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(02/23/10 2:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Herb Magee has always put comfort over style.Take his attire for road games. Magee eschews designer labels for a black sweatsuit. Just a small Philadelphia University Basketball logo near the zipper of his shirt.“Why should I wear a shirt and tie? That’s uncomfortable to me,” Magee said. “On the road, when we get back on the bus, how can you be more comfortable than this?”The Boston Celtics drafted Magee out of PhilaU (then known as Philadelphia Textile) with the 62nd pick of the 1963 draft. The Boston Garden. The parquet floor. The championship banners. The green leprechaun logo.Magee simply told the Celtics thanks, but no thanks.He wanted to stay home — where he was comfortable.“This place has always fit me,” Magee said.For years, Magee has put the Division II school on the basketball landscape as he passed one Hall of Fame coach after another on his way up the record book. The 68-year-old Magee has approached the biggest milestone of all: 903.Magee is one victory from becoming the winningest coach in NCAA history. He is tied with former Army, Indiana and Texas Tech coach Bob Knight at 902 victories. Magee is 902-352 in 43 years at the Division II school and can surpass Knight (902-371) on Tuesday when the Rams play Goldey-Beacom College.“I just want to coach, that’s all,” Magee said. “But it’s nice. It’s good for the university and it’s good for our team because they’re getting coverage in the newspapers. To me, I’ll be glad when we just get back to playing.”Knight and Magee are tied on the career wins list for coaches who spent their entire career at NCAA schools. Northern State coach Don Meyer, who announced his retirement Monday, has 922 victories on the NAIA and NCAA level.“I think it’s remarkable no matter what level you do it on,” Temple coach Fran Dunphy said.Earlier this season, McKendree University coach Harry Statham notched his 1000th win at the NAIA powerhouse. The only other member of the 1,000-win club is Tennessee women’s coach Pat Summitt.Magee will surely pass Meyer, hit 1,000 and keep on going. He has no plans to retire or pursue any other coaching job at any other level. When he’s done, he will call it a career at the 3,500-student private school he has called home for 50 years.“Who knows where the number’s going to end up?” said Saint Joseph’s coach Phil Martelli. “But that’s just a number. It’s the way he’s done it.”Magee ended his playing career at Philadelphia Textile as the school’s leading scorer with 2,235 points. He averaged 29.1 points one season and was a two-time small-college All-America selection.He passed on Boston’s offer for two reasons. He broke two fingers on his left hand that summer, a big blow for a shooter, and he felt he couldn’t crack a Celtics roster that was stocked with future Hall of Famers.Magee took a job as an assistant varsity coach and the junior varsity coach. He also coached the school’s cross country team, golf team, taught phys. ed., heck, he even ran intramurals.“Now, I’m just a basketball coach, which I really enjoy,” he said.He’s also earned a reputation as the “Shot Doctor.”Magee never jumped ship for a big college program or an NBA assistant job — he said he’s passed up strong offers at both levels — but he’s still made an impact in the pros, privately instructing NBA players. He’ll tell any hoops fan how no one can make jump shots as aesthetically pleasing or as perfect like he can. He’s run shooting camps in the summers for decades and is a frequent guest for some of his favorite coaches.And who taught the “Shot Doc” how to shoot?“Myself,” he said.He used to watch the Philadelphia Warriors at Convention Hall and would emulate the top shooters of the time, like Bob Cousy or Paul Arizin.“I just practiced, that’s all,” he said. “There was no such thing as camps. There was no such thing as DVDs or film. I just took it upon myself to learn how to shoot the ball properly.“How can I teach you to shoot if I can’t shoot myself?”He’s passed on his knowledge for five decades to the Rams. He reached the pinnacle in 1970 when they won his only national championship. The Rams won 28 straight games that season and beat Tennessee State in the title game.Magee would love to hear from Knight once the record is broken. They met once at a coaching clinic 25 years ago, and Knight recorded a complimentary video of Magee that’s posted on his Web site.“Everyone in the world is aware of who Bobby Knight is,” Magee said. “Bobby Knight is aware of who I am. That’s a compliment for me.”
