COLLEGE BASKETBALL: USC LANDS FORWARD.Byline: Daily News Staff and Wire Services USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. received an oral commitment from Emanuel Willis, a 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward currently attending Hargrave Military Academy This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Alone, primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of this article are not sufficient for an accurate encyclopedia article. in Chatham, Va. Willis selected USC over Cincinnati and Virginia Tech and also planned to visit Auburn. He signed with Southern Mississippi last year but did not qualify academically after failing to receive the necessary test score. Willis enrolled at Hargrave, where former Xavier forward David West David West is the name of several people, including
Willis is originally from Mendenhall, Miss., and averaged 14 points per game his senior year. He is the fourth player to commit and expected to sign a letter-of-intent Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period. Other players expected to sign with the Trojans are Cleveland High of Reseda forward Nick Young, center Robert Swift Robert Swift (born December 3, 1985, in Bakersfield, California) is an American professional basketball player for the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA. The "Big Red Head" stands 7 feet tall and plays the center position. of Bakersfield, who is currently ineligible, and guard Gabriel Pruitt of Westchester. Even though Swift is signing, the 6-foot-11 center is expected to make himself available for the NBA draft The NBA Draft is an annual North American event in which the National Basketball Association's (NBA) thirty teams (29 in the United States and one in Toronto, Canada) can select players who wish to join the league. next June. He is not expected to play high school basketball after being declared ineligible because of contact between Bakersfield High and his family before Swift transferred there before the start of the school year. - Scott Wolf Scott Richard Wolf (born June 4, 1968) is an American actor. Born in Boston, Massachusetts to Steven Wolf and Susan Enowitch, Wolf was raised in West Orange, New Jersey. He graduated in 1986 from West Orange High School. --Early to rise: Connecticut is thrilled to be the runaway No. 1 pick in the Associated Press' preseason college basketball College basketball most often refers to the American basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA. History
Connecticut received 67 first-place votes from the 72-member national media panel, which likely found it hard to overlook the returning inside- outside combination of Emeka Okafor Chukwuemeka Ndubuisi Okafor, abbreviated as Emeka Okafor (born September 28, 1982, in Houston, Texas), is an American professional basketball player playing at power forward and center for the Charlotte Bobcats of the National Basketball Association. and Ben Gordon Benjamin (Ben) Gordon (born April 4, 1983 in London, England, UK)[1] is an American National Basketball Association player for the Chicago Bulls. He played shooting guard for the University of Connecticut[2] in college and grew up in Mount Vernon, New York. . ``The No. 1 ranking matters because it does put some highlights on your program and helps some of the kids get recognized,'' coach Jim Calhoun said. ``I don't find it being pressurized pres·sur·ize tr.v. pres·sur·ized, pres·sur·iz·ing, pres·sur·iz·es 1. To maintain normal air pressure in (an enclosure, as an aircraft or submarine). 2. . It's how you handle it because we all aspire to be No. 1 at the end.'' Connecticut never even came close to being there at the end of the 1999-2000 season, the last time it was the preseason No. 1. The Huskies lost the opener to Iowa and finished 20th in the final poll - the only time since 1980 a No. 1 preseason team did not end up in the top 10. ``I can do without that,'' Calhoun said. He preferred, instead, to talk about the season before, when Connecticut was No. 2 in the preseason voting to Duke. ``That year it was us and Duke and one of us was No. 1 the whole season. Then we met in the championship game - and I'll take that again,'' he said, referring to Connecticut's 77-74 victory and its only national championship. This time, Duke is No. 2, with three first-place votes. Connecticut went 23-10 last season and reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament. ``I would make us one of the top five with Emeka, with Ben and with a deep and fairly experienced team,'' Calhoun said. ``I can't argue if some people think we're No. 1 of that top five.'' This is the fourth season in which the Huskies have been ranked No. 1. In addition to the other preseason No. 1, they were also on top in 1994-95 and 1998-99. Duke has four starters back from a team that went 26-7 last season and, like Connecticut, reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament. Michigan State received one first-place vote and was No. 3. It was followed in the top 10 by Arizona, Missouri, Kansas, defending national champion Syracuse, Florida, North Carolina North Carolina, state in the SE United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), South Carolina and Georgia (S), Tennessee (W), and Virginia (N). Facts and Figures Area, 52,586 sq mi (136,198 sq km). Pop. and Gonzaga. Kansas had the only other first-place vote. California (71), Oregon (70), Arizona State (13), UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX (12) and USC (8) also received votes. The past two preseason No. 1s - Duke and Arizona - each went on to finish No. 1 in the final poll as well. The last preseason No. 1 to win the national championship was Kentucky in 1995-96. The preseason Top 25 comes from nine conferences with five having at least three teams. The Big 12 led the way with five teams - Missouri, Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State - while the Big East and Atlantic Coast each had four and the Big Ten and Conference USA each had three. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: Connecticut's Emeka Okafor, playing here in an exhibition game last week, is a big reason why the Huskies are ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press preseason poll. Bob Child/Associated Press Box: AP PRESEASON POLL |
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