The Age from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia • Page 55

SPORT 6 THE AGE WEDNESDAY JUNE 21, 2000 BREAKING NEWs4yheoge.com.au' Riot after O'Neal guides Lakers to victory Pacers, who also got 20 points and 14 rebounds from Dale Davis and 16 points from Austin Croshere. The Lakers led 109-103 with three minutes 28 seconds remaining. Indiana then began using a "Hack-A-Shaq" strategy, but O'Neal made only one of four free throws, leaving him three-of-12 for the game. The Pacers rallied to 110-109 down on two Croshere free throws with 92 seconds to play, before Rice made two free throws of his own. Croshere missed a turnaround jumper, Bryant missed for the Lakers with 35 seconds to go and Miller missed a game-tying nine-metre three-point bid with.

30 seconds to play. Bryant hit two free throws with 13 seconds left to give the Lakers a five-point lead. A Davis dunk with 5.4 seconds to play kept Indiana alive, but Bryant sank two more free throws left to seal the win. AFP 41 points and pulled down 12 rebounds, took inspiration from seeing television camera pictures of the huge crowd outside. "When there was 1:30 left and they showed about a million people outside the arena, we got in a huddle.

We were like, 'Look, they are waiting for us. Let's just get it done'." While the fans lost control and turned violent, giant O'Neal cried like a baby at having finally achieved his dream of becoming a champion. "I have held the emotion for about 1 1 years now, three years in college and eight years in the league, always wanting to win," he said. "It just came out. It was just a great moment." The dominating centre and league-scoring champion was a unanimous NBA finals most valuable player and joined Michael Jordan and Willis Reed as the only men to capture the honor in the same year as winning the regular-season MVP award.

"He was just too much for us," Indiana coach Larry Bird said. Kobe Bryant added 26 points, and 10 rebounds and Glen Rice had 16 points for the Lakers, who won their 12th title overall and first since 1988 by downing a determined Indiana team making its first trip to the championship series. The loss ended the coaching career of former NBA star Bird, who will leave the Indiana bench after three seasons. Bird said he is leaning against taking an executive job the club has offered. "It was a great experience, one of the most special I will ever have.

But that's it," Bird said. "I'm not cut out to be a coach." Jalen Rose scored 29 points and Reggie Miller added 25 for the LOS ANGELES Moments after the Los Angeles Lakers became champions, they became hostages. The Lakers defeated Indiana 116-111 here yesterday, capturing their first National Basketball Association title since 1988 by winning the best-of-seven series four games to two. But the victory touched off a violent, destructive celebration by thousands of people who gathered outside the Staples Centre. Fires were set in the streets, one in a vandalised police car, and chaos ruled as the arena cleared.

So much" mayhem was caused that police forbade the teams to. leave the arena until order was restored, which took the arrival of hundreds of police officers, many on horseback and motorcycles and others in riot gear, to secure. Shaquille O'Neal, who scored Winner's spoils: Shaquille O'Neal holds the NBA championship trophy and the MVP award after the Lakers' victory. Picture: reuters Boomers headin gin the right direction BRIEFS Pakistan medal hdpes dashed HOCKEY: Pakistan's hopes of an Olympic medal in Sydney have been dashed by infighting that has left the country's hockey federation without a president, secretary or coach. National coach Hanif Khan resigned on Monday after the president, Arif Abbasi, was sacked by the Pakistan Sports Board on Sunday for alleged mismanagement.

The secretary, Manzoor Atif, quit last week. Khan said he could not continue because of the turmoil that had left his players "mentally Italy bound for Sydney VOLLEYBALL: Italy all but ensured it would qualify for the Sydney Olympics by beating Atlanta Olympic silver medallist China 32-30, 23-25, 25-19, 25-19 in the women's volleyball final qualifying tournament in Tokyo. The Italian women earlier beat the Netherlands and Asian silver medallist South Korea in the eight-nation round-robin, also the Asian qualifying round. The country finishing on top gets the first ticket for Sydney. IOC selects Timor athletes OLYMPICS: The International Olympic Committee has selected a pool of six to eight East Timorese athletes, from which four will be chosen to participate in the Sydney Olympics.

IOC vice-president Kevan Gosper helped to select the athletes from boxing, athletics, weightlifting and taekwondo.They will march behind the Olympic flag and will be known simply as athletes not representatives of their country. Aborigine breaks ground SWIMMING: Rockhampton schoolboy Ashley Anderson became the first Aborigine named to an Australian swimming team after the 15-year-old was included in the Millennium youth team to compete in Edinburgh in August. Anderson holds four national age records and is gearing himself for selection Spr.tha.2Q02 Commonwealth Games in Manchfiftr. He has won 16 national age gold medals in the past three years. When is a team not a team SWIMMING: The New Zealand Government will allow two Fijian sw.immers to compete as individuals at the Oceania championships in Christchurch this week.