(08/05/07 10:32pm)
LONG POND, Pa. – Robby Gordon was suspended by NASCAR for the Nextel Cup race at Pocono on Sunday because of his misconduct on the race track at the Busch Series race in Canada.\nGordon refused to forfeit his position on the track when ordered to by NASCAR late in Saturday’s race. Officials said Gordon intentionally knocked Marcos Ambrose out of the race, then refused to pull off the track as ordered.\n“It certainly is way over the line when it comes to conduct on the track and doing what is expected of the driver to keep the event orderly,” said NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp.\nP.J. Jones will drive the No. 7 Ford for the Pennsylvania 500 and will start at the rear of the field. Gordon had qualified the car 30th and was 27th in the points standings.\nJones is making his second start this season and the 24th of his career. He has one top-five finish back in 2002.\nTharp said NASCAR will determine Gordon’s status for the race at Watkins Glen this week. Tharp didn’t rule out NASCAR would hand down additional disciplinary action against Gordon.\nTharp quoted the rule book when making his announcement, stating that NASCAR may take emergency action against any driver who “constitutes a threat to the orderly conduct of the event.”\n“The way he performed and his actions on the track, in our mind, certainly disrupted the conduct of that event,” he said. “We’re not going to permit that; we’re not going to allow that. It’s way over the line when it comes to conduct on the track.”\nGordon also celebrated as if he had won the event, doing victory burnouts and pumping his fist at the crowd at the same time as winner Kevin Harvick.\nGordon did cross the finish line first, though the results showed he finished 18th based on the number of laps he completed when he was disqualified. Gordon also refused to acknowledge the black flag that NASCAR waved at him every time he crossed the line over the final few laps.\n“I did the most laps; I was the first car to complete them. I won the race,” Gordon said. “We came here to win the race, and that’s what we did.”\nGordon was summoned to meet with NASCAR officials after he climbed out of his car.\nNASCAR suspended Harvick from a Cup race in 2002 because of an altercation during a truck series race. Jimmy Spencer was suspended one race for punching driver Kurt Busch after a 2003 race at Michigan.
(07/19/07 12:19am)
Never known as lovable losers, cursed, or even affectionately as bums, the Philadelphia Phillies have long held a more pitiable title: The losingest team in sports.\nFrom the Baker Bowl to the Vet and Citizens Bank Park, futility has tailed them like the sound of boos that echo throughout Philly for the disheartenment of every September collapse, every last-place finish, every near miss.\nNo team has lost quite like the Phillies. Now, make it 10,000 times.\nBad starting pitching, brutal relief, hardly any hitting, it was all in there in Sunday’s milestone loss. Albert Pujols hit two of the St. Louis Cardinals’ six homers in a 10-2 rout.\n“I don’t really care about it,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. “We haven’t been really talking about it. Our players haven’t been talking about it.”\nMaybe there wasn’t much chatter in the clubhouse, but the fans jumped all over the ugly number. They started Web sites that counted down to 10,000, blogged about the memorable defeats and brought signs to the game that poked fun at the unimaginable number.\nBy the ninth inning, fans in the sellout crowd of 44,872 thumbed their noses at the dubious mark, standing and applauding. Camera flashes went off all around the park, trying to record the final pitch as NL MVP Ryan Howard struck out to end the game.\nCardinals manager Tony La Russa made sure to snag the ball and said he would auction it off for charity.\n“That ball is history,” he said. “It’s nothing to be ashamed about.”\nMaybe not. But only one World Series championship (1980) in 125 years has long brought that feeling to the fans in a city way too familiar with losing.\nThe Phillies have had few moments to celebrate. The franchise, born in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and briefly called the Blue Jays in the mid-1940s, fell to 8,810-10,000.\nAnd for those counting, it was the 58th time the Phillies have lost by that exact 10-2 score, the Elias Sports Bureau said.\nThe Phillies avoided the milestone for three games, but the Cardinals – the team that caught them 43 years ago for the NL pennant in one of the biggest collapses in baseball history – beat Philadelphia one more time.\nAll that mattered to the Phillies was winning the series, 2-1.\n“It doesn’t matter one way or the other to all the guys in here,” All-Star center fielder Aaron Rowand said. “The guys in here weren’t responsible for 10,000 losses, so what does it really matter to us?”