COLLEGE BASKETBALL: 1993-94 SEASON PREVIEW : Two OF A DIFFERENT Kind : USC’s Lisa Leslie and UCLA’s Natalie Williams Hope to Finish Their Collegiate Careers in a Flourish

No matter what happens on the court, this season will be a watershed for women’s basketball in Los Angeles: Lisa Leslie of USC and Natalie Williams of UCLA will play their final seasons.

They came to the rival schools as two of the nation’s most celebrated recruits.

Leslie had been all-everything at Morningside High in Inglewood. Most memorably, she scored 101 points in a half against South Torrance High before the Spartans forfeited.

Williams, from Taylorsville High in Utah, might have been less known than Leslie in the Southland before arriving at UCLA, but as a basketball and volleyball high school All-American, she was no less recruited.

The first time Leslie and Williams played against each other, in 1990, Leslie accidentally dislocated Williams’ jaw in a scramble to get the ball.

Williams went to the bench to have her jaw put back in place and returned to the game.

“I kind of was mad, so I played better,” Williams said.

The Bruins won, 83-68. It was the only time a Williams-led UCLA team has defeated a Leslie-led USC team in the past three seasons.

The dislocated jaw was unintentional, but it showed the intensity that these two centers would bring to the game.

Looking over the past three years, UCLA and USC coaches said that Leslie, 6-foot-5, and Williams, 6-1, have provided some of the most awe-inspiring basketball in recent memory.

This season, both camps are looking forward to the final chapter of what will be a memorable era.

THE PLAYERS

As a freshman, Leslie was named the Pacific 10 conference and national freshman of the year. She has been an All-American the past two seasons and All-Pacific 10 selection the past three seasons, averaging 19.5 points and 9.4 rebounds in her career.

If she maintains that pace, she likely will finish her career second only to Cheryl Miller, USC coach, in the Trojans’ scoring and rebounding records.

Williams is noted for being the only woman to play two sports in one day, a feat she accomplished last year.

She has averaged 12.7 rebounds per game in her UCLA career, a Pac-10 record. She was an All-American last season and has been an all-conference selection the past two seasons.

What’s more, Williams was a four-time All-American for the UCLA volleyball team, from 1989-1992, leading the Bruins to NCAA championships in 1990 and 1991.

Despite the impressive statistics, both players have had their share of criticism. Some say Leslie has not reached expectations, even though those expectations were often outlandish. Others say Williams has failed to reach her potential in either sport she plays because of her busy, two-sport schedule.

But on the court, both have had moments that no one could criticize.

Leslie has been noted for her ability to dunk. Although she has never dunked in a game, she caught the attention of coaches at the U.S. Olympic basketball try-outs by dunking in practice.

Williams has made some equally eye-opening moves on the court.

Miller described one such play while sitting in her office at USC:

“I remember the ball was already up on the glass and Natalie took two steps, and she looked like she was just being set the ball,” Miller said, taking two giant steps across the floor in her office to emulate Williams.

“And she goes up and she pins the ball against the glass,” Miller said, stretching herself up against a wall for effect, “brings it down and starts to break.”

Miller laughed, recalling how she jumped from her seat and began shaking the person next to her in her excitement over the play.

RIVAL STARS

Leslie and Williams have been compared over and over for the past three years, yet the rival stars spend surprisingly little time thinking about each other, they said.

“We don’t really talk to cross-town rivals,” Williams said, jokingly, but added that they share a mutual respect for one another.

Despite the fact that they have had to share the spotlight in Los Angeles, they each said this city is big enough for both.

“I don’t feel like I’m watching television and I turn it on and (I say), ‘Oh she’s on. She got the interview’,” Leslie said. “Because (the exposure) is great for women’s basketball. Period. And that’s the way I look at it.”

But when they are about to play against each other, they are hardly so generous. They seldom guard each other because Leslie is so tall, but each tries to know where the other one is on the floor. They both have the same strategy: don’t let her get the ball.

“I think (Leslie) has a good shot from the high post which a lot of other posts don’t have,” Williams said. “She’ll shoot from anywhere and you have to take that into account. You really have to play her tight. She’ll drive, even though she’s pretty big. Just, basically be aware of what she might do at all times.”

Leslie said that she is more concerned about Williams this season than she has been in the past. Williams did not play volleyball this fall, so she has had more time to prepare for basketball.

“I’m sure that she has improved,” Leslie said. “I’m sure that she has done something because everybody will expect her to.”

You don’t get to be a star without also attaining a certain degree of confidence. Each one said she had the advantage over the other.

“Being so tall (Leslie) is very skinny for me and that has helped me,” Williams said. “It is easier for me to hold her off position-wise.”

Guess again, said Leslie.

“Well, I look at it the same way because I’m quicker,” Leslie said. “I think, that gives me an advantage, to use my quickness. I’m not going to win a muscle game with her, a fighting game, so I don’t get into it with her. I use my quickness, I get in and I get out.”

So, if Leslie and Williams were to play a game of one-on-one, which one would win?

“I think it would be her height and agility against my strength and rebounding, so I don’t know,” Williams said and then paused for a second. “Of course, I’m going to say me.”

No way, said Leslie.

THE FUTURE

There will be a slight twist to the story of the players’ senior seasons because both USC and UCLA have new coaches.

Miller was a four-time All-American at USC, leading the Trojans to two national championships in 1983 and 1984. Leslie has often been compared to Miller in her play.

“I think that there’s a lot more teaching going on because it’s new for us,” Leslie said about the coaching situation.

At UCLA, Kathy Olivier was an assistant for the past seven years before being promoted when Billie Moore resigned in the wake of much criticism after last season.

“It’s a great attitude right now on the team,” Williams said. “Everyone’s really excited about the new coaches.”

Both Leslie and Williams have set goals for their senior seasons. Leslie would like to be named Player of the Year in the Pac-10, which is one award to evade her. She also said that she would like to see the Trojans win the NCAA championship.

Williams’ goal is to enjoy playing with a starting lineup that includes four seniors.

“We know the talent that we have and we want to make it work this year,” Williams said. “Just, play the best that we can together.”

Currently the source of local admiration, the players probably will inspire national pride if Williams joins the U.S national volleyball team and Leslie joins the national basketball team after their college eligibility ends.

And after this season, what’s life going to be like in Los Angeles in the post-Williams/Leslie era?

“I’m not going to be sad to see (Leslie) go,” Olivier said. “For the game, I don’t think it’s good that (Leslie) is leaving, but for us, bye!”

That sentiment can be found at USC concerning Williams.

But there is little doubt that this season marks the end of an era.

“It’s going to be very quiet,” Miller said. “Man, is there life after Lisa and Natalie? I don’t want to know. I really don’t. You know, I don’t think so. I mean those are two of the most popular, well-known Los Angeles athletes that we have had in a very long time. They are big drawing cards, so it’s going to be a whole new look for USC and for UCLA next season. We are going to hold on to our precious moments as much as we can.”