Times-Advocate from Escondido, California • 20

C4 TIMES-ADVOCATE, Escondido, Tuesday, March 14, 1989 in defensive average four times in the past seven years solely because of its defense? No, the Tigers eat clock, too. Some teams hold a lot of parts to the puzzle. Increased quickness out front and the emergence of Anthony Cook inside make the Arizona Wildcats blue-blood defenders. Louisville and Missouri have the athletes to pressure and defend the perimeter, plus an inside intimida-tor. Oklahoma and UNLV have those things, plus will pressure opponents with an up-tempo offense.

Loyola-Marymount will bewilder opponents with pressure offensively and defensively. Destinys darlings About three months ago, Indianas record was 3-4 after a 84-71 thumping by Notre Dame. The Hoosiers were beaten up and written off. Wouldnt know it, though, looking at them today. Big Ten champions, No.

2 seed in the West, top-10 ranking in the polls. There may be only one next logical step in this Cinderella story. Speaking of Cinderellas, North Carolina State Coach Jim Valvano lost center Charles Shackleford to the NBA via early entry into the draft, was dogged by scandals relating to a book and the schools inability to graduate its athletes, and merely stole the ACC regular-season title from Duke, a near-consensus No. 1 in the preseason, and North Carolina, expected to offer a stiff challenge to their Tobacco Road neighbors. Oregon State will be a sentimental favorite.

A national title, or even Final Four appearance, would provide a storybook ending to the career of Coach Ralph Miller, 70, whos retiring after 38 years in the game. any sport. On the surface, basketball seems to defy this maxim. Witness recent Final Four appearances by such scoring machines as Louisville, UNLV, Oklahoma and Syracuse. Consider that eight of the nations top 10 scoring teams won at least 20 games this season.

Several factors account for this phenomenon. Offense has become a form of defense. High-paced attacks exert pressure on opponents. Ultimately, its as simple as this: no matter how much and how well defense is played, the team with the most points wins. Somewhere down the line, a team is going to have to score at key junctures.

In tight tournament situations half-court attacks are at a premium. So is inside-outside balance, which favors multiple-punch offenses such as Blaylock and King of Oklahoma, and Kendall Gill and the jumping-jack front line of Illinois. North Carolina, with six players averaging in double figures, and Louisville have two of the more verse attacks in the nation. Defense OK, OK. So defense is important.

Its just that everyone cant play it any more. Time was when small, slow and undermanned teams could at least zone it. Time was. Now the 3-point shot is a formidable zone-buster and high-paced offenses refuse to allow enough time to set up a zone. Try to defend the perimeter, and a team with a complementary inside attack can eat you up down low.

So whats a team to do? Well, some will use offense as their defense and milk the clock to limit their opponents possessions. Think Princeton has led the nation NCAA Continued from page Cl There were more talented players in the Big East than Georgetowns Charles Smith, but his verve in crunchtime got him named Big East player of the year. Likewise, Jay Edwards exploits have been a critical factor in Indianas unexpected success. Mookie Blaylock of Oklahoma, Todd Lichti of Stanford and Chris Corchiani of North Carolina State are three others you'd like to have the ball with a game on the line. Coaching One of the more striking things about the college basketball scene are the head coaches who have been elevated to a God-like stature by results that fall far short of divine proportions.

Perhaps only two Bobby Knight of Indiana and Dean Smith of North Carolina deserve deity status. Knight has won every championship to be won and runs a program that is an exception to the Big Tens usual woeful postseason performances. Smith has won everything and helped revolutionize the game. Several others at least deserve sainthood. Denny Crum has produced two national champions and two other Final Four teams this decade at Louisville with an emphasis on full-court defense, athleticism and versatility.

Mike Krzyzewski of Duke has coached two Final Four teams in the past three years. His disappointing results in Seoul notwithstanding, John Thompson of Georgetown also towers above the field. Hell choke you with pressure, then break you with his bench. Two others, Jim Valvano of North Carolina State and Dale Brown of Louisiana State, thrive in tournament conditions. The 1989 tournament also will be a coming-out party for Rick Barnes of Providence, P.J.

Carlesi-mo of Seton Hall, Larry Finch of Memphis State, Rick Majerus of Ball State, Speedy Morris of La Salle, Lynn Nance of St. Marys, and Bob Wenzel of Rutgers. Floor generals Point guards often are called extensions of their coaches. A coach may devise the most brilliant game plan ever, but his point guard is the one who has to execute it, even adjust it, on the battlefield. The General, Sherman Douglas of Syracuse, shattered the NCAAs career record for assists because he orchestrates at the necessary tempo for his personnel.

He is the Lord of the Lobs on a club of extraordinary leapers. His only real weakness is a tendency to do too much on his own down the stretch. Pooh Richardson of UCLA is another who fits the point-guard prototype. Oklahomas Blaylock and Georgetowns Smith have big-play ability at both ends of the court. B.J.