\nIt hasn’t been all bad for the Phillies. They’ve had their share of highlights and Hall of Famers: Jim Bunning, Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn.\nThey haven’t lost 100 games since 1961, and they won the NL East three straight years from 1976-78 behind Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton and Larry Bowa. Philadelphia lost the World Series in 1983 and 1993, though it hasn’t returned to the playoffs since Joe Carter’s homer won the 1993 World Series for Toronto.\n“I think they need to forget about it and move forward,” said Greg Luzinski, the starting left fielder for the 1980 team.\nThe Phillies blew their chance to push back No. 10,000 until their seven-game West Coast road trip, when even the die-hards would have trouble staying awake to watch it.\nThe players were at least glad they no longer have to answer questions about 10,000.\n“Oh, we were so stressed about it,” Adam Eaton cracked.\nEvery true fan knows of the infamous 1964 collapse when the Phillies held a 6 1/2-game lead with 12 to play, only to blow the NL title by losing 10 straight. The Cardinals won the pennant by one game.\nThe Phillies had a big head start in earning this ignominious mark: They played their first game on May 1, 1883, against the Providence Grays. Of course, the Quakers lost 4-3 to Old Hoss Radbourn and started 0-8. They went on to lose 81 of 98 games in their inaugural season.\n“I’ve been involved in over 2,900 of them, but I’ve also seen a lot of wins during that time,” Hall of Fame broadcaster Harry Kalas said.
(05/04/07 4:00am)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Carl Nafzger is back in a familiar, successful spot at the Kentucky Derby.\nThe trainer has Street Sense leaving from the No. 7 post, the same position Unbridled was in when Nafzger won the 1990 Derby. There is one difference: Unlike Unbridled, Street Sense could be the favorite by post time.\n“I was hoping to be 20-1 like Unbridled,” Nafzger said. “I don’t care what the morning line is. I’d just like to be No. 1 to the wire.”\nStreet Sense, last year’s 2-year-old champion, barely missed being the favorite by a whisker. Undefeated and unchallenged Curlin was made a slight 7-2 choice Wednesday over a 4-1 Street Sense.\nThere were no hard feelings for Nafzger. Street Sense was sensational in his final Derby drills, and the favorable single-digit post position could make a difference for a horse with only two prep races.\nStill, no Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner in 23 years has won the Derby; no 2-year-old champion has won since Spectacular Bid in 1979, stats which don’t deter Nafzger.\n“He’s been training really good,” he said. “We’re ready to run. We don’t have any excuses. We drew a nice post position and we’ve got a good selection. We’ve just got to go out there and see if we can win.”\nIf Nafzger and jockey Calvin Borel are counting on an old winning number to bring them some luck this year, Curlin has a digit on his side, too: No. 2. The imposing chestnut colt gets the nod from that post for Saturday’s race, starting in the same spot Affirmed did on his way to winning the Triple Crown in 1978 – the last horse to do so.\nCurlin will be ridden by Robby Albarado in a full field of 20 3-year-olds going 1 1/4 miles.\n“We don’t know how good this horse is, but he’s just been dominating,” Churchill Downs oddsmaker Mike Battaglia said.\nCurlin, though, faces his own obstacles. Like Street Sense, Curlin is relatively inexperienced with only three career races. Curlin didn’t compete as a 2-year-old and it’s been 125 years since Apollo won after sitting out his 2-year-old season.\nOnly the filly Regret in 1915 has won the Derby with less experience than Curlin.\nTrainer Todd Pletcher will try to end his 0-for-14 skid in the Derby with five entries: Any Given Saturday, Circular Quay, Cowtown Cat, Sam P. and Scat Daddy.\n“It’s a very difficult race to win,” he said. “We feel like we got our horses prepared well. Now we need some of the other things to go right.”\nCircular Quay was made the 8-1 co-third choice, along with Nobiz Like Shobiz, trained by Barclay Tagg, who won in 2003 with Funny Cide. Circular Quay, coming off an eight-week layoff, will start in the No. 16 post.\n“He’s a horse that’s probably going to fall a little back in the race,” Pletcher said. “It’s nice we’re placed right outside Tiago because he’s got a similar racing style.”\nWood Memorial winner Nobiz Like Shobiz will leave from the No. 12 post.\nFlorida Derby winner Scat Daddy was installed as the 10-1 fourth choice and will break from the No. 14 post.\nPletcher’s other horses were not among the favorites. Any Given Saturday was listed at 12-1; Cowtown Cat and Sam P. both 20-1.
