Ridin' Roughshod

It is said that there are eight million stories in the Naked City. Last week it seemed as if there were at least that many floating around Madison Square Garden, where the semifinal and final games of the preseason National Invitation Tournament were played. If Georgia Tech coach Bobby Cremins, who is from the Bronx, wasn't talking about how, as a kid, he used to sneak into the Garden, then Texas coach Tom Ponders, who grew up in Stratford. Conn., and later coached at Columbia and Fordham, was recalling that his childhood reward for a good report card was a trip to Manhattan for the NIT. They spoke so fondly of their New York days that it would have only mildly surprised observers had the two coaches ditched the tournament, grabbed a cab and headed uptown to Runyon's, one of their favorite watering holes.

Then there were two of the tournament's prized freshmen, Texas guard Terrence Rencher and Pittsburgh forward Orlando Antigua, former teammates at St. Raymond's High School in the Bronx. With Antigua and freshman guard Jerry McCullough of Rice High School in Harlem on his roster. Pitt coach Paul Evans's biggest recruiting expense last year may have been for subway tokens.

The only one of the four teams at the NIT without obvious New York City roots was Oklahoma State. In fact the Cowboys' center, 7-foot freshman Bryant Reeves, represented the other end of the spectrum. Bryant is from Gans, Okla., a metropolis of some 350 residents. "We told him he needed to go to the city to get better competition over the summer." says Cowboy assistant Rob Evans. "We were thinking Tulsa or Oklahoma City. He went to Sallisaw, which has about 450 people in it."

Yet Reeves and his teammates appeared to be more at home in the Big Apple than their opponents. That may be because Oklahoma State shares what many New Yorkers consider to be some of their best qualities: The Cowboys are pushy when they need to be, know how to live by their wits and possess a certain rough-and-tumble charm. It was only logical, then, that they thumped Georgia Tech 78-71 in the final last Friday and took the NIT championship trophy home to Stillwater, along with the confidence that comes with being a success in New York. "If we can make it here, we can make it anywhere." said Byron Houston. Oklahoma State's powerful senior forward. Somebody had to say it.

The NIT is a little like the New Hampshire presidential primary: It guarantees nothing, confirms a few theories and creak's a few more. This year's tournament didn't exactly capture the hearts and minds of the city; the Garden was a bit more than half full, with 10,865 spectators, for the championship game. Nonetheless, there were conclusions to be drawn. Among them is that freshman point guard Travis Best, who arrived at Georgia Tech from Springfield. Mass., amid much fanfare, doesn't yet handle the reins for the Yellow Jackets as gracefully as he handles questions about how difficult it is to replace All-America Kenny Anderson. Also, the Big East coaches who picked Pitt to finish seventh in the conference might want to reconsider their vote. To get to New York, the Panthers knocked off NIT favorite Kentucky in a second-round game in Lexington, where the Wildcats had won 22 consecutive games. Once at the Garden, Pitt gave a good accounting of itself.

But more than anything else, the NIT proved that the Final Four is a realistic goal for Oklahoma State. If the Cowboys get to Minneapolis, site of the 1992 NCAA championship, it will be largely because of the 6'7", 250-pound Houston, who earned the Most Valuable Player award last week with a performance that was equal parts steel and velvet. Houston, who averaged 26.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in Oklahoma State's two outings in New York, is a man of many talents. He's strong enough to send an opponent crashing to the floor with a flick of a forearm, as he did Pittsburgh's 6'10", 235-pound center, Darren Morningstar, in the semifinals. He's agile enough to give a pump fake and drive to the basket for a soft layup, as he did against Georgia Tech's 7'1" center, Matt Geiger, in the final. And he has enough range as a shooter to make five of six three-point attempts, as he did in his 34-point, 15-rebound performance against the Panthers. "If there's something that Byron can't do, I haven't found it yet," says Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton. "There's a misconception that he's only an inside player."

Houston's bruised opponents wouldn't describe him so benignly. Even Houston has acknowledged his reputation as a dirty player and says he earned it while trying to establish his turf at Oklahoma State. "When I was a freshman, I'd throw an elbow or try to trip you in a quick second," he says. "I came in trying to get people to fear me. I had my head shaved to help me intimidate people, and it all worked. But I've changed. Now people do more to me than I do to them."

Houston would have a hard time convincing others of that, partly because in style and demeanor he could pass for Mike Tyson's taller brother. He has an incongruously high voice, similar to Tyson's, and he shares with Tyson a taste for physical contact. The mention of a crushing pick he set on Friday, a move that nearly folded Georgia Tech guard Jon Barry like an accordion, brought a high-pitched giggle from Houston. "When the guy's teammates don't let him know there's a pick, I know he's going to get crunched." Houston said. "Then the guy will look at me out of the corner of his eye, a little dazed, you know? When I see that, I can't help but smile. It's a little bit funny."

Houston finds no humor in his early childhood in Kansas City, Kans., where he was, by his own description, "a true juvenile delinquent. I got sent home from school every other day. I had a major shoplifting operation going. We would tie firecrackers on cats."

Houston found more constructive outlets for his energy after his family moved to Del City, an Oklahoma City suburb, when he was in junior high. He also began to grow into the chiseled specimen he is today. Houston regularly outlifts OSU linebackers in the weight room, and he keeps up his strength with prodigious amounts of food. The Cowboys left New York still talking about the "snack" Houston downed after their 74-63 semifinal victory over Pitt: a Quarter Pounder with cheese, a Big Mac, two cheeseburgers, two hamburgers and a large fries.