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Sunday, March 16, 1997

Coppin shocker catches Texas off-guard

By ALAN ROBINSON

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH - Hour after hour, replay after replay, the eyes of Texas were upon Coppin State.

Throw out the South Carolina scouting report, order from room service. The Longhorns (17-11) were so certain they'd play the Gamecocks in the NCAA East Regional second round Sunday, they didn't prepare in advance for Coppin.

Surprise, surprise.

"Everybody's calling them Cinderella now," Texas' Al Coleman said Saturday. "And they've won 18 of 19 games? Whew, I didn't know that."

Of course, not many knew much about the tiny Baltimore school, named for a former slave, until the Eagles (22-8) pulled off the NCAA upset of upsets by beating second-seeded South Carolina 78-65 Friday.

Now, coach Ron "Fang" Mitchell's team is the talk of the land - and of other coaches. New Mexico coach Dave Bliss, whose Lobos play Louisville in the other East Regional game today, began his news conference Saturday by congratulating Fang's gang.

"I hate to say it's brought a breath of fresh air to the tournament, because it's a cliche, but it's true," Bliss said.

Even Texas coach Tom Penders, himself a product of Division I's lower echelon, where teams stay in Motel 6s rather than Marriotts, admits he's caught Coppin craziness.

"I used to paint houses, tend bar in the summers, just to make ends meet," Penders said. "I'd drive the van on road trips, and the first thing I'd do when we got there was pick up the check for our guarantee."

As Penders was walking to practice Saturday, he happened upon Mitchell, and the two held a brief but amicable sidewalk chat.

"I'm not happy I have to play you, but I'm happy what you've done here," Penders said.

Coppin's win - one of the biggest upsets since the NCAA went to the current 64-team format in 1985 - forced Penders to scrap his advance scouting report. His assistants were told to scout only Scout Carolina, at least until Penders began watching the game and realized Coppin actually might win.

Only a few seconds after Coppin's Reggie Welch jubilantly heaved the ball into the stands, Penders' staff began scrambling for tapes, notes, any information on Coppin from any possible source.

One call was to South Carolina's staff, though, as Penders said, "If we have to rely on their game plan, we're in trouble."

"When you got down on floor level and looked at the talent, you could tell they were a good team," Penders said. "They remind me of Colorado, which beat us like a drum. They're athletic, with size and guys who can shoot and handle the ball."

What the Eagles (22-8) must prove is they can handle the monumental events of the last 48 hours - the upset, the endless phone calls, the hoopla, the fame they hope lasts more than 15 minutes.

"People called and said, 'We knew you could do it,' but they were the same people who were telling us before we left, 'Do you know who you're playing?' " Antoine Brockington said.

Mitchell's players were loose and relaxed Saturday, but insisted they were not satisfied with a win that will be remembered as long as the tournament is played.

Today's game will be only the second between a 10th seed and 15th seed.

"We were happy definitely, but our goal is to go as far as we can go ... and we don't think we've gone that far yet," Welch said.Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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