The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • Page 34

THE COURIER-JOURNAL TUESDAY, MARCH 21, 2000 D7' Pro Basketball O'Neal leads Lakers' charge i WESTERN CONFERENCE MIDWEST DIVISION Pet GB L10 Str. EASTERN CONFERENCE ATLANTIC DIVISION Pel GB L10 Str. Miami 42 24 .636 64 L-1 New York 40 25 .615 Vh 64 L-1 Philadelphia ...38 28 .576 4 7-3 W-3 Orlando 32 36 .471 11 5-5 W-1 x-Boston 30 36 .455 12 7-3 3 New Jersey ...28 37 .431 13i 64 L-1 x-Washington 22 45 .328 5-5 W-2 CENTRAL DIVISION Indiana 46 Toronto 39 Charlotte 35 Detroit 33 Milwaukee .....31 Cleveland 26 Atlanta 24 Chicago 13 Pet .687 .600 .530 .508 .453 .394 .369 ,197 GB 6 10 12 15 19V4 21 32 L10 73 9-1 46 6-4 3- 7 4- 6 2-8 19 Str. W3 W-4 L-3 W-1 L-2 W-1 L4 L-7 Sunday's results LA Lakers 92, New York Detroit 101, Vancouver 99; Dallas 89, Atlanta 85; 82; Phoenix 99, Golden State 82. LAST NIGHT'S GAMES Cleveland 98, Houston 85 Philadelphia 102, Charlotte 96 LA Lakers 100, Miami 89 Orlando 88, Chicago 86, OT Boston at Phoenix Washington at LA Clippers TONIGHT'S New Jersey at Miami at Atlanta, New York at Cleveland at San Antonio Denver at Utah, Last night's summaries Magic 88, Bulls 86, OT Chicago ORLANDO (S8) Wallace 0 4 0 2 0.

Outlaw 1-2 2- 5 i. AmaecfH S-12 1-3 12, Mercer 7-18 5-6 19, Armstrong 6-15 8-8 20. Maggette 4-8 5-5 13. Doteac 1-4 1-2 3. Atkins 1-7 0-0 2.

A Johnson 3-6 1-4 7. Gamty 3-7 0-0 8 Totals 31 -83 24-35 88 CHICAGO (86) Artest 5-8 0-1 10, Brand 7-19 4 9 18, Anstey 4-1 14-4 12, Brown 0 3 0-0 0, Hawkins 4 7 0- 0 8, Ch Carr 5-16 2-2 12. S.mpkms 2 3 3-4 7, Armstrong 1-5 OO 3. Beniamm 3-7 0-0 7, Matoney 3- 6 0-69 Totals 34-85 13-20 86. ORLANDO MAGIC .21 19 24 17 7-8 CHICAGO BULLS 11 19 33 18 5-86 Goals-Orlando 2-7 (Garnty 2-4.

Atkins 0-1 Armstrong 0-2), Chicago 518 (Maloney 3-5. Armstrong 1-2, Beniamm 1-, Artest 0-1, Hawkins 0-3. Ch Carr 0-4) Fouled out-Anstey Rebounds Orlando SO (Doleac, Wallace 9). Chicago 71 (Brand 17). Assjsts-Orlando 23 (D.Armstrong, Atkins 6), Chicago 28 (Hawkins 7).

Total touls-Orlando 22. Chicago 30. A 21.813 (21.711). Lakers 100, Heat 89 i At Miami LOS ANGELES LAKERS (100) Qreen 0-0 0-0 0. Rice 7-15 11-12 28.

O'Neal 12-22 4-6 28, Bryant 11-25 1- 1 '23, Harper 3-5 3-3 9, Horry 5-6 1-112. Fox 0-0 0-0 0. (fisher 0-2 0-0 0. Salley 0-0 0-0 0, Shaw 0-0 0-0 0, George 00 0-0 0, Knight 00 0-0 0. Totals 38-75 20-23 100.