(01/30/07 4:03am)
KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. -- Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro was euthanized Monday after complications from his breakdown at last year's Preakness, ending an eight-month ordeal that prompted an outpouring of support across the country.\nA series of ailments -- including laminitis in the left rear hoof, an abscess in the right rear hoof, as well as new laminitis in both front feet -- proved too much for the gallant colt. The horse was put down at 10:30 a.m.\n"Certainly, grief is the price we all pay for love," said co-owner Gretchen Jackson at a news conference.\nBarbaro battled in his Intensive Care Unit stall for eight months. The 4-year-old colt underwent several procedures and was fitted with fiberglass casts. He spent time in a sling to ease pressure on his legs, had pins inserted and was fitted at the end with an external brace. These were all extraordinary measures for a horse with such injuries.\n"Clearly, this was a difficult decision to make," chief surgeon Dr. Dean Richardson. "It hinged on what we said all along, whether or not we thought his quality of life was acceptable. The probable outcome was just so poor."\nRichardson, fighting back tears, added: "Barbaro had many, many good days."\nRoy and Gretchen Jackson were with Barbaro on Monday morning, with the owners making the decision in consultation with Richardson.\n"We just reached a point where it was going to be difficult for him to go on without pain," Roy Jackson said. "It was the right decision, it was the right thing to do. We said all along if there was a situation where it would become more difficult for him then it would be time."\nRichardson said he was comfortable the right decision was made and could tell Barbaro was not his usual self early Monday morning.\n"He was just a different horse," he said. "You could see he was upset. That was the difference. It was more than we wanted to put him through."\nOn May 20, Barbaro was rushed to the New Bolton Center, about 30 miles from Philadelphia in Kennett Square, hours after shattering his right hind leg just a few strides into the Preakness Stakes. The bay colt underwent a five-hour operation that fused two joints and recovered from an injury most horses never survive.\nBarbaro suffered a significant setback during the weekend, and surgery was required to insert two steel pins into a bone -- one of three shattered in the Preakness but now healthy -- to eliminate all weight bearing on the ailing right rear foot.\nThe leg was on the mend until an abscess began causing discomfort last week. Until then, the major concern was Barbaro's left rear leg, where 80 percent of the hoof had been removed in July when he developed laminitis.\nWell-wishers young and old showed up at the New Bolton Center with cards, flowers, gifts, goodies and even religious medals for the champ, and thousands of e-mails poured into the hospital's Web site just for him.\nThe biggest gift has been the $1.2 million raised since early June for the Barbaro Fund. The money is put toward needed equipment such as an operating room table, and a raft and sling for the same recovery pool Barbaro used after his surgeries.\n"I would say thank you for everything, and all your thoughts and prayers over the last eight months or so," Roy Jackson said to Barbaro's fans.
