourney game against
the University of Pennsylvania,
ranked by the polls as the
nation's fourth best team.

Biting the hands that
finally, if somewhat
grudgingly, fed him, Gamecock
coach Frank McGuire has
talked all season long of how
wonderful it is to play outside his
conference. The Cocks are 10-0
against non-ACC opposition and
have always shown a preference for
a more wide-open game as opposed
to the at times deliberate, at all
times defense-oriented ACC style.

The seventh-ranked Gamecocks
enjoy a game played in the run and
shoot style of their native New
York City area playgrounds and
against Penn, a team with explosive
scoring and fast break potential,
they may get it.

The Quakers, coached by Dick
Harter, stormed through the Ivies
and Philadelphia's tough Big Five
undefeated and, if the Eastern
regionals were being held farther
North, would doubtless be the
pre-tourney favorite. The home
court advantage to be provided by
all those God's Country fans has
helped make South Carolina a
co-favorite for both tonight's game,
rated even, and the tournament.

Penn is a team with no
apparent weakness and plenty of
balance. All starters score in double
figures and the Quaker bench is
deep. A key to tonight's game will
be the ability of the Penn front line
to offset the two inches per man
advantage it gives to the USC
front court.

Tough Quaker Center

The Quaker center is 6-8 Ohioan
Jim Wolf, a tough rebounder and
defender but a shooter of limited
range, and he is flanked by
forwards Corky Calhoun, a 6-7
defensive specialist, and Bobby
Morse, a 6-8 gun. It is a fine
testament to Harter's coaching
ability that, while at Penn, Calhoun
has developed a shot and Morse has
learned to pass thy ball
occasionally.

To contend with the play of
John Roche, whom Harter
describes as "the best guard in the
country", Penn will employ guards
Dave Wohl and Dick Bilsky, both
experienced veterans. Neither is
particularly outstanding but, taken
together, they are a topflight
backcourt.

USC's giant front line of Tom
Owens, Tom Riker and Rick
Aydlett figures to stay inside and
dominate the boards but a few
outside jumpers from Morse could
alter that strategy. All-American
Roche and Bob Carver rate an edge
over Wohl and Bilsky at guard with
Penn hoping to negate that
advantage with their superior bench
strength.

Winner Plays Villanova

This game is one of many close
and interesting contests tonight as
the NCAA's round of 16 becomes
Saturday's NCAA round of eight.
The winner will tangle then with
the winner of tonight's seven p.m.
game between Villanova, an NCAA
perennial, and Cinderella team
Fordham for the right to travel to
Houston's Astrodome for the
national semi-finals.

Mediocre ACC Showing

South Carolina won the ACC
tournament without playing one
outstanding game and, if all they
offer tonight is a repeat
performance, victory will be hard
to come by. The Penn team they
are facing went into last year's
NCAAs highly rated and came out
with a first round black eye against
Niagara. Suffice it to say that both
the Gamecocks, a great team that
has never really won anything, and
Penn, an allegedly fine squad with
something to prove, want the game
badly.