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15 Years ago in the Sounder - Lincoln plays his last shootout

December 9th 1:29 am | Charles Bingham Print this article   Email this article   Create a Shortlink for this article

From Dec 5, 1996

Anchorage-Butch Lincoln is known for many of the attributes he brings to the University of Alaska Anchorage men's basketball team.

The Seawolves' starting point guard always draws the crowd's loudest cheers during player introductions, where Lincoln is known as a savvy playmaker who can spread the ball around, hit the 3-pointer when needed, and play a scrap- py defense that pesters opponents into turnovers.

One thing the 5-foot-6 senior from Kotzebue is known for is his rebounding, especially when he's playing against ath- letes a full foot or more taller than he is.

That's why Lincoln was somewhat sur- prised to hear his final rebound total in UAA's 75-65 victory over Maine in the first round of the Great Alaska Shootout Thanksgiving Thursday. Lincoln grabbed a career high eight rebounds, the only eight boards he'd pull down for the three games of the tournament.

"I was fortunate," Lincoln said after Thursday's game. "They were getting some long bounces and a couple of them fell right in my hands. I think that might be a career high for both high school and college."

Lincoln scored six points and dished out five assists to go with his eight rebounds against Maine. Lincoln didn't score much in UAA's lone victory of the tournament, but he made his contribu- tions in crucial moments.

During a 10-0 rally about five minutes into the games, that broke a 7-7 tie and gave the Seawolves a lead they would never relinquish, Lincoln capped the spurt with a 3-pointer. He would hit another 3-pointer with just under three minutes left that answered a Maine trey and gave UAA back its double-digit lead.

Midway through the second half, dur- ing a stretch when Maine hit four 3-point- ers and threatened to make it a game again, Lincoln corralled two critical rebounds that resulted in Seawolf baskets to keep UAA at least six points ahead.

"Lincoln and (Maine's John Gordon) are both wonderful point guards," Maine coachJohnGianninisaid. "Johnhastobe more of a scorer for our team than Lincoln does. But Lincoln ran his team well and hit his shots when he had to."

"We had our hands full," Lincoln said. "As a team we're very confident in guys one to 12. We can wear teams down."

With their victory over Maine, the Seawolves earned a right to play defend- ing NCAA Division I champion Kentucky in Friday's semifinals. Earlier on Thursday, Kentucky beat Syracuse 87-53 in a rematch of last year's national championship game.

The only NCAA Division II team in the eight-team tournament, UAA was look- ing forward to the match-up, even though the Seawolves would end up losing to Kentucky 104-72 on Friday. Kentucky would end up winning the tournament on Saturday with a 92-65 victory over the College of Charleston.

"Anytime you can play a team like the defending national champions, it's a big thing," Lincoln said. "We want to seize the day."

In UAA's loss to Kentucky, Lincoln would only score two point on a pair of free throws that made the score 23-19 Kentucky midway through the first half. But he only took one shot from the field, and he did make two assists and he broke up a three-on-one breakaway by Kentucky late in the first half to keep the Seawolves within striking distance. What's more, he only made one turnover against Kentucky's vaunted press, a press that's been known to give fits to future NBA point guards.

"We came into the game with the right attitude," Lincoln said after the Friday's game. "They just wore us down. We'd like to hope this would help us down the road this season. That's something the Great Alaska Shootout provides us with, a chance to go against topflight competi- tion. It was a challenge."

"Yesterday (against Kentucky) it was their quickness that got us," said Bruns, who coached at Kotzebue High School 20 years ago. "Today it was their size and Knight. I just talked to Butch in the hall- way and he said, "I thought he could do anything he wanted to against me."

 

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