Friday, March 20, 1998
By SCOTT M. JOHNSON
Enterprise staff writer
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- It may not have the local support of opponent Kentucky Wesleyan, but the UC Davis men's basketball team is certain to have a large fan base from all over the country watching Saturday's NCAA Division II national championship.
The game between the Aggies and Panthers will be televised live at 9:45 a.m. on CBS.
``Whoever's going to win, this is going to be a good game,'' said UCD's Jason Cox, a San Diego native. ``I know a lot of people in San Diego will be watching me.''
UCD's basketball team has never played on national television before. But Thursday's win over St. Rose (N.Y.) was televised locally in Davis, giving the Aggies a feel for what it will be like.
``We've been talking about it since October, that we could be playing on CBS,'' junior guard J.C. Timmons said. ``Once the game starts, it will probably be in the back of our minds. It was on TV (Thursday), but we pretty much forgot about it. I think in warmups it was on our minds. But once the game comes, we'll just be playing for the national championship.''
Coach Bob Williams agrees.
``We talked about how many times in the past guys woke up on Saturday morning and flipped on the TV and have been like, `Oh, the Division II national championship is on,' '' Williams said. ``Now we'll be playing in it. The reality is, when we're on the floor, the only difference is there are four more timeouts.''
The most pressing thing with which Williams is concerned is not the cameras as much as the team that will be facing his Aggies.
``Besides the fact that they have exceptional athletes, they bring three of the very best players in the country,'' said Williams, referring to Kentucky Wesleyan's Antonio Garcia, Larenzo Conner and Dana Williams. ``They present more challenges than any team we've faced all year. We have to play a near-perfect game to have a chance to win.''
Kentucky Wesleyan coach Ray Harper was impressed with the Aggies' style of play.
``UCD is a great team,'' he said. ``They're very well-coached and very disciplined. But it's one of those games we've worked for. There will be no losers Saturday. There will be a national champion and the NCAA runner-up. We're going to come in and let it all hang out. We feel good about our team coming into Saturday.''
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