Unlike the Fiji rugby and netball teams, which were banned following George Speight's coup, it was reasoned that the swimmers were individuals competing against individuals. Nigeria bans Opals sluggish early but still too good A dominant second-half performance enabled the Australian women's basketball team step up Its Olympic preparation with a 67-57 win against Canada In Albury last night. Led by home-town hero Lauren Jackson, the Opals overcame a sluggish start to continue their winning form against International talent. A 24-6 run to start the second half was the catalyst for the win and it was Jackson who Ignited her team by scoring the first four points after the break. She eventually top-scored with 17 points.

The win gave the Opals a 1-0 lead in the the three-match series and built on their gold medal performance at Slam Down Under earlier this week. The Opals were caught off-rguard In the first half by a physical Canadian team that gained solid returns from forward Kelly Boucher and young centre Tammy Sutton-Brown. But the Opals rediscovered their winning formula in the second half with Jackson, Carla Boyd (14) and Krlsti Harrower (11) rising to the occasion. Australia led by as many as 18 points in the second half but the Canadians cut the deficit to just nine with six minutes to go. Opals coach Tom Maher was disappointed with his team's first-half effort and questioned the quality of refereeing on offer.

"If you are going to have a bet at the TAB on who is going to win by the biggest margin, I think it would be on us," he said. "That doesn't always happen. "We didn't shoot great from the perimeter but we never got a second shot, which is a credit to their team." The Opals shot an alarming 40 per cent from the field In the first half but lifted when it counted in the second to land 45 per cent and close out the match. The news was not all good In the Opals camp, however, with veteran guard Rachel Sporn In doubt for the next leg of the series after injuring her shoulder in a heavy collision. The tour moves to Griffiths on Thursday before wrapping up in Canberra on Friday.

AAP By STEPHEN HOWELL The scoreboard showed a negative a 75-69 win to Russia over the Boomers but at the Glasshouse last night, the talk was positive. Australia's prospective Olympians exhibited much more quality than when walloped 100-79 in Sydney on Sunday and, more importantly, they had strong contributions from two first-uppers. One, playmaker Shane Heal, is expected to produce. But considering it was his first game for the Boomers since the world championships in Athens two years ago and it came in the wake of a family bereavement, his performance was a team-lifter. "It was just a pleasure to have my general out there," said coach Barry C-Barnes.

i "Number 10, the road-runner Russia's point guard Evgenie Pachoutine wasn't going to get off tonight." Barnes said that from the start. Heal let Pachoutine know there was purpose in the Boomers' game, offensively and defensively. Using the experience he gained from two years in Greece, he was a team-lifter. The lift can only be increased, as it needs to be before the Olympics. Chris Anstey, recovered from a broken thumb, was the other addition who pointed to better things, especially when he adds a little more discipline to his perimeter shooting.

Anstey's long arms and long shot should be enough to give him a strong supporting role in the Olympics. The player on the bubble to impress was Jason Smith. The Victorian guard played the final 11 minutes when Barnes went with a settled line-up in a bid to get past the Russians. He shot nicely, but it was his defence that pleased. Asked if the confidence the coach showed in him was an indication of selectors' thinking, Smith said: "I hope so, I was working my arse off out there.

"I got a few steals and I think I'm a little different from the other guards on the team. Hopefully, if I can keep doing that, a spot could be mine." One spot obviously sewn up is that of veteran Luc Longley. The Boomers were without him again, the National Basketball Association giant still having trouble with the back injury that kept him out of the Slam Down Phone BASKETBALL Under final in Sydney on Sunday. The report was that Longley was on the mend and should be able to play io the next game, in Adelaide tomorrow. "Today he had a thorough oil change and grease," Barnes said.

"So now the medical staff know exactly what they're dealing with." The crowd did not seem to miss him, which 'was another positive in a stadium more full than empty. The official attendance was 5796 for what could be the last international basketball game at the Glasshouse as the sport looks' at moving in to the multi-purpose venue just along Swan Street. Russia had only nine players, and the missing included its gun forward Andrei Fetissov, who was top scorer in the Sydney tournament with 13.8 points a game. The visitors' centre Nikita Morgounov stepped outside the three-point line to post their first two scores before the Boomers took the lead on an Andrew Gaze three-pointer. Scores see-sawed throughout the first half, in which offence took precedence and both teams connected at better than 50 per cent.

Russia nosed ahead 39-38 at the break. Anstey showed he, too, could hit from J5 feet, connecting on both outside shots. Martin Cattalini, who struggled in Sydney, was scoreless in 10 minutes and Simon Dwight, another trying to catch the selectors' eyes, had no impact in only three minutes. Australia took an early second-half lead before the Russians put on a surge, sparked by athletic 19-year-old, Andrei Kirilenko. The lesser Pachoutine (Zakhar) stepped up as a scorer and the visitors opened a seven-point gap.

