If there were ever any doubts about Tamara James not living up to her potential, then those doubts have now been erased.
James received Big East Rookie of the Week Honors on Jan. 13 for the fifth time this season, and has lead Miami to an 11-4 record. The freshman from Dania posted far-from-modest numbers of 28.5 points and eight rebounds per game during the week, helping the ‘Lady Canes to victories over Syracuse and Notre Dame.
James is currently ranked sixth in the nation in scoring, averaging 24.8 points on the season. Her five Big East Rookie of the Week notices are only two short of record-holder Rebecca Lobo, who earned seven while at the University of Connecticut during the 1991-92 season.
James is quick to point out that the accolades make her feel blessed as an individual, and that she would be happy to break Lobo’s record. But she says her immediate goal is to make it to the NCAA Tournament with the help of the rest of the team.
“Our chemistry is great,” James said. “That’s where a lot of our success is coming from.”
During her time at South Broward High School, James led the team to state championships in both her junior and senior years. She was named MVP of the state tournament in 2001, and averaged 23 points per game in her junior season. She attributes much of her success to her hard-working parents.
“They have been my greatest role-models [growing up],” James said. “They always found a way to give us what we wanted.”
After mulling over a vast list of basketball powerhouses in Georgia, Florida, and across the country, James signed with UM in November of 2001. The 5-9 guard/forward said that the opportunity close to home heavily influenced her decision.
Basketball consumes most of Tamara’s physical energy, but when she’s not on the court, she prefers being mellow, partaking in light activities such as reading or listening to music.
James put up 20 points and had 21 rebounds in UM’s opener against South Florida in November, and followed that up with a season-high 36 points over Quinnipiac in the Wisconsin-Green Bay Tournament later in the month. She earned back-to-back Rookie of the Week Honors in late November and early December, posting an impressive 27.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game during that span. Tamara gives the staff a lot of credit for the team’s good record.
“The coaching [here] is great,” James said. “They stay on us and make us work hard.”
James has been the ‘Canes high-scorer in all but one game this season. She has also recorded five double-doubles, earning the latest one against Syracuse with 30 points and 10 rebounds. James was also selected to the All-Tournament Team at the Gatorade Holiday Classic in late December.
Tamara’s long-term goal is to join the WNBA after finishing her educational career at UM. But for now, she’s concentrating on the ‘Canes.
“I try to lead by example,” James said. “I play every game like it’s the last game.”

You can reach Melissa Teich at melissateich@hotmail.com.

ROWING
The University of Miami women’s rowing team christened a racing eight, the Dr. Donna E Shalala, at half-time of the UM men’s basketball game vs. Connecticut.
The boat Dr. Donna E. Shalala is a 56 foot, 198 lb., state-of-the-art racing shell made completely of carbon fiber.
Shalala in her second year as UM president has been a strong supporter of Hurricanes athletics.
“President Donna Shalala serves as such a strong leader for collegiate women sports, we are excited to be able to honor her in this way,” Head Coach Debra Morgan said. “We are looking forward to racing the Dr. Donna E. Shalala on March 22 against Connecticut.”
The Hurricanes return to action Saturday, March 22 at Miami Beach, FL against Connecticut.
FRASER TO SPEAK AT BANQUET
Head Coach Jim Morris and the Miami baseball team will kickoff the new season with the 2003 “First Pitch” Banquet that will feature guest speaker Ron Fraser on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2003.
The banquet will be held at the Radisson Mart Plaza Hotel, 711 NW 72nd Ave. It is scheduled to begin with cocktails at 6 p.m. and dinner following at 7 p.m. The cost is $70 per person and $560 for a table of eight. Tables of eight will be seated first.
The advanced registration deadline is Thursday, January 23. All reservations must be made in advance, no walk-ups will be allowed.
In other baseball news, the Hurricanes have added an exhibition game to its schedule against the Major League Florida Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Fla., Wednesday, Feb. 26, at 3:05 p.m.
In last season’s meeting with the Marlins, Miami rallied for five runs on five hits and an error in the bottom of the third inning to knot the score at 5-5 before rained halted the game.
The Hurricanes started then-freshman Vince Bongiovanni, who allowed three earned runs in the first inning, but also struck out three Marlins, including Preston Wilson. Bongiovanni held the Marlins scoreless in the second and finished with three hits, three earned runs, one walk and three strikeouts. He also hit two batters and had one wild pitch.
Fans can purchase reserved seating for $7 by contacting the Roger Dean Stadium ticket office at (561) 775-1818 or Ticketmaster in Palm Beach County (561-966-3309), Broward County (954-523-3309) and Dade County (305-358-5885).

