Almost everybody recognizes the basketball skills of 6-foot-10-inch Danny Ferry, Duke`s two-time All-American. But few recognized his star qualities as soon as Minnesota coach Clem Haskins did.
From 1974-76, Haskins was capping a 10-year NBA career with the Washington Bullets. Current Bullets General Manager Bob Ferry was there, too, as was his young son, Danny, who even then was eager to shoot it out with the big boys.
”I could see he was going to be a great shooter,” Haskins said. ”He could shoot the basketball at the age of 7 like a lot of guys could shoot it at 15 or 16. The key to his success is he works hard. That`s why he`s an All- America player.”
Friday night, Haskins and his Gophers will try to find a way to slow Ferry when Minnesota (19-11) meets Duke (26-7) in an NCAA East Regional semifinal at the Meadowlands. Top-seeded Georgetown (28-4) plays North Carolina State (22-8) in the second semifinal.
”We`ll just have to make him work hard for his points,” Haskins said of Ferry, who has scored at a 22.4 clip and averaged 7.4 rebounds. ”I`m more worried about his great passing. He`s the key to their scoring inside.”
Duke is shooting for its third Final Four berth in four seasons, but the Blue Devils have taken note of the Gophers` collection of impressive Big 10 victories, including wins over Sweet 16 members Illinois and Michigan.
”I think everybody`s gained a lot of respect for Minnesota over the past couple of days,” Ferry said. ”They`ve beaten some good teams, and any time you play somebody in the final 16, you`re in for a tough game.”
Minnesota, playing in the NCAA tournament for the first time in seven years, is a heavy underdog but should get a boost from the return of 6-6 forward Richard Coffey. The Big 10`s leading rebounder a year ago, Coffey has been out since suffering a knee injury five weeks ago.
– Charles Smith, Georgetown`s All-American guard, missed a second day of practice Thursday with a high fever, but Hoyas coach John Thompson expects the Big East Player of the Year to be ready Friday. The 6-1 senior left practice Tuesday and saw a doctor Thursday who recommended one more day of rest.
”I`m not concerned that he`ll play,” Thompson said. ”But I`m concerned how much he`ll play.”
North Carolina State coach Jim Valvano wishes Smith had visited Dr. Valvano`s offices. ”I recommend soup, bed rest and take two weeks off,”
Valvano said.
”He wanted to serve the soup, too, didn`t he,” Thompson countered.
Smith is averaging 19.2 points and 5.2 assists, and he led Georgetown`s 81-74 second-round victory over Notre Dame with 34 points.
– The Wolfpack`s Chris Corchiani is still slowed by a stress fracture in his foot. The sophomore guard, who needs three assists to reach a career 500, can play with the injury, which involves a non-weight-bearing bone. But it won`t heal until he stops playing for four to six weeks.
Corchiani`s backcourt mate, Rodney Monroe, whose 40 points Sunday led N.C. State to a double-overtime victory over Iowa, says this Wolfpack team bears some resemblance to the school`s 1983 entry, which beat Houston for the NCAA title.
”That team knew it could win; they believed they could beat anybody,” Monroe said. ”We`re the same way.”
– Neither Valvano nor Thompson cared much at first for their 10:05 p.m. EST tipoff, but now they`re not too upset.
”We practiced (Thursday) at 2 p.m., and now we have wait until about Saturday morning to play, but we`re happy to play any time,” Valvano said.
Thompson figures the longer Smith has to recover, the better off the Hoyas will be.
`I didn`t like playing at 10 p.m., but I`ve turned into liking it. Maybe I can get them to turn it back to 9 a.m. the next day.”
