News-Pilot from San Pedro, California • 15

i News-Pilot WEDNESDAY December 28 1994 Prtpt: San Pedro pulls out a basketball win in tournamentU2 Clippers held on despite Terry Dehere missing two wide-open jumpers with a 93-90 lead when Richardson connected from inside the top of the key on a clearout and Kukoc who regularly makes buzzer-beaters with defenders all over him simply missed an uncontested three This is probably the worst game Ive ever played in Kukoc said Fitch said of Charles Outlaw responsible for defending Kukoc on the play: (He) went to sleep He played Santa Claus at Christmas and just lost his job Thats the last thing hes given away" If (Kukoc) makes that I kill him plead temporary insanity and use (Matt) Fish as my lawyer That wont be necessary thanks to Richardsons poise (21 points 10 as-) sists) and Lamond Murrays 19 points before taking an elbow to the nose and sitting out the final 1:14 Added to the help they received from Chicago after Pippen departed' with 18 points in 17 minutes BJ Armstrong was 4 of 20 from the floor' and Kukoc made eight of his teams 24 turnovers the Clippers were able to get Harper back for the win he engi-' neered at the Sports Arena last month Harper by the wayi sat out the en- tire fourth quarter and played just 22 minutes He finished with just ninet points on 3-for-5 shooting Toni Kukoc's wide-open three-pointer in the last two seconds to triumph in Chicago for the first time since Jan 26 1979 That was at old Chicago Stadium which the tri-champ Bulls never missed more after seeing Pooh Richardson hit a game-sealing 16-footer with 79 seconds remaining MIt seems like Im a part of all this history stuff said Richardson who also hit the shot to end the Clippers 0-16 start I try to stay away from it No problem The evening after suffering his NBA-record 900th loss Clippers coach Bill Fitch derived much joy talking about this sort of milestone By Mare Stele LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS CHICAGO They stormed the Midwest for a look at former team mate Ron Harper and the Chicago Bulls fancy new house Came to win too Inside the Chicago compound that finds Harper a fraction of the scorer he used to be in LA in a city they last conquered in 1979 the Clippers escaped with a 95-92 victory over the Bulls to halt a five-game losing streak and roughly 15 years of suffering here Adapting to the United Center a great deal better than Harper the Clippers capitalized on Scottie Pip-' pens first-half ejection and survived which also stands as the Clippers first win outside of California this season One thing you can say now were undefeated in this building" Fitch said Somewhat negating whatever boost the Clippers (4-23) got when Pippen was tossed for swearing at referee Terry Durham in the second quarter Loy Vaught had to sit through all but one minute of the second half with his temperature rising a by-product of the flu not the games tension Maintaining the lead for much of the fourth quarter without Vaught the USCs Washington faces painful Texas memories By Brian Patterson STAFF WRITER Lakers try to take niext step Deal for Warriors' Rogers considered By Mitch Chortkoff STAFF WRITER OAKLAND The Lakers who are off to a surprisingly fast start despite being routed by the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night 129-105 are working hard to make a trade Negotiations between the Lakers and Warriors intensified in the last week with 6-foot-ll rookie forward Carlos Rogers being the object of the Lakers interest if Were always looking to im- prove our team said General i Manager Mitch Kupchak We talk to teams regularly but dont comment on specifics Although both Vice President Jerry West and Kupchak were in Maui Tuesday to scout a col- lege tournament theyve been attempting to put something! together sources revealed The Lakers would like to ac-' 1 quire Rogers in exchange for Anthony Peeler Until free agent Doc Rivers signed with San Antonio Mon-- day the Lakers were hoping Phoenix would sign the veteran guard The Suns were trying and the Lakers would then have likely reacquired Trevor Ruffin the guard they released prior to the season to fill Peelers back-court spot Another frontcourt player probably rookie Anthony Miller would then be released to make room for Rogers The Lakers are also keeping a close watch on New Jerseys situation The Nets are without injured guard Kevin Edwards and have discussed acquiring Peeler or Tony Smith The Nets are overloaded with frontcourt players Its likely theyre offering Rick Mahorn or Jayson Williams while the Lakers are holding out for PJ Brown The trading deadline