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Shop Authentic Southern California basketball team remembers late point guard:
LOS
ANGELES (AP) - Southern California's basketball team paused at halftime
of its season opener Thursday night to remember point guard Ryan
Francis, who was fatally shot in his home state of Louisiana. The
19-year-old player was killed in a drive-by shooting on Mother's Day
weekend. The man accused of the shooting, D'Anthony Ford, is being held
without bond in a Baton Rouge prison. Francis' mother,
Paulette, did not address the crowd in USC's new arena, but a statement
of her appreciation was read aloud as the entire team crowded around
her to exchange hugs and kisses. In the statement, she called the alleged gunman "a coward who stood behind a gun and took Ryan's life." As
South Carolina players headed to their locker room at halftime, the
arena lights were lowered and a video tribute opened with USC players
talking about Francis, who was his mother's only child. "We love you, Franchise," forward Nick Young said, using Francis' nickname. Clips
of Francis driving to the basket against crosstown rival UCLA were
paced by Cajun music. The crowd rose to its feet in applause as the
video ended and the screen read, `We miss you Ryan. Your spirit will
live on forever.' "He was our heart and soul," USC athletic director Mike Garrett said. USC
coach Tim Floyd introduced comedian Tom Arnold, who was filming a movie
in Baton Rouge at the time of Francis' shooting and contacted Floyd
after hearing about the close relationship between Francis and his
mother. Arnold told the crowd that he was raised without a
mother and meeting Paulette Francis inspired him to seek money for
scholarships from his brother, who worked at the University of Phoenix. "We
have given out $50 million worth of scholarships, and Paulette is
getting one," Arnold said, explaining that he never graduated from the
University of Iowa. "I'm going to get my degree now, too." Francis had a 3.0 grade-point average as a freshman at USC. "That has a lot to with his mother," Arnold said. "A 3.0 here is like a 6.0 at UCLA." Floyd presented Paulette Francis, who wore a T-shirt bearing her son's smiling face, with a framed No. 12 jersey. "Thank
you for letting us have your son. We loved him," he said. "He was a
wonderful young guy. We're never, ever going to forget him. This lady
is always going to be a part of the Trojan family." USC's players will wear a black patch with Francis' number on their jerseys this season.
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