Armstrong of Iowa can break down defenses with penetration and stretch them with perimeter shooting. George McCloud, a sinewy 6-5 player from Florida State who has NBA 3-point range, could be the best of the lot. NC States super soph, Corchiani, has the fiery temperament coaches like in a point guard. He complements perfectly his smooth, unflappable running mate, Rodney Monroe. High-octane attacks Conventional wisdom says defense wins championships in Padres Notes Show makes his pitch for opening night By Chris De Luca Times-Advocate Sportswritei CHANDLER, Ariz.

Eric Show became the first Padres pitcher to admit that he would like to start on opening night. Sure, I would, Show said. Why not? Ive pitched them before and a lot of home openers, too. I cant remember having a bad one. Show was the Opening Day pitcher in 1984, earning the victory in the Padres 5-1 victory over the Pirates.

In 1987, his other Opening Day start, Show had no decision in the Padres 4-3 loss to the Giants in 12 innings. Last year, Show had the option of starting in the opener, but then-Manager Larry Bowa pointed out that coming off a poor season in 1987, it might be better for Show to bypass the opener. He said, you can have it if you want it, but why not do it this way? said Show, who was 8-16 in 1987. After the year I had in 87, 1 said, that sounds good to me." So far, all of the other Padres pitchers have maintained that it doesnt matter to them who starts on opening night, April 3, against the San Francisco Giants. Manager Jack McKeon said he will most likely announce his open Nelson Continued from page Cl I often wonder that if the same thing happened to me, I dont know if I would have put up the numbers he put up, but I often wonder if I would have had the same kind of year, Nelson said.

In Tacoma, Nelson checked the For only $299, lease the car whose owners reported fewer problems than owners of Mercedes, Acuta and BMW. ing-night starter early next week. Show, however, said he would not be crushed if someone else got the nod. If Jack tells me tomorrow that I am not the opening-night pitcher, that is OK, he said. I would not make an issue out of it or anything like that.

Monday, Show made the longest appearance of any Padres pitcher this spring, going six innings in the Padres 8-4 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at Compadre Stadium. Show limited the Brewers to three hits and allowed no runs in the first six innings. Monday, Show primarily worked on his slider and change-up. While warming up before last Thursdays game in Tucson against the Cleveland Indians, Show said he began having problems with his slider. Monday, he had better control of the pitch until later in the game.

I think my slider still needs endurance, he said. I lost it in the sixth inning. My change-up was good today in spurts. Reliever Greg Booker had a disastrous two innings of relief Monday. He entered the game with the Padres leading 4-0 in the seventh.

In two innings Booker allowed eight hits, eight runs (seven earned), walked two and struck out none. Weve been getting our starters in shape, now we have to get our relievers in shape, McKeon said. Book has his usual one or two bad outings. Bookers ERA is now 20.25. He began his first season with the Las Vegas Stars.

At Las Vegas, Nelson platooned at first with Brad Pounders and was used as a designated hitter. Last season, he hit .260, with 23 home runs and 77 RBI in 116 games. Near the end of the 1988 season, Moreland was mentioned in several trade rumors, which didnt surprise Nelson. During the spring, I lockered next to Moreland, Nelson said. And he told me during spring training, These guys (the Padres) got me for a power hitter and Im not a power hitter.

He said, Last year (1987) the ball was juiced and I played in Wrigley Field and I hit 27 home runs. Then he said, Look at the guys who had career years hitting home runs. Ill be lucky if I hit 10 home runs this year. I said, Dang, you know? I said, Whatever. And he had a subpar year.

Moreland hit five home runs in 1988. So now, Nelson figured he had a chance. But while at a family reunion in Wisconsin last October as he switched stations on his car radio, Nelson stopped in the middle of a sports broadcast and caught the end of a report. All of a sudden I hear, big first baseman hitting fourth for the San Diego Padres, he said. And Im sitting there thinking, who can this be? Then I found out its Jack Clark and I said, Wonderful.

I thought maybe theyll trade me. No such luck. Manager Jack McKeon has made it clear that Clark is the Padres starting first baseman and there is little room on the roster for Nelson, considering Kruk and Martinez can still fill in at first. Which leaves Nelson facing another year in Triple-A. This time, however, he may not go.

Honestly, I dont know if I will really go, he said. Just for the fact that I have played in Triple-A for three years. Every year, Ive hit over 20 home runs and driven in over 75 runs. They know what I can do. If I just had one good year in Triple-A or something like that but after three years, I dont have anything to prove in that league." McKeon disagrees.

You have to realize that if you want to stay in this game, you have to persevere, McKeon said. Hes a good kid and hes made progress, but he has to be more consistent. Maybe that extra year (in Triple-A) gives him that consistency and that will give him a real legiti-. mate chance. Nelson has figured before that he did have a legitimate chance with the As and twice with the Padres.