(01/11/07 5:07am)
KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. -- Barbaro has suffered a significant setback in his recovery from laminitis, with damaged tissue removed from the Kentucky Derby winner's left hind hoof, according to a statement released Wednesday morning by the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center.\nBarbaro was being treated aggressively for his discomfort and is in stable condition, according to the statement.\nThe tissue was removed Tuesday night.\n"Things were marching along pretty smoothly until this," Barbaro's co-owner Gretchen Jackson said. "We've been there before with him. He's a horse that wants to live."\nThe setback comes one week after a new cast was placed on Barbaro's laminitis-stricken left hind foot to help realign a bone.\nThe cast change could have caused some inflammation, said Dr. Kathleen Anderson, Barbaro's attending vet when the horse was racing and stabled in trainer Michael Matz's barn at the Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md. \nAnderson said Barbaro has proved he is strong enough to overcome his latest medical obstacle.\n"We all know most horses don't get this far," she said. "The bottom line with Barbaro is the fractured leg is the one that would have been the end of most horses. He won't be getting to the big green field any time soon, but I don't think this is insurmountable."\nIt was the first dose of bad news after months of progress that included owners Gretchen and Roy Jackson and New Bolton's chief surgeon Dr. Dean Richardson talking about releasing Barbaro from the hospital as soon as the end of the month.\n"It's sad that he's had a setback because he was marching along toward living outside the hospital," Jackson said. "The only thing we care about is that he's not in pain."\nBarbaro had become uncomfortable on his left hind foot and a cast was removed after some new separation was found on the inside portion. \nBarbaro shattered his right hind leg in the Preakness on May 20. In mid-July severe laminitis, a potentially fatal disease caused by uneven weight distribution in the limbs, resulted in 80 percent of Barbaro's left hind hoof being removed.\n"I was there (Tuesday) and it was obvious he was not comfortable in that foot," Jackson said. "The easiest and best way to work on Barbaro is when he's laying down. They had to wait until he was laying down and when they removed the cast, they discovered some reason for him feeling pain."\nJust over a week ago, Richardson said Barbaro's right hind leg was getting stronger and should eventually be healthy enough to allow the colt to live a comfortable, happy life.\nBut he also warned: "Barbaro's left hind foot, which had laminitis, remains a more formidable long-term challenge. The foot must grow much more for him to have a truly successful outcome"
(08/28/03 6:17am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Isiah Thomas was fired Wednesday as coach of the Indiana Pacers, a surprise move by new boss Larry Bird that came only two months before the start of the season.\nThomas, an NBA Hall of Famer, led a young Pacers team into the playoffs in all three of his seasons, but they were knocked out in the first round each year.\n"After looking at film, seeing how things were and evaluating the basketball operations, I detected the team's chemistry wasn't what it should be," Bird said. "Donnie and I decided that a change was necessary and a fresh start was important."\nDonnie Walsh, the team's CEO, and Bird, the president of basketball operations, did not immediately pick a successor or set a timetable for choosing a new coach.\n"We have decided to go in a different direction," Walsh said in a statement. "When I hired Isiah, I thought he was the right man for the job and at the time and he was."\nThe team said it would honor the final year of Thomas' contract. An official announcement was expected at a news conference later in the day.\nThomas was with the U.S. men's basketball team at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Puerto Rico earlier this week. He checked out of his hotel Tuesday and could not immediately be reached for comment.\nThe Pacers were 131-115 in the regular season under Thomas.\nBird and Thomas were contentious rivals from their days of leading the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons to NBA titles in the 1980s.\nWhen he was hired July 11, Bird walked off the podium at a news conference and shook hands with Thomas -- but neither smiled.\nBird led the Pacers to the 2000 NBA Finals and the best three-year record in their NBA history during his time as coach. Thomas succeeded him as coach.\nIndiana had the best record in the Eastern Conference at the All-Star break this past season, making Thomas the All-Star coach, but went 14-19 the rest of the season and lost in the first round of the playoffs to Boston.\nWalsh at the time gave no indication Thomas wouldn't return, although he said the second-half swoon was troubling.\nPacers players had continued to voice support for Thomas. Jermaine O'Neal, then a free agent, said before he re-signed with the team last month that he would not play for anybody but Thomas with the Pacers.\nThe biggest criticism of Thomas was his inconsistent rotations. While most players preferred a set role, Thomas made his decisions on his own feelings for a particular game and team matchups.
