Tuesday, March 25, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Pat Kennedy couldn't review the game films of the last time his Florida State team played Connecticut. And that's just the way he planned it.
"I think we burned every copy of that we could get our hands on," Kennedy said.
The Seminoles will play the Huskies tonight in the NIT's first semifinal game (4 p.m. PST) at New York's Madison Square Garden. Last season, Connecticut took a 20-point lead in the opening minutes and embarrassed Florida State 79-61 on national television.
Kennedy was so embarrassed with his team's performance that night, he wrote a letter of apology to FSU fans and sent it to a local newspaper.
"I thought it was as bad a game as we've ever played," he said.
Now, three straight wins have given Florida State an opportunity to reverse the loss and earn a first-ever trip into the NIT championship game.
"Our guys were plenty excited when they found out who we were going to play," Kennedy said.
The Connecticut-Florida State winner will meet the winner of tonight's second semifinal between Arkansas (18-12) and Michigan (22-11). The winners will meet in Thursday's championship game following a third-place matchup.
The Seminoles went 6-10 in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season before losing to Wake Forest by one point in the ACC tournament. That loss probably cost Florida State a trip to the NCAAs.
But FSU has reeled off three victories in the NIT, including road wins at Syracuse and West Virginia to get to New York.
"Our kids are fired up," Kennedy said.
The same could be said for the NIT. This year's semifinalists give the tournament a final four comparable to this week's Final Four in Indianapolis. All are strong basketball programs from big-name conferences with big-name coaches and players.
"The four of us could be in there also," Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson said of this year's Final Four. "I don't think the winner here is the No. 65 team in the country, far from it. ... The NCAA is a great tournament, but when you look at all 64 teams there, there are probably 25 or 30 of them who couldn't win the NIT."
Richardson isn't talking trash. He's led the Razorbacks to three Final Four appearances in 12 years, including 1994 when Arkansas defeated Duke for the school's first NCAA title.
His inexperienced team -- there is just one senior on the roster -- was inconsistent during the regular season, but has jelled in the postseason by winning all three of its NIT games at home.
Like all Richardson teams, this one applies defensive pressure the full 94 feet of the floor, and loves 3-pointers -- 690 attempts this season.
"We're a perimeter team," Richardson said. "We're not as physical as some of my teams in the past. Sometimes, I don't know which team is going to show up, but when the right one does, then we're pretty good."
So is Michigan. After starting the year ranked No. 9 in the nation, the Wolverines, who start three juniors and two sophomores, missed the NCAAs by losing six of seven games during a late stretch in February.
The Wolverines' first two NIT wins came at home before a thrilling 67-66 victory at Notre Dame last week to earn their trip to New York. In that game, Robert Traylor, Michigan's 6-foot-8, 300-pound sophomore center, scored a career-high 26 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked the final Irish shot.
Notre Dame's student section taunted Traylor by waving keys and chanting "Suburban" when he attempted shots. Questions have been raised concerning a $47,000 Suburban he's been driving lately.
Traylor says a relative paid for the car. But Michigan officials said last week a booster with close ties to Traylor was involved in violations of NCAA rules.
But it's Traylor's on-the-court driving that worries.
"The Tractor Traylor, I hope he don't run over my little 190-pound guy that's going to be guarding him," Richardson said.
* CLEMSON KEEPS BARNES: Rick Barnes is staying at Clemson after spurning feelers from Ohio State and Tennessee. Barnes, who took the Tigers on one of their best NCAA tournament rides in 1996, agreed Monday to a contract extension through 2004 that will pay him at least $668,000 a year. Barnes led Clemson (23-10) to a No. 2 ranking in January and reached the final 16, his first two NCAA tournament victories. He was thought to be one of the top choices to fill vacancies at Tennessee and Ohio State.
* NEW SACRAMENTO COACH: Rutgers assistant coach Tom Abatemarco, once forced to resign a coaching job because he verbally abused his players, will be the new head coach of the Sacramento State basketball program. Abatemarco, 47, replaces Don Newman, who resigned last month. An assistant to Rutgers coach Bob Wenzel for the past three years, Abatemarco served as head coach at Lamar from 1986 to 1988 and Drake from 1988 to 1990. He resigned from the Drake position under pressure after players threatened a boycott because of the way they were treated by the coach. A Drake internal investigation found that Abatemarco had demeaned his players; the probe also found that an assistant coach had violated NCAA rules.
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