COLLEGE BASKETBALL / DAILY REPORT

Barring a last-minute change of plans, President Clinton’s string of Final Four appearances ends at one.

According to Oklahoma State Coach Eddie Sutton, a longtime Clinton friend, the President called this week and said he wouldn’t be traveling to Seattle to watch Arkansas play North Carolina in the semifinals.

Last year at Charlotte, N.C., Clinton became the first President to attend a Final Four. He picked the right one, as the former Arkansas governor saw the Razorbacks win a national title.

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Arkansas Coach Nolan Richardson, who never met a question he didn’t like, waxed long and poetic about the prospect of facing North Carolina’s Dean Smith for the third time in the last six NCAA tournaments.

“I love it,” said Richardson, whose team was eliminated by the Tar Heels in the 1993 East Regional semifinals, the same season North Carolina won the national title. “I always said I got here late. I got to catch up. There is only one way to catch up--play the best. Any time, any where, any place.

“The best in the business, in my estimation, is Dean.”

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So much for trying to put the fear of you-know-who in North Carolina. When asked how he felt about his “Big Nasty” nickname, 6-7, 245-pound Arkansas forward Corliss Williamson turned all warm and fuzzy.

“On the court, I am the ‘Big Nasty,’ ” he said. “Off the court I guess you can call me the ‘Big Softy’ or the ‘Big Easy.’ ”

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Arkansas reserve center Darnell Robinson still is nursing an injured ankle, but Richardson said he should play today. The same goes for guard Clint McDaniel, who was hurt during a collision in the Midwest Regional final against Virginia last Sunday.