Cagers Looking For Respect In Nebraska Tourney Opener

Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

But the Harvard men's basketball team is relatively close.

The Crimson (1-1 overall) will face Nebraska (1-2) in the opening game of the Ameritus Classic, tonight in Lincoln, Neb. at 7:30 p.m. (WHRB, 95.3 FM)

Once again, Harvard will challenge the host team of a tournament in the opening round. Apparently, home squads think they can easily bypass Harvard to advance to the championship.

Last year, UConn smashed the Crimson in the opening round of the Connecticut Mutual Classic, 84-43.

"My goal is that when we go to tournaments, we don't play the host team," Harvard Coach Peter Roby said. "We're not going to be anybody's cannon-fodder. So maybe now if we can beat Nebraska, that will stop."

The winner of tonight's game will advance to the championship tomorrow night, where it will face the winner of tonight's Air Force-Pepperdine game.

The Crimson flew out to Lincoln Wednesday, thus allowing ample time to adjust to the one-hour time difference. Harvard may have more trouble adjusting to the height difference--the Cornhuskers possess two seven-footers and seven others taller than 6-ft., 6-in.

The Crimson beat New Hampshire Tuesday night, 94-74, after getting trounced by Duke by 76 points last week.

The tournament provides another chance for Harvard to prove itself a bonafide contender for the league crown. Last week in Durham, N.C., Christian Laettner and company simply overmatched the Crimson en route to a 130-54 laugher.

"We're after respect," Roby said. "We lost our own self-respect a little bit after Duke, and we've got some of that back now."

Against the Cornhuskers, Harvard can test its mettle against the Big Eight, a league that has produced 1988 national champion Kansas, and NBA first-round draft picks Danny Manning, Stacey King and Mitch Richmond. Nebraska, however, finished seventh in the conference last season and poses less of a threat than Duke. Nonetheless, the Crimson will have its hands full.

Junior center Rich "Stretch" King stands at 7-ft., 2-in. and leads the Cornhuskers with 16.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Lewis Geter has averaged 12.7 pointe per game in his first three varsity games to lend support to King.

King exploded in the season opener, pumping in 20 points, while clearing 12 boards, as the Cornhuskers defeated Missouri-Kansas City, 91-76. In that game, Geter added 16 points.

Since that season opener, Nebraska has fallen to Miami of Ohio and Michigan State.

To inflict another loss on the Cornhuskers, Roby will need to use his bench and hope that it responds as successfully as it did against UNH. Against the Wildcats, the Harvard bench was able to wear down the opposition, placing it in foul trouble.

"We want to get into people's benches, pit our bench against their bench and see who's going to win," Roby said.

Junior Ralph James leads the Harvard attack with 16 points per game. All-Ivy candidate Ron Mitchell scored 14 points against UNH after the Blue Devils held him to an uncharacteristic two points.

To complement last year's top performers, Roby also has turned to some new faces. Freshmen Tarik Campbell and Tyler Rullman both started against the Wildcats after gutsy performances against Duke.

Give 'em Hell, Harry

If the Crimson does upset the Scarlet and Cream, they will play the winner of the Air Force-Pepperdine nightcap. Harvard never has played the Falcons, but Nebraska and Pepperdine have swept the Crimson in three previous engagements.

The Wave beat Harvard in 1978-79 season, while the Cornhuskers defeated the Crimson twice during the Truman Administration.