(08/04/03 1:48am)
CLERMONT, Ind. -- For nearly 180 laps, Brian Vickers was pecking at Shane Hmiel's bumper, never gaining enough momentum to take the lead for good.\nThen Vickers knew he had to make a move.\n"I realized, hey, it's time to go," he said.\nVickers made the decisive pass on lap 181, then held on to win the Kroger 200 Saturday night for his first career Busch Series victory.\nIt was the first victory in 47 career starts for Vickers, who at 19 is the youngest competitor in NASCAR. His unofficial winnings were $52,120.\n"Shane's a good racer. We raced hard," Vickers said. "He was cutting me off. He was doing what he had to do. I was rubbing him. I was trying to push him up. It was an awesome race. I had a lot of fun. And sitting here in victory lane is not that bad."\nVickers, who entered fifth on the Busch Series points race, started third in the 200-lap race and spent most of it in Hmiel's rearview mirror.\nHmiel, who entered ninth on the Busch Series points race, had led only 91 laps in the series and never finished better than third (Talladega).\nHmiel's speed of 110.690 was enough to get him his third career pole, and he took advantage early. Vickers narrowly trailed Hmiel most of the race, but could never sustain the needed momentum that would have given him the lead.\nHmiel lost the lead on lap 108 coming out of a pit stop under a caution flag. Vickers took the lead, losing it briefly to Ron Hornaday, before Hmiel recaptured it on lap 134.\nHmiel and Vickers practically ran side-by-side for most of the last 30 laps on the .686-mile track, thrilling the crowd at Indianapolis Raceway Park.\nVickers was on him, trying to find away around, only to be continually blocked by Hmiel. They narrowly avoided contact in what was a pretty clean race: There were only three cautions for 20 laps.\n"I wish I could say Shane and I were doing that to put on a good show," Vickers said.\nVickers, however, finally passed Hmiel for the lead on lap 181 of the 200-lap race and held on for the win in his No. 5 Chevrolet.\n"It's just now settling in," Vickers said.\nVickers twice finished second, both this season at Nazareth and Milwaukee. He had an almost certain victory taken from him in Texas after NASCAR ruled against a pass he attempted in a Winston Cup race. Vickers was black-flagged for pulling alongside a lapped car before the start/finish line on a restart with 22 laps to go and finished 25th.\nOn Saturday, Vickers displayed some of the confidence and maturity that allowed Hendrick Motorsports to take a chance on him.\n"It could have been either one," he said of a delayed first win. "It doesn't matter as long as I'm in victory lane."\nVickers had never led a lap on a short track in the NASCAR Busch Series. He led 43 laps, Hmiel led 153, and Hornaday led four.\nHmiel faded down the stretch, getting bumped by Scott Wimmer on the last lap, and finished fourth. Jason Keller was second for the second straight year, finishing 2.296 seconds behind Vickers, and Stacy Compton was third.\n"I was hoping those young guys would make a mistake and I'd drive right by," Keller said. "We just didn't stay consistent."\nScott Riggs finished fifth and extended his points lead (3,037) to seven over David Green, who was sixth.\nCompton was involved in the first caution on lap 21. Joey Clanton tried to pass Martin Truex on Turn 3, the cars crashed instead and spun into the fence. Compton couldn't avoid the mess and made it a three-car crash.\nThe crash brought out the only caution of the first 100 laps. Truex and Compton continued.\nFifteen of the 43 cars were on the lead lap when the race ended. Twelve dropped out.
(06/30/03 2:11am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana free agents Jermaine O'Neal, Brad Miller and Reggie Miller all say their first choice is re-signing with the Pacers.\nPacers president Donnie Walsh says the trio will return.\nCoach Isiah Thomas is as "confident as you can be" but still cautious that other teams could swoop in with an attractive offer. That's why the Pacers will be active participants when the free-agent signing period begins this week.\n"We'll do the wooing," Thomas said with a laugh. "We'll definitely make all three aware of how important it is to keep them. We've tried to show them how special they are to us and what they mean to the franchise."\nTeams may start negotiating with free agents on July 1, and players may start signing contracts on July 16.\nAll three have reason to stay, developing into All-Stars with the Pacers. If the Pacers lose O'Neal or Brad Miller, finding outside help could be problematic. The Pacers are over the salary cap and would be unable to pursue other big name free agents. A team can only exceed the salary cap to sign their own players.\n"Our priority is free agency with our own players first, trades if it will make us a better team and then free agency -- other people's free agents," Walsh said.\nTo sign all three without exceeding the luxury tax, the Pacers likely will have to trade some hefty contracts. Austin Croshere and Ron Mercer are the likely targets, though most discussions reportedly involve Al Harrington.\nWalsh, however, has shown an unwillingness to deal his young players.\n"There will be a lot of rumors about us, but at the end of the day I don't know how much we'll change," Thomas said. "I like the course of direction we're heading in. I don't know realistically how much we'll change. I don't see us breaking up the core of the team. I hope not."\nReggie Miller, who earned $12 million a year ago, likely will have to take a pay cut to stay with the Pacers. He is coming off the worst season of his 16-year career, turns 38 in August, and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle in May.\nWalsh expects a complete recovery by training camp.\n"I don't worry about Reggie because he always comes in here in shape," Walsh said.\nThe Pacers still need to hire another assistant coach following the departure of Brendan Malone to New York and they're undecided about the location of training camp.\nThomas said he'd likely promote from within the organization, like Chuck Person or George Glymph, to fill Malone's spot.\nAssistants Mark Aguirre, Dan Burke and Vern Fleming are under contract, while the contract of Jim Stack expired. Stack's return has not been decided.\nAs for training camp, Thomas would like to get away. Camp was in Cincinnati last year; Indianapolis in 2001.\nThe union agreed to expand the first round of the playoffs last season in exchange for some additional time off for veterans at the start of training camps.\nVeterans with at least four years of experience will not be required to report for the first three days of training camp this season and the first five days of training camp in the two subsequent seasons.\n"I think for this team, getting away would be good, but with the way it's staggered with the rookies coming in and veterans coming in at a later date, I haven't figured out how that's going to play out," Thomas said.\nThomas' summer gets busier in August when he'll serve as a consultant for Larry Brown and Team USA for the Olympic qualifying tournament.\n"My plate is big-time full," Thomas said.