doesnt arrive until' February Although the Lakers are 15-9 theyve been outrebounded 16 times And three times theyve been completely outplayed in- eluding once at the Jorum by the Clippers LAKERS B2 ALLAS After all that USCs Delon Washington has been through this year from the murder of his brother last January to being accused of cheating on his college entrance exam a trip home would seem just what he needs at this point Let him be around his family for a while Have his loving mother Delores fuss over him He can see some old friends Nothing like the warm embrace of home family and friends to lift the spirits right? Well not the way Washington sees it The freshman running back who in the past 12 months has suffered enough heartbreak frustration and injustice to last a lifetime is back home this week he was a consensus All-America pick at Dallas Kimball High in 1993 as USC prepares to meet Texas Tech in Mondays Cotton Bowl But its clearly not a happy homecoming In fact he cant wait to get back to LA I really didnt want to come home said Washington I really wanted to go somewhere else for our bowl game His reasons? Theyre not so clear He says he just doesnt feel like seeing some people from his Oak Cliff neighborhood which is on the rough-and-tumble south side of Dallas There are the bad memories too Just around the corner from the family home is the do-it-yourself car wash where his brother Benny who was both Delons biggest fan and best friend was shot once and killed by an angry acquaintance Jan 27 But its even more than that Washington talks as if he might fear for his own safety because the man who killed Benny is free and may have some twisted ideas in his mind You just never know what some people might do said Washington But he wont elaborate any more than that Im just trying to avoid some people thats all The hotels going to be my hideout So while teammates go out at night and enjoy the Big Washington sits in his hotel room alone watching TV and talking on the telephone But at least hes safe from danger and painful memories And soon hell be gone The brother The soulful eyes probably Washingtons most -distinguishing feature have seen so much in the last year that you wonder Why arent there WASHINGTON B3 FILE PHOTO Delon Washington had to deal with his broth- Coach John Robinson says he is coming around ers death and accusations of cheating in 1994 and will get at leact 10 carries in the Cotton Bowl Utah slips past Arizona in Freedom Bowl by Chuck Osborne Dyson with three Arizona defenders around him caught the pass and then danced in the end zone I wanted to sit in the end zone the rest of my life Dyson said Beck and McCoy staged similar heroics in Utahs regular-season finale a 34-31 victory over Brigham Young In that game Beck returned a 67-yard kick and McCoy followed up with a 20-yard touchdown pass to win Mike has done it all the time McBride said Wie caused a fumble and picked it up ran it in and the game (s over It is almost identical to the BYU game out of the end zone to give Utah a safety with 4:11 to play The strategy backfired when Cal Beck returned the free kick 72 yards giving Utah a first down inside the Wildcats 10 But McCoy threw three straight incomplete passes The whole season came down to this one play said Beck a freshman who saw Utah lose to USC in the Freedom Bowl last year I had faith that Mike would come through and he did On fourth down McCoy harassed by Arizonas Desert Swarm defense the entire game scrambled to his right and just got off the pass to Dyson while being dragged down Fourth-down TD pass good for win By Beth Harris THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Utphs football program established a national identity and made school history on Mike McCoys desperate pass McCoy struggling through his worst performance of the season tossed a 5-yard touchdown pass to freshman Kevin Dyson with 3:34 remaining to lift No 15 Utah over 14th-ranked Arizona 16-13 in the Freedom Bowl Tuesday night at Anaheim Stadium The Utes finished the season with a school-record 10 victories against two losses and boosted their chances to move into the top 10 for the first time since their football program began in 1892 Any time you beat Arizona you have to feel fantastic about the people who are playing for your team said Utah coach Ron McBride who won his first bowl game in three tries Thats the thing about this team they keep playing and playing and something will happen With Arizona leadihg 13-7 punter Matt Peyton stepped Utah quarterback Mike McCoy is sacked by Arizona's Chuck Osborne in the first quarter of the Freedom Bowl Tuesday i I An i i.