MIAMI (89) Mashbum 6 17 0-0 13, Strickland 4-7 2- 2 10, Mourning 12 25 9-10 33. Maierle 0-2 0-0 0. Hardaway 6-14 2-4 15, Weatherspoon 4-9 5-6 13, Bowen 0 2 OO 0. Carter 0-0 1-2 1, Bulord 2 5 0-0 4. Totals 34-81 19-24 89 LOS ANGELES LAKERS .21 21 33 25-100 MIAMI HEAT 23 32 14 20- 89 3-Pomt Goals-L A.

Lakers 4-9 (Rice 3-6, Horry 1-2. Harper 0-1), Miami 2-15 (Hardaway 1-5, Mashbum 1-6, Majerie 0 2, Bowen 0-2) Fouled out None. Lakers 49 (O'Neal 12), Miami 43 (Mourning 13). Lakers 19 (Bryant 4), Miami 19 (Hardaway 7). Total touts A Lakers 22, Miami 24.

Technicals-Fox 2. Ejected-Fox. I 76ers 102, Hornets 96 At Charlotte, N.C. PHILADELPHIA (102) Lynch 5-8 0O 10, Hill 6-12 4- 6.16, Ratlrlt 7-14 0-0 14. Iverson 9-24 4-7 25, Snow 5- 7 4-4 14, Kukoc 4-101-2 9.

Geiger 4-110-2 8, McKie 2-4 1 -2 6, Oil 0-1 0-00. Totals 42-91 14-23 102. CHARLOTTE (96) Mason 6-13 2-2 14. Coleman 4-8 0-0 8, Campbell 4-7 5-8 13. Wesley 8-15 0-1 17, E.Jones 9-18 8-12 28.

Robinson 7-10 0-0 14. Davis 0- 4.1-2 1, Fuller 0-0 1-2 1, Brown 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-7517-2796 PHILADELPHIA 76ERS 27 34 18 23102 CHARLOTTE HORNETS. 26 24 22 24 96 Goals-Philadelphia 4-8 (Iverson 3-5. McKie 1- 2, Kukoc 0-1).

Charlotte 3-13 (E Jones 2 6. Wesley 1-4, Coleman 0-1, B.Davis 0-2) Fouled out None. Rebounds-Philadelphia 55 (Hill 14), Charlotte 50 (Ma'son 11). Assrsts-Philadelphia 27 (Snow 10), Chartotte 25 (Wesley 10). Total fours-Philadelphia 25, Charlotte 21 Technicals-Kukoc, McKie.

Mason. Flagrant fouls Coleman 2. A 16,281 i GAMES Toronto, 7 7:30 Indiana, 8 Minnesota, 8 at Dallas, 8:30 9 Golden State at Vancouver, 10 Detroit at Seattle, 10:30 Washington at Sacramento, 10:30 low as Chicago lost for the 15th time in 16 games. Mercer, who finished with 19-points, sank a short jumper from the baseline to make it 86-84 in overtime. Darrell Armstrong had 20 points for- Orlando.

Brand had 18 points and 15 re-'' bounds and Chris Antsey a career high 16 rebounds for Chicago. 76ers 102, Hornets 96: Allen Iverson scored 25 points and Philadelphia withstood two second-half rallies in a victory at Charlotte. Tyrone Hill had 16 points and Eric Snow and Theo Ratliff 14 each for the 76ers. Eddie Jones led Charlotte with 28, followed by David Wesley '-with 17 and Eddie Robinson and thony Mason with 14 each. The Sixers, trying to catch Toronto for fourth place in the conference and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, moved threiS games ahead of sixth-place Charlotte? Charlotte led 36-35 when Derrick Coleman was ejected for a flagrant foul against Toni Kukoc with 6:41 left in the second quarter.

Kukoc sustained a small cut his right eye as a result of the foul. After the cut was stitched in the er room, Kukoc returned late in the second period and later drew a technical foul himself. Cavaliers 98, Rockets 85: Bob Sura scored seven points as host Cleveland pulled away early in the 'J, fourth quarter to snap a six-game 1 losing streak with a victory Houston, which lost its eighth" straight. Shawn Kemp and Lamond Murray added 17 points apiece, Sura had 16 and Andre Miller 12 as the Cavs won for the first time since March 5. Rookie Steve Francis and Williams had 17 points each for the Rockets.