(02/11/03 5:21am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana's resurgence as one of the NBA's elite teams has drawn considerable attention, but not always for the right reasons.\nEverything from Indiana's physical play to bizarre antics has earned the Pacers a reputation as one of the league's toughest -- and most combustible -- teams.\n"We're just stepping onto the national stage," coach Isiah Thomas said.\nThe Pacers' act so far has been smashing, both on and off the court.\nIndiana starts the second half of the season at 34-15, tied with New Jersey atop the Eastern Conference. Only the 1997-98 Pacers had a better record at the break at 34-13.\nThat team reached the Eastern Conference finals. This year's squad would like to repeat that performance.\n"Once we get everyone back to full strength, we'll make a go at this Eastern Conference," said Miller, in his 16th season. "I think it's wide open and there are a handful of teams that can challenge for it. We're one of them."\nOnly if they have a full and focused roster.\nWhen Cleveland visits Indiana on Tuesday, forward Ron Artest and Thomas will return from league suspensions, and reserve Jonathan Bender is likely to be activated from the injured list.\nInjuries, suspensions and off-court problems have overshadowed Indiana's turnaround after two mediocre seasons.\nArtest has brought the most notoriety.\nHe was suspended for seven games in January: Three games for hurling a television monitor and smashing a television camera, and four games for confronting the Miami Heat bench and brushing up against coach Pat Riley during a victory Jan. 27, then making an obscene gesture toward the Miami crowd.\nThomas was suspended for two games for escalating an on-court altercation and not acting as a peacemaker during a fight with the Toronto Raptors.\nMiller has missed 12 games and O'Neal four games with injures. The only Indiana player who hasn't missed a game is Al Harrington, who was recovering from a torn ACL.\nThe Pacers are hoping the distractions won't be their downfall.
(01/14/03 5:46am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Jamaal Tinsley's judgment with his passes is as up and down as a bobblehead doll.\nAt his best, they are crisp, accurate and aimed at an open man.\nWhen Tinsley starts trying to force the ball and makes wild passes behind his back or over his shoulder, that's when his game becomes reckless -- and at times costly for the Indiana Pacers.\nWhile the second-year point guard may work on refining his game, Tinsley said his overall style won't change.\n"I'm not going to change my game," Tinsley said. "I'm going to learn from my mistakes, but I'm not going to change my game for nobody. Everyday I'm going to learn."\nFor two games last week, Tinsley learned from the bench. He temporarily lost his starting spot to Erick Strickland after Tinsley made crucial, late-game turnovers that led to losses against New York and Washington.\n"It didn't have no effect on me," Tinsley said. "It's tough not being in the lineup, but whatever helps the team, whatever coach decides, I'm all for it."\nCoach Isiah Thomas said then the change wasn't permanent, and Tinsley was back in the starting lineup for games against New York and Golden State.\nThomas insisted he wasn't sending Tinsley a message with the benching.\n"When he runs our offense and he's got good energy and is distributing the basketball, it's hