The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 25

SUNDAY, MAY 7, 1995 The Indianapolis Star Dn feint of rematch Pacere remember Knicks dont own the, market on toughness Bill Benner PACERS-KNICKS WHERE: Madison Square Garden, New York. TIPOFF: 11 :30 a.m. today. TVRADIO: WTHR-13, FM. PROBABLE STARTERS (Statistics from first playoff round) Indiana Player Pos.

Ht. PPG RPG Derrick McKey 6-10 12.7 5.7 New York There is no way to measure toughness. You can't weigh it, size it or quantify it. But you know it when you see it. And in the NBA, that's anytime the New York Knicks walk on the floor.

Pacers vs. Knicks (Best-of-seven) All games on WNDE-1260 AM, FM Sunday: at New York, 11 :30 a.m., WTHR-13 Tuesday: at New York, 7 p.m., TNT, WTTV-4 Thursday: at MSA, time TBA, TNT, WTTV-4 May 13: at MSA, noon, WTHR-13 x-May 17: at New York, 7 p.m., TNT, WTTV-4 x-May 19: at MSA, 7 p.m., TNT, WTTV-4 x-May 21: at New York, time TBA, WTHR-13 x-lf necessary 7.7 6-11 7.3 Dale Davis 74 18.3 10.3 Rik Smits 6-7 31.7 3.7 Reggie Miller 6-3 12.7 5.0 Mark Jackson New York is the same rugged, tough-minded team that eliminated Indiana last year. By Dan Dunkin STAR STAFF WRITER New York Your hair still stands at the mention of Mike Mathls, whose call of a flagrant foul on Reggie Miller effectively ended the Indiana Pacers' dream last season. You still scream bloody murder at the non-call on Patrick Ewing, who was carrying five fouls, when Dale Davis' layup gave the Pacers a one-point lead with 34.5 seconds to play in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals. You recall your wife talking you out of tossing the TV out the window when Ewing, 7.6 ticks later, dunked a rebound for the New York Knicks' go-ahead points.

From the apex of Pacer mania 11 months ago to the return to their proving ground today in the Eastern semifinals, those demons won't go away. But when dreams New York 6-10 13.3 4.3 Charles Smith 6-8 10.3 8.0 Charles Oakley 7-0 18.5 11.0 Patrick Ewing 6-5 13.0 2.5 John Starks 64 15.5 3.8 Derek Harper Love Hiem or loathe them and many thousands of Hoosiers are leaning decidedly toward the latter this morning you can't deny that the Knicks are, in the baseball vernacular, one tough out. They have tenacity. They have attitude. They have toughness.

talent isn't bad, either. "The Indiana Pacers have been made painfully aware of the Knicks' diehard will. Game 6 of last year's Eastern Conference finals, with the Knicks down 3-2 to the Pacers and reeling from Reggie Miller's 25-point fourth quarter in Game 5, may be Exhibit A. Coming to a Market Square Arena madhouse, the Knicks were never stronger or more stubborn and forced the Game 7 they would win. I And Just a few weeks ago, with home-court advantage in the balance, and again after the Pacers had beaten them in New York, the Knicks frustrated the MSA faithful once more.

In a stare-me-down game, the Knicks didn't blink. That victory now looms large, since today the Pacers will open the Eastern Conference semifinals in Madison Square Garden, having See BENNER Page 4 are dashed, blind passion churns out a selective memory. The following plays and how they happened were the real killers: Charles Oakley jumping out on Miller off a screen, getting a hand in his face and throwing off See PACERS Page 4 File Photo INSIDE GAME: The Patrick EwingRik Smits matchup will again be crucial. as puts Mike Aulby became the first bowler to win the Tournament of Champions and Masters in the same year. ,4 Li A surprise lis 1 spo 4 p1te 'i Aulby takes ABC Masters crown home Indy bowler throws two of the tourney's five perfect games.

Associated Press Reno. Nev. Professional bowler Mike Aulby, only two weeks removed from becoming the first person to win bowling's Grand Slam, made more history Saturday by capturing the $250,000 American Bowling Congress Bud Light Masters at the National Bowling Stadium. The 35-year-old left-hander from Indianapolis won the title by defeating fellow pro Mark Williams of Beaumont, Texas, 200-187. The victory netted Aulby $50,600.

By so doing, he became the first bowler to win the Tournament of Champions and Masters in the same year. He also became only the fifth competitor to win the Masters twice after taking the crown in 1989. "The last two or three weeks have been unreal," said Aulby, whose Brunswick Tournament of Champions victory came April 22 in suburban Chicago. "First, to win the Tournament of Champions, which I had wanted to win for so long, and now to be the first Masters winner here in the Stadium." Aulby advanced to the title match by beating Ryan Shafer 222-170. The stepladder finals began with Bob Benoit beating Larry Laub 195-186.

Shafer then beat Benoit 190-157 before Aulby started his championship drive. The victory capped a week in which Aulby threw two of the tournament's five 300 games. Thunder Gulch beats 25-1 odds and outraces the field for victory in 121st edition of Kentucky Derby By Don Bates STAR STAFF WRITER Louisville, Ky. That D. Wayne Lukas won the race did not come as a surprise.