T.1 Shaq's 28 points, 12 rebounds help snap Heat's streak Associated Press Shaquille O'Neal dominated during a pivotal stretch early in the second half last night and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a 13-point half-time deficit to beat the Heat 100-89 at Miami. The loss ended Miami's franchise-record 13-game home winning streak. O'Neal had eight points, three blocks and a dazzling assist during a 22-2 run that put Los Angeles ahead to stay in the matchup of division leaders. He finished with 28 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who have won 22 of their past 23 games. "I had to pick up my defense," O'Neal said, "and I did." Miami played shorthanded up front because of injuries to P.

Brown (sprained ankle) and Otis Thorpe (foot). Alonzo Mourning scored 33 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. But he missed his first seven shots in the second half and had three straight attempts blocked by O'Neal during the Lakers' big spurt. The Lakers, playing their fourth game in five nights, took charge after falling behind 57-42 early in the third period. O'Neal threw a one-handed alley-oop pass to Kobe Bryant for a dunk that made the score 59-59, then sank consecutive baskets to put Los Angeles ahead.

Miami never was closer than three points in the final minutes, and three-pointers by Robert Horry and Glen Rice helped seal the victory. Rice finished with 28 points, and Bry- all over the place." The number of teams also means that the star players do not play as often in every city. The most widely cited geographical problem facing the league involves the newly designated heir to Jordan, Carter. NBC has been realigning its schedule to include his games. He paid off that endorsement by scoring 51 points in his first nationally televised game.

Still, his next game was included in the pair that set the new low for NBC in prime time (even though he scored 34 points in that one). One problem cited is the team Carter plays for, the Toronto Raptors, a team many casual sports fans prob ADVERTISEMENT By JA 1 ASSOCIATED PRESS Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon dunked over Shawn Kemp of the Cavs for his only points in 16 minutes of play last night. ant added 23. Foul trouble limited O'Neal to 17 minutes and 12 points in the first half, and Miami shot 56 percent to lead 55-42 at the half. Magic 88, Bulls 86: Ron Mercer hit the go-ahead jumper with 48 seconds left in overtime and Orlando survived two last-second misses to win at Chicago and end a three-game losing streak.

The Bulls had a chance to tie in the closing seconds, but Chris Carr's short shot from the right side was off and Elton Brand missed a short fol ably still do not know is in the NBA. "David Stern needs to make some move to get Carter to Chicago or New York," said Donnie Deutsch, chairman of Deutsch which represents clients such as Foot Locker. "The rest of the league needs him in a big media market." Stern scoffed at that suggestion, saying a city's size is no impediment to a star emerging. "A few years ago, Orlando became a huge team for us," he said. What the league needs, both he and Ebersol argued, is more time to get fans entranced with talents such as Carter and Bryant.

NBA ratings drop 20 percent in prime time, much to NBC's chagrin Utah 44 21 San Antonio ...42 24 Minnesota 39 26 Dallas 28 38 Denver 27 39 Houston 24 43 Vancouver 18 49 .677 .636 .600 .424 .409 .358 .269 9-1 6-4 73 3-7 2-8 2 0-10 W-1 W-1 W2 W-1 L-1 L8 L-1 2 2-! 5 16' 17 21 27 PACIFIC DIVISION y-LA Lakers ...56 y-Portland 50 x-Phoemx 42 Seattle 40 Pet .824 .758 .646 .597 .585 .258 .209 GB 4i 12 15 16 zm 41 L10 9-1 5-5 8-2 5- 5 6- 4 1-9 28 Str. W-3 W-1 W-3 L-1 W-1 L-1 L-3 Sacramento ...38 27 Golden St 17 49 x-LA Clippers .14 53 x-last night's game not included; pinched playoffs. 85; Utah 92, New Jersey 88; Toronto 100, Houston 98; Philadelphia 89, Orlando 85; Minnesota 109, Milwaukee TOMORROW'S GAMES Minnesota at Boston, 7 Toronto at Philadelphia, 7 New Jersey at Charlotte. 7:30 Chicago at New York, 7:30 Atlanta at Orlando, 7:30 LA Clippers at San Antonio, 8.30 Sacramento at Phoenix, 9 Detroit at Portland, 10 Golden St. at LA Lakers, 10 30 Sunday's summary Suns 99, Warriors 82 At Oakland, Calif.