The Miami men’s basketball victory over Connecticut on Monday night proved to be a remarkable comeback, and an especially outstanding individual performance by junior forward Darius Rice. But this victory also continued a trend in the Hurricanes’ season.
Miami (8-7 overall, 1-3 Big East) comes out prepared and fired up for top opponents, buts lacks the emotional drive and desire to win when competing against lesser opponents. Miami’s play so far this season is analogous to Jeckyl and Hyde. The ‘Canes have put two different teams on the floor.
We can question the coaching staff’s ability to motivate this young team or the blame can be placed upon the players who are unwilling to respond to motivation when it comes before a contest against a lesser opponent. Either way, there shouldn’t be such a big layoff in play when competing against different caliber teams, unless your play gets worse against better teams.
Lets take a look at how Miami has fared so far this season against both quality and lesser opponents.
In the second contest of the season, the Jeckyl in Miami defeated a good Texas A&M team 78-72 at home. James Jones led the ‘Canes with 14 points and eight boards and four other Miami players scored in double figures.
Two games later, the Hyde in Miami traveled up 95 to play Florida Atlantic, a team who they had beaten all 15 times they have played prior. The ‘Canes allowed FAU guard Earnest Crumbley to score 25 points on eight three pointers en route to the Owls’ 74-73 victory in overtime. Rice was held to just 12 points.
In their next contest, the ‘Canes traveled to play former head coach Leonard Hamilton and his FSU team. One would think playing your old coach would be more than enough motivation to at least come out and compete. Yet, the ‘Canes were never in the game, losing 72-55. Rice was held to just 11 points.
On December 21, Miami hosted then No. 13 Florida and played with grit and heart, despite losing 94-93 in double overtime. Rice led the ‘Canes with 32 points and Jones added 26 points. Was this the same team that lost to FAU and got blown out by FSU?
How can Rice and Jones come out and score 20 plus points apiece against a very talented team in Florida, but be held to less than 15 points each against lesser opponents?
In their next contest, Miami recorded their first road victory against Central Florida, with a close 62-51 victory. Despite the victory, Rice scored just five points and attempted only six shots from the field. There is no excuse for your team’s best player and potent scorer to only shoot six times against any team, not to mention a lesser opponent like UCF.
A motivated Hurricane team came out fired up against North Carolina on Jan. 4, in the grand opening of the Convocation Center. The ‘Canes pulled out the tight 64-61 victory in front of a sellout crowd. Jones and Rice scored 21 points and 17 points, respectively.
I won’t rant here and attempt to convince you that a team should be just as fired up to play an FAU or UCF team compared to the opening game at your new arena against national powerhouse UNC. However, there is too much of a discrepancy between the play against the different caliber opponents.
After a close 68-63 loss at a very underrated West Virginia squad, Miami visited their recent archrival and then No. 3 Connecticut on Jan. 11. The ‘Canes played inspired basketball before falling 83-80 in overtime. Rice scored 28 points, including a late three pointer to send the game into overtime.
After two consecutive Big East losses on the road, many would think the ‘Canes would do anything for a victory. But then again, their next opponent was only at Seton Hall (6-7, 1-3). This team or Hyde won’t get motivated for an opponent who they see as an easy victory.
Last Saturday in East Rutherford, NJ, the ‘Canes came out completely flat against Seton Hall, as the Pirates dominated Miami 76-53, holding Rice to 16 points and James Jones to just seven points. Seton Hall has no business defeating Miami by more than 20 points, especially when Miami has proved they can ball against good competition.
We come to an end with the Miami Jeckyl’s defeating No. 8 UConn last Monday night. Will this team continue their Jeckyl and Hyde tendencies or become a consistent team that at the very least can come out and compete on a nightly basis?
I understand that the ‘Canes are in desperate need of a third scoring option after Rice and Jones, and that they can really use another big body in the middle. But on the same token, the current Hurricane team has proved they can compete with top teams like Florida, UNC, and UConn.
All I’m asking for is some consistency. I beg both the coaching staff and players to give equal effort no matter who the opponent.
You can reach Brian Poliakoff at b.poliakoff@umiami.edu.

