Special Collections - Anteater Antics

Archives for March 2011

UCI Basketball All-Americans

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As March Madness reaches a fevered pitch and the NCAA Division I championship games approach, a review of UCI Men’s and Women’s basketball accomplishments seems appropriate. Although neither program has ever won a national championship, there is a tradition of strong teams and players. Below is a list of UCI basketball players who have achieved All-American status while playing at UCI:

MEN’S BASKETBALL
Phil Rhyne 1972
Kevin Magee 1981-82
Ben McDonald 1984
Tod Murphy 1985
Scott Brooks 1987
Wayne Engelstad 1988
Jerry Green 2001-02

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Cheri Graham 1984
Allah-mi Basheer 1996

One of the greatest UCI players ever was forward Kevin Magee, pictured in early 1981 with legendary Men’s Head Coach Bill Mulligan. Magee played at UCI in 1980-81 and 1981-82.  A two-time All-American and Big West Conference (then PCAA) Player of the Year, he was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the second round of the 1982 NBA Draft. He played in Italy, France, Israel and Spain  throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, and was one of the greatest European players of that (or any) era. Kevin Magee averaged 26.3 points and 12.3 rebounds for the Anteaters. He still holds school records for points, with 46 against Loyola Marymount, and rebounds, with 25 against Long Beach State. Bill Mulligan said that Kevin Magee was “the best basketball player I ever coached.”  Kevin Magee died in a car accident in Louisiana in 2003.

AS-061. University Communication Photographs. Special Collections and Archives, the U.C. Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California.

Renovation Completed in Special Collections and Archives

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We have recently completed the renovation of Special Collections and Archives on the fifth floor of Langson Library. The renovation included a significantly improved Reading Room for researchers to use our material, and a new exhibit area. You are welcome to come by and see the improvements, and view our new exhibit on the history of surfing and surf culture in Orange County. Our normal hours are Monday-Friday, 11am-5pm.

Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Coco Fusco in 1992

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In 1992, on the 500th anniversary of the “discovery” of America by Christopher Columbus, artists Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Coco Fusco performed the piece “The Year of the White Bear: Take One” in several locations in the United States and Europe, including a performance in the UCI Fine Arts Gallery from February 24 – March 4, 1992. The piece recreates the experience of two native inhabitants who are captured and taken to the land of their conquerors to be exhibited as curiosities. Gómez-Peña and Fusco impersonate native Amerindians from the fictitious land of Guatinaui. They spent at least three days in a cage, were feed through bars, and were taken to the bathroom on leashes. They also performed dances and told stories from their “native” culture. The same piece was also performed in Columbus Plaza in Madrid in 1992. Below are photographs of the performance and the artists’ statement about the piece.

AS-061. University Communication Photographs. Special Collections and Archives, the U.C. Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California. [Photographs]
PS-070. Department of Studio Art Publications. Special Collections and Archives, the U.C. Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California. [Announcement]