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COVER STORY Alford receives the pass on the outlet ... pushes the ball up the floor ... looks for the open man .. .. He's got Thomas on his right .. . fakes the pass ... splits the defenders .. . pumps once ... scores! ... Indiana leads .. . AWN ... YAWN. Seemingly just another day at the office for point guard Steve Alford. The smooth 6-foot-2 senior led Indiana University to the National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball championship this season, averaging 22 points a game. But his fluid movements on the floor belie the effort and diligence away from the camera that went into his contributions toward the team's national title. Alford ended his career as the Hoosiers' four-time Most Valuable Player. He finished as the number 2 all-time scorer in the Big 10 Conference - a mere deuce behind Michigan's Mike McGee. That's 2,438 points, folks. Not bad for a guy who's said to be too slow, can't jump and doesn't play defense. Those must be the same folks who are evaluating Larry Bird. Toss in a 1984 Olympic gold medal in basketball and we know we're talking about one talented athlete. On the court, the transition game may mean the difference between wins or losses, fame or failure. When possession changes, the team wants the ball in capable hands, hopefully someone who can challenge the defense, pass his way out of a jam, create defensive problems, bury a jumper, and hit a free throw or two. In short, someone like Steve Alford. The statistics speak for themselves: two-time first team All-American ... 1987 Big 10 MVP ... all-time Indiana scoring leader ... career shooting accuracy of 53.3% ... top IU career free throw accuracy of 89.6% ... 1071202 in three-point shooting ... 1983 national prep Player-of the- Year . . . third on IU charts with 385 assists. Pretty impressive for a young man who was booed in his freshman year of high school simply because he was "a coach's son" and was playing in front of older and stronger boys. No Chicago politics allowed here. Indiana fans won't tolerate favoritism or nepotism. Young Alford ignored the booing for the most part, realizing that, then only 5-foot-10, he would have to outwork his opponents if he was going to compete. Following his freshman year, Steve picked up his pail and hard hat. Blue-collar work ethics with an executive's style. Adding a few more inches to his frame didn't hurt his competitive chances either. "It was obvious that I wasn't the best player on the floor, and that really bothered me," said Steve,
BY KAREN RUDOLPH DROLLINGER
Indiana's Steve Alford moves from studentathlete to professional athlete.