I honestly feel that I can play in the big leagues if someone will just give me the chance, he said. I just need that first year to get 300 to 400 at-bats and see what I can do. Archer was on the Washington Redskins active roster for four games in 1988, seeing action in one game. His best season was in 1986, when he passed for 2,007 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games. In 1985, he led NFL quarterbacks with 347 yards rushing.

Archer came to the NFL in 1984 as a free agent signed by the Falcons after playing for Iowa State. Archers signing gives the Chargers five quarterbacks. The 6-foot-7, 300-pound Miller is a six-year veteran who appeared in 15 games for the Falcons last season, starting four. The Mazda 929. myself and just playing the game, I tried to be superhuman and hit every ball 500 feet and it was a disaster, said Nelson, who hit 20 home runs in Tacoma, but batted .215 with 133 strikeouts.

And I knew I had no where to go. After the year he had, I knew Mark was going to be Oaklands first baseman for the next 10 years. (That year in Tacoma) was terrible. I honestly thought I was never going to get back to the big leagues again. But by the end of the Triple-A season, Nelson had been traded to the Padres along with pitcher Dave Leiper for Storm Davis.

He was finally moving from the shadow of Mark McGwire. I was just ecstatic, he said. It was a breath of fresh air. At the time, I knew Steve Garvey was done. I knew they had Johnny (Kruk) and Carmelo (Martinez), but I also knew they played the outfield.

I figured I had a chance. When he arrived in San Diego that September, Nelson met with then-Manager Larry Bowa, who told the young first baseman that he was definitely going to be a part of the Padres youth movement. The team was looking for a power hitter and Nelson, who had hit 52 home runs the past two years in the minors, was their answer. During the last month of the 1987 season, Nelson was used primarily as a pinch-hitter by the Padres. He had one hit in 11 at-bats.

But Bowa told him not to worry because he was going to get a lot of playing time that next spring in Yuma. But another one of those weird things happened in the off-season. The Padres traded Goose Gossage to the Chicago Cubs for power hitter Keith Moreland, who was originally slated for leftfield. That meant Kruk and Martinez would platoon at first base. Now it changed the situation where I was, Nelson said.

So it ended up that spring I sat on the bench most of the time and I got six at-bats. I was unhappy, I was sitting there saying, what am I going to do? Enough motive power is available to flatten hills or fry asphalt. Regrettably, this special Mazda 929 lease offer ends soon. So see your Mazda dealer now. Because of all the many luxuries the 929 affords you, the one it cant afford you more is time.

If youve had a problem finding an attractive lease offer on a luxury car, the Mazda 929 at $299 a month should solve your problem. And the 929 isnt a problem after you lease it, either. In fact, according to the J.D. Power New Car Initial Quality Survey, the Mazda 929 proved to have fewer problems than did any model from Mercedes, Acura or BMW. Comforting as all that is, waitll, you discover the multitude of luxury amenities within the 929 cabin.

On the road, this world-class touring sedan will impress you with its impeccable behavior even on roads better-suited for sports cars. As one writer was moved to say it into a series of ess-bends and youre surprised at how well it follows your lead. Further reasons to consider the Mazda 929. Chargers sign two ex-Falcons SAN DIEGO (AP) Former Atlanta quarterback David Archer and offensive lineman Brett Miller, who was left off the Falcons 37-man protected list, were signed Monday to free-agent contracts by the Chargers. Archer played for Atlanta from 1984 through 1987, completing 331 of 647 passes for 4,275 yards and 18 touchdowns.

He started 22 games for the Falcons in 1985 and 1986 under new Chargers Coach Dan Henning. Archer was released by Atlanta following the 1987 season, a year after 0 the Falcons firing of Henning. Special 66-month closed-end lease offer ends March 31. 1989. Equal monthly payments of $299.

(Total monthly payments Payments based on negotiated agreed value of $2000 below MSRP ($22078) for 1989 929, equipped with optional floor mats and arm rest customer capital cost reduction of $1325 Final agreed value set by dealer License and title fees, state and local taxes, freight, insurance, options, not included in agreed value. Lease subject to approval of Mazda American Credit and car availability First month's payment, refundable security deposit ($250 to $300), 1325 capital cost reduction, and other items not included in agreed value to be paid at the beginning of lease. Purchase option available before lease end for initial Lease Balance less depreciation credited, or at expiration for Estimated Wholesale Value of Whicle, plus, in either case, a purchase fee and any official fees or taxes. Lease based on 15000 milesyear. At lease expiration, lessee liable for a disposition fee.

per mile excess charges and vehicle excess wear and tear charge. Fleet vehicles are not eligible. Prices and terms subject to change without notice. (See lease agreement for full details). 1988 J.D.

Fbwer and Associates New Car Initial Quality Survey (February-March 1988). tCar and Driver. Comparisons based on MSRP and published competitive data.