PHOENIX (99) Robinson 10-16 34 25, Marion 1-6 24 4, Longley 3-7 0-0 6. Hardaway 8-17 0-0 16. Kidd 4-11 44 15. Blount 2-5 0-0 4. Rogers 7-13 2-4 21, Bailey 1-2 2-2 4, Livingston 1-4 0-0 3, MacLean 0-2 1-2 1.

Totals 37-83 14-20 99. GOLDEN STATE (82) Marshall 3-9 4-4 10, Owens 0-6 00 0. Foyle 3-4 1-2 7, Hughes 9-24 6-8 25, Blaylock 3-12 1-2 7, Cummmgs 4-14 0-0 8. Caffey 8-13 4-10 20, Jacobson 1-2 0-0 2. Farmer 0-2 34 3, Young 0-2 0-0 0 Totals 31-88 19-30 82.

PHOENIX SUNS 32 22 22 23-99 GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS 21 26 19 1682 3-Pomt Goals Phoenix 11-18 (Rogers 5-5. Kidd 3-5, Robinson 2-5, Livingston 1-3), Golden Slate 1-9 (Hughes 1-2, Marshall 0-1, Blaylock 0-3, V.Cummings 0-3). Fouled out None. Rebounds-Phoenix 62 (Marion 13), Golden State 58 (Marshall, Hughes 9) Assists Phoenix 31 (Kidd 14), Golden State 21 (Blaylock 8). Total fouls Phoenix 26.

Golden State 19. A from 7 to 9 p.m. on March 12 to see games between the Knicks and San Antonio, the teams that squared off in last year's playoff finals, and in other parts of the country Seattle against Toronto, the latter featuring Carter, who has become the league's latest hope to replace Jordan as a high-flying scoring talent. For the season, NBC is averaging only about 5.9 million fans for its regular-season prime-time games, down from 7.4 million last season. The ratings falloff has serious economic implications for NBC because the audiences clearly are not approaching advertisers' expectations.

Normally advertisers buy time on network programs with a guarantee of certain audience figures. NBC does not give a formal guarantee to its NBA advertisers, but there is an understanding that if the network falls short of expectations it will offer what are known as make good advertisements free commercials. Bob Igiel, president of broadcast for Media Edge, a division of the Young Rubicam advertising agency, among several other executives, pointed to the sheer number of NBA games that an average TV viewer can see every week as one reason the weekend games have little special appeal. Turner Broadcasting's cable channels have as many as four games a week, and local channels such as MSG in New York carry a home team's games, and cable stations' ratings are down as well. "There are so many games and so many teams," Igiel said.

"The NBA is 1 ffl Win great prizes in the Play It Again Sports New Thursday, March 23rd 5:00 P.M. University of Louisville vs. Elon College double header Cavaliers 98, Rockets 85 At Cleveland HOUSTON (85) K.Thomas 2-5 0-2 4, Williams 7-9 2-2 17, Olajuwon 1-5 0-0 2, Francis 8-14 0-0 17, Anderson 0-3 0-0 0, Norris 3-1 1 1-2 8, Galo 4-10 2-2 10, Mobley 4-10 3-311. Rogers 3-4 2-8 8. Drew 2-3 0-0 4.

Ant. Miller 0-0 0-0 0, Giay 1-2 2-4 4. Totals 35-76 12-23 85 CLEVELAND (98) Murray 7-14 2-2 17. Kemp 4-9 9-12 17, Bryant 3-8 0-0 6, And Miller 5-9 2-2 12. Person 3-5 1-1 8, DeClercq 4-8 0-0 8.