The Miami women’s basketball team remains perfect on the road in Big East play with a 79-76 victory over Pittsburgh Wednesday night in the Petersen Events Center.
The Hurricanes improve to 12-4 overall and 4-1 in conference play, while the Panthers fall to 9-7 overall and 1-4 in the Big East.
Tamara James recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Yalonda McCormick scored a career-high 19 points and was a perfect eight-of-eight from the free throw line.
Meghan Saake scored 16 points along with six steals while Shaquana Wilkins added 10 points and grabbed nine boards.
To begin the contest, four quick points by Pitt’s Mandy Wittenmyer gave the Panthers an early 4-2 advantage. However, costly turnovers and personal fouls led to a 19-4 spurt by Miami, giving the Hurricanes a 21-8 lead with 8:01 remaining in the first half. Miami took a 39-28 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The two teams traded baskets to start the second half until the Panthers went on a 7-0 run to tie the game 56-all with 8:28 remaining in the game. Pittsburgh grabbed its first lead of the second half and pushed their advantage to three points following a 3-pointer by Brooke Stewart.
Miami responded and with 13 seconds remaining it owned a 75-70 lead. McCormick and James combined hitting six-of-six from the free throw line to seal the win for Miami.
Laine Selwyn posted her third double-double of the season for Pitt as she finished with 13 points and 11 assists. She also added eight rebounds and four steals while making 7-of-7 foul shots. Wittenmyer added a team-high 15 points and Allen and Stewart tallied 14 points apiece.
The Panthers shot just 30 percent (11 of 36) from the field in the first 20 minutes, including a dismal eight percent (1 of 12) from 3-point range. For the game, Pittsburgh managed to shoot 39 percent (26 of 67) from the field while Miami drained 44 percent (29 of 66) of its field goals.

-Compiled by the Sports Information Department

Normally, 3.2 seconds is not a very long time, but it was more than enough for Darius Rice to salvage a season that was in dire straits. It was also long enough to provide an ESPN nationally televised audience with an improbable ending to one of the best college basketball games in recent memory.
Rice’s steal of Shamon Tooles’s inbounds pass and fade away three pointer with 0.5 seconds left gave the Hurricane men’s basketball team a shocking 77-76 upset of the eighth ranked University of Connecticut Huskies. Rice led all scorers with a career high 43 points on 16-of-27 shooting, shattering his previous mark of 35 points against Central Florida during his freshman year.
Ben Gordon led the Huskies with 32 points while hitting on 12 of his 14 shots, but it was not enough to take the spotlight off of Rice, who scored 27 of his team’s 39 points in the first half.
“Tonight the basket was as big as the ocean for me,” Rice said. “I hope to have more nights like this in the near future.”
The game was only the second men’s basketball contest at the brand new Convocation Center. Although the general admission seats were not filled to capacity, the student section was loud and energetic. Rice said the atmosphere was one most college basketball players dream about.
“We play for our school and our fans,” Rice said. “It’s great to be able to give them a great game and hear them cheer for us.”
The Hurricanes dominated the first half of the game as Rice provided most of the scoring while senior captain James Jones was on the bench with foul trouble. A late 6-0 spurt by the Huskies cut Miami’s lead to 39-31 at intermission.
The second half featured the two Big East rivals trading shot for shot throughout much of the final 20 minutes. The Huskies were able to contain Rice for most of the half and recaptured the lead (52-51) on a Gordon dunk with 9:30 remaining in the game.
“Rice played a tremendous game where he couldn’t be stopped at all,” Huskies head coach Jim Calhoun said. “We made a few adjustments defensively to slow him down a bit in the second half, but he was on fire.”
The game seemed to be over when Gordon hit a jumper to increase the Huskies lead to five with 1:12 left, but the ‘Canes showed a lot of poise in the final minute, utilizing timely fouls and three Armondo Surratt lay-ups to keep their slim hopes alive.
“It was important for Armondo not to chase bad shots during that final minute,” head coach Perry Clark said. “He helped us stay in a position to win the game.”
After a Surratt drive cut the Huskies lead to 76-74 with 3.2 seconds left, it appeared that all the Huskies had to do was inbound the ball and get fouled, thus ending UM’s chances. However, Tooles rushed an errant pass to Taliek Brown, which Rice deflected. Then the junior had the presence of mind to step behind the three-point line before attempting the game winner.
“I just stuck my hand out and once I got my hands on the ball I knew it was going in,” Rice said. “I give a lot of my teammates credit for helping us get this win.”
There were many NBA scouts in attendance at the game, but Rice claims it had no effect on his game.
“I honestly don’t pay attention to that stuff,” Rice said.
Miami is riding high after improving their position to 8-7 overall (1-3 Big East), while Connecticut dropped to 11-3 (2-1). Calhoun is worried that the sting of this loss could haunt them for a long time.
“I’m devastated and the players are all devastated,” Calhoun said. “I thought we had this game won and any time you lose a game like that it is hard to swallow. I give Miami a lot of credit though.”
Clark, on the other hand, was elated about the final result.
“I am very proud of this team and our effort tonight,” Clark said. “It is a shame that someone had to lose this game.”

You can reach Eric Kalis at elk77bc@hotmail.com.