The way he won it did. All week long at Churchill Downs the focus of attention in Lukas' barn was the celebrated tandem of Serena's Song and Timber Country. Wily Wayne didn't say much about the ace he had up his sleeve a colt named Thunder Gulch. Virtually damned by faint praise and spurned by the betting public, Thunder Gulch Saturday afternoon showed his hind quarters to 18 of the world's finest 3-year-olds to claim the 121st running of the Kentucky Derby. The race left no doubt who the best horse was on this particular day.

Thunder Gulch, ridden by Gary Stevens and sent off at 25-1 odds, broke alertly and gradually worked his way forward. He broke out of a three-way duel with Serena's Song and Talkin Man at the head of the homestretch, then drew away to a 2'4-length victory over Tejano Run and rider Jerry Bailey. The winning time was 2:01.27, roughly 2 seconds off Secretariat's record. Thunder Gulch's win shocked chalk bettors. It didn't surprise Stevens.

"I can't explain it but for three days 1 had a gut feeling everything would go right," said Stevens. He obviously kept his premonition under wraps. Thunder Gulch, the chestnut son of GulchLine of Thunder, paid $51.00 to win, $24.20 to place and $12.20 to show. The win price was the Derby's largest since Proud Clarion returned $62.20 in 1967. The favored Timber Country, ridden by Pat Day, had traffic problems but made a late run to finish third.

See THUNDER GULCH Page 15 TJ. Associated Press COMING HOME: Thunder Gulch, ridden by Gary Stevens, outdistances the Kentucky Derby's large field. Luyendyk, Brayton display early speed nun Cheever-AJ. combo is working I Li Robin Miller HIGHLIGHTS- I Ten years ago. if you had suggest- ver he would be racing in America for A.J.

Foyt and oval tracks would be his favorite, his likely response the Glidden '95 LolaMenard during the cool of a wondrous afternoon. It was the fastest ever first-day run and second only to Jim Crawford's all-time practice best of 233.433 mph (set in 1992) on the IMS history books. Trap speeds had Menard's teammates at 240 mph. Brayton, in the Quaker State '95 LolaMenard, checked in with a lap of 232.408 mph following Luyendyk's run to leave everyone in Gasoline Alley nodding their heads like it was no surprise or shaking their heads like it's a two-car battle come Saturday. "I hope everyone is right, but I'm not going to assume anything," said Luyendyk.

"Obviously, we haven't seen all the competition and we haven't got this thing licked yet. "You know, we spent a lot of Menard teammates log practice laps of more than 232 mph. By Robin Miller STAR ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR Many drivers and mechanics had conceded the pole position for the 79th Indianapolis 500 to John Menard's tandem of Arie Luyendyk and Scott Brayton long before Saturday's opening round of practice. Now they're convinced. In the most impressive May debut ever.

Team Menard opened Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a double blast of speed that only promises to go higher. Luyendyk, reduced as an Indy specialist for the second time in his career, didn't just hit the track running he was in orbit. The 1990 Indianapolis 500 winner un- rnrkeH a lanjif 933 981 mnh )n NBA PLAYOFFS San Antonio 110 LA Lakers AMERICAN LEAGUE Minnesota 5 Cleveland 2 Boston 5 Detroit 3 Toronto 7 Baltimore 3 Milwaukee 5 New York 2 fexas 4 Oakland 2 Chicago 7 Kansas City 4 California 7 Seattle 5 NATIONAL LEAGUE Florida 10 Montreal 3 Cincinnati 13 New York 11 ilos Angeies 17 Colorado 11 Chicago 13 Pittsburgh 5 Philadelphia 3 Atlanta 1 St. Louis 7 Houston 5 San Francisco 13 San Diego 6 AMERICAN ASSOCIATION Oklspma City 7 lndins 3 a blue-collar legend who wrestled sprinters and the English language? A headstrong driver and an uncompromising owner? Mixing Chateaubriand with Texas barbeque? But as unlikely as this fire-and-ice combination looks, it's been more competitive than combative so far in 1995. "Everybody has this idea A.J.

and I have this calm relationship but that's not true," admitted Cheever. "People also have an image of this angry bear that argues with everyone and, actually, he's one of the easiest people I've worked with. "Working with A.J. is not easy and I've been told working with me isn't easy either, but I've got to Sev MILLER Paqe 6 Saturday: Arie Luyendyk opened practice for the 1995 Indianapolis 500 with the second-fastest speed in the history of the track. The 1990 Indy winner ran 233 mph and teammate Scott Brayton was close behind at 232.

Up to speed: Drivers' time chart. Page 6. Pit pass: Dick Simon becomes oldest driver to officially practice on the track. Page 6. Daily updates: Call The Star's InfoLine service at 624-4636 (punch in 1520) for updates from Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

A would have been, "That's absurd." On the flip side, the first four-time Indianapolis 500 winner might have replied, "That's ri-dickulus." A Formula One regular on a nice retainer coming to the states to drive for a percentage and one of the least sophisticated creatures on this planet? A well-spoken Jetsetter who grew ud racing teaming with See Pane 6.