The Boomers struggled to finish off their good and hard work, and Russia held on to win a highly entertaining contest to make it 3-0 against Australia and 6-0 on this tour. This series continues in Adelaide with Brett Maher rostered to come in for Mark Bradtke. It concludes in Perth on Saturday when Andrew Vlahov and Ricky Grace will replace Tony Ronaldson and C.J. Bruton. LAST NIGHT'S DETAILS) Ruille TS Pachoutine 19, Moifounov 14, Tchlkilklrw 1 1) uitralla it (Heil 17, Gaze 13, Aniny 9).

bets up RACING subsidise small wagers because of the growing expense of processing each bet. LEADING trainer Peter Hayes will be released from hospital in Adelaide in two weeks, a Lindsay Park spokesperson said yesterday. Hayes, who broke his hip while cycling in Tuscany recently, will be bed-ridden for four weeks after leaving hospital. ROYAL ASCOT'S mouth-watering clash between Dubai Millennium and Sendawar appears to be on course after both were left in at the final declaration stage for, tomorrow's Prince of Wales Stakes, AAP reports from London. But Henry Cecil's whose best form is on soft ground, was a scratching from the field, along with top' i woman WEIGHTLIFTING: Nigeria's top Sydney Olympics medal hope, woman weightlifter Bilkisu Musa, has been banned for two years by her national federation for testing positive to anabolic steroids at an event in Australia in March.

She won a bronze medal at last year's world championships in Athens and also won three golds at the All-Africa Games in South Africa last September. Seventh heaven for Italian CYCLING: Italian rider Marco Fincato (below), from the Fassa Bortolo team, has won the 171-kilometre seventh stage of the Tour of Switzerland from Locarno to Lugano. The former Italian time-trial champion finished in less than four hours 21 seconds clear of compatriot Salvatore Commesso, who beat Dutchman Maarten den Bakker in a sprint finish. Germany's 1997 Tour de France champion Jan Ullrich finished in the peloton and retained the overall leader's yellow jersey. jgTyyr mmrt-t-i -una iri mi part of a promising performance by the Boomers despite a night.

picture: ausport Coulthard maintains hope win that extended his championship advantage to 22 points. Coulthard con-' tlnued: "I've got to get back down to usiness and concentrate on the h.th forthcoming races. "We must come back stronger and try not to make the same mistakes again. It's disappointing but you have to forget about it and get on with things." The Scot blamed himself for the stalled engine but insisted his team was also at fault after he came Into the pits to change tyres on lap 43. "I was the biggest culprit for stalling but it was unfortunate as I thought I was definitely quicker than Schumacher," he said.

"It's a real shame because the Incident didn't affect the start of the race, but rules are rules." Catching up: Andrew Gaze was narrow defeat against Russia last to $3 Gold Academy, Gracioso, Jim And Tonic and State Shinto, leaving an eight-runner line-up. "Dubai Millennium can run on any surface and any ground but we hope it is good ground for him," Godolphin trainer Saeed bin Suroor said yesterday. Firm ground should prove no problem to last year's St James's Palace Stakes and Prix du Moulin winner Sendawar. Of the duo's rivals, Beat All, third in last year's Vodafone Derby, should strip fitter for his fourth place behind Shiva in the Brigadier Gerard Stakes last month, while Godolphin has also left Rhythm Band in the race. German challenger Sumitas adds to the international feel for the $633,232 race, which has group one status for the first time this year.

Clive Brittain saddles likely outsider Pegnitz, a regular competitor in the best company having much In the way of success. 1 Coulthard survived a spin after a collision with the Arrows car of Dutchman Jos Verstappen but any chance of a points-scoring finish was ended by the pit-stop. The next chance for McLaren comes at the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours on July 2. AUSTRALIAN driver Mark Webber will get one of his best chances to push for a formula one seat when he tests a 2000 model car In front of several teams early next month. Webber, test driver for the Arrows team, will drive the team's Supertec A21 car on July 6 at the Silverstone circuit, where he won the second round of the formula 3000 championship at Easter.

With the opportunity to do some flying laps In the new car and with the McLaren, Benetton, Sauber and Prost teams testing at Silverstone on the same day, It gives Webber another chance to Impress. Reuters, AAP By PATRICK BARTLEY Tabcorp yesterday lifted the minimum bet for telephone punters from 50 cents to $3 a rise of 600 per cent. The increase the first in almost 40 years will take effect from July 3 and will apply during all hours of operation. Tabcorp said the main reason for the increase was the need to clear raceday congestion on its phone lines. However, it said that punters wishing to make bets under $3 could use the touch-tone phone betting system.

It would accept 50-cent bets between 8am and noon and 5pm and 7pm. At other times, the minimum bet would remain at the current level of $2. Agencies would also still accept 50-cent bets. Tabcorp said It had increased its touch-tone capacity to 210 lines. Over the years, Tabcorp has had (o MOTOR SPORT McLaren driver David Coulthard Insists that runaway world championship leader Michael Schumacher can be caught in the remaining nine races.

"We still have half the season to race and I Intend to battle all the way," said Coulthard after finishing only seventh in Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix. The Briton was penalised for stalling his engine before the formation lap began. He was forced to serve a 10-second sunt In the pits after his mechanics were late in leaving the grid when his car was restarted. The German double world champion took full advantage of Coulthard's misfortune, securing a i(2 (5- MEAD.