Knight 3-9 0-0 6, Sura 7-10 0-0 16. Ferry 1-5 0-0 2, Henderson 2-4 2-2 6. Boykins 0-2 00 0, Ketner 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 39-83 16-1998 HOUSTON 17 22 23 23-85 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS 18 21 30 2998 3 Point Goals Houston 3-13 (Williams 1-1. Norris 1-3, Francis 1-4.

Anderson 0-1. Mobley 0-2. Thomas 0-2), Cleveland 4-5 (Sura 2-3, Person 1-1. Murray 1-1). Fouled out -None.

Rebounds Houston 49 (Rogers, Cato 7). Cleveland 50 (Kemp 10) Assists Houston 29 (Mobley, Francis, K.Thomas, Norris 4), Cleveland 29 (Knight 10). Total fouls Houston 18. Cleveland 22. Technicals Williams, Cleveland Illegal Defense.

A 13.241 NBC Sports. Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird catapulted to stardom in exciting final games in the heavily viewed NCAA Tournament. Now, in Jordan's wake, the NBA is increasingly faced with the task of marketing new stars, many of whom attended only a year or two of college, like Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers and Vince Carter of the Toronto Raptors, or did riot go to college at all, like Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kevin Gar-nett of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Stern and Ebersol repeatedly called the current season a "transition year," meant to build the host of new NBA stars they believe are about to emerge from Jordan's long shadow. But the declaration reflects at least as much a hope as a prediction.

Stern said the league recognized that, "We have to get people exposed to this next generation of stars. "Our strong preference would be to have a Tim Duncan and a Grant Hill come into our league after four years in college," Stern said, citing two stars who finished their four years of eligibility in college. "But that isn't going to be the case as a matter of law." Young players have established through legal precedent that they have the right to seek a pro career without regard to their college status. The NBA has not even approached the popularity of the collegiate tournament for its feature games on NBC Sunday nights this season. The games hit a low a week ago when about 4.5 million people tuned in There's A ti Popular Demand! Local Dealer Brings Back Expert To Sell Off Repossessed Cars "Repo Joe" Returns to Louisville to Sacrifice Bank Repossessions And Lease Terminations To Area Buyers At TWO Locations Through Sunday Continued from Page 1 i steady through the end of his career.

But NBA and NBC executives and advertisers mentioned an array of ffactors, including the overexposure of NBA games on cable and local stations, particularly this season; th emergence of Tiger Woods as the sports star most like Jordan in appealing to casual sports fans; viewer alienation after the player lockout last season; and, more fundamental, growing tendency of young player to curtail, or even forgo, college basketball careers. Indeed the quick movement of college players making it difficult to build widely popular stars for a national audience is a marketing problem being blamed for what seems to be the decline in interest. Th regular-season ratings for college basketball on CBS, the network most associated with the collegiate sport, hit an all-time low this season, l.Sf (about 2 million homes), although the NCAA Tournament, now in progress, has been generating ratings abbut on par with last season. But with the college game not able to 'establish stars through four years of steady TV appearances, both levels of ihe sport have been affected, said NBA commissioner David Stern, i'There's no question at all that this is a factor," he said. "There's a building process to exposure for these star players." For years the NBA thrived on the regular arrival of pre-marketed players, said Dick Ebersol, president of American Bootwoiks 966-2592 7415 Preston Hwy.

Affordable Web Sites for Business egret.net 995-5551 OAKS 5, CLUBHOUSE GRANDSTAND ON SALE NOW BUY SELL '339-0077 I OIL CHANGE I I I I I I exhaust pia I DISCOUNT MUFFLERS 1 BRAKES 5612 Outer Loop 969-2246 mm i Ebersol argued that in a worlcH where every sport now competes only with other sports but also witbn the Internet and endless other diver-, sions, "it is more important than ever to have stars." Stern said that in the long term theai NBA will maintain its value because in a world of so many options for'' consumers, big sports events still wiltl1 be must-see choices that audiences will plan ahead for. But for the short term, NBC has few answers for its problems on Sun1" day nights. As one longtime NBC ex-i. ecutive put it, "Right now, Sunday; night is a train wreck." models have low miles and at least a year or two of the warranty remains. If you think Program Cars are a bargain, wait until you see these." Mr.

Tracey is quick to add that selection is good but limited. "We want everyone to know that this is a first-come-first served sales event. At these prices, there will be a lot of great buys, but the really great buys will go fast!" Realizing many car buyers use their current vehicle as a down payment, Mr. Daub and Mr. Tracey have taken steps to make the trade-in process easy.

"Extra appraisers will be here each day and have been given the order to pay any and every reasonable price for local trades." Mr. Daub explained "If a customer then chooses to use that cash as a down payment, their monthly payment will be even lower than the ones we've got marked on the windshield!" Mr. Daub added, "We are so confident we can arrange financing for anyone that we'll gladly pay $100 on the spot if we can't! If you have a job making at least 1200 a month and have no pending bankruptcies, you've got credit with us." Star Ford and Oxmoor Toyota are both located at 1-264 and Shelbyville Road. For further information call Star Ford at 502-426-2500 or Oxmoor Toyota at 502-426-1200. Sale ends Sunday, March 26 at 8 p.m.

tag and title, with approved credit. i'l'l1 1 1 Ift Game In Town! Louisville, KY Kentucky car, truck and S.U.V. buyers are getting a second chance to buy nearly new vehicles at a discount. Through Sunday, with the help of a man called "Repo Star Ford and Oxmoor Toyota will offer bank repossessed vehicles for sale to the general public. After the first "Repo Joe" sale, managers at Star Ford knew they were on to something.

Hundreds of customers saved thousands of dollars and ever since the sale the phone has been ringing off the hook with requests to bring "Repo Joe" back. To meet expected customer demand, a second location, Oxmoor Toyota, has been added for this weekend's return of "Repo "Repo story is simple. After nearly two decades in the car business, Joe has seen everything a dealer has to offer. Yet he noticed there were always two types of vehicles that were far and away the best bargains: repossessed vehicles and vehicles that had been leased. The problem was that they were often hard, if not impossible, to find.

Fast forward to 1999. Utilizing relationships and contacts he had made with repo men, banks, credit unions and auto auctions over the past twenty years, Joe decided he would scour the nation looking for these vehicles. Now, he crisscrosses the country looking for the best buys out there. Then he chooses locations in each region of the U.S.A. to dispose of them.

To make sure there's plenty of bargains for everyone, he'll lie at two locations in Louisville this weekend. Ford and Oxmoor Toyota. In addition to the initial sav- Stock number 6106A. '94 Escort. "We're just looking for people that will make the payments on these vehicles." -Repo Joe ings, Star Ford and Oxmoor Toyota has secured financing that lets qualified buyers drive home by simply making a $27 transfer fee, then start making the payments.

Dustin Daub, General Sales Manager, Star Ford explained his store is prepared for the expected crowds. "Due to the overwhelming response to our last sale, we've added a second location, so we're able to offer double the selection of cars, trucks, sport utilities and minivans" said Mr. Daub. "My friends at Oxmoor Toyota are excited to be participating in the return of "Repo Joe." Kirk Tracey, Sales Manager, Oxmoor Toyota is quick to agree. "Double the selection means there's something here for every a win-win situation for everybody.

Repo Joe will mark the payments you'll make on these vehicles right on the windshield of each vehicle." added Mr. Tracey, "you'll know right away how much the payments you'll start making will be." "And not only will you find repos at huge savings, we've accumulated and acquired doens of lease terminations." said Mr. Daub, "These '96 through '98 Selling price $4000. 60 months at 12 55 APR. Plus tax, "This Week's Somes" Wednesday, March 22nd 4:00 P.M.

University of Louisville vs. Belmont University double header UofL All home games ployed at ths "NEW" Ulmer Stadium at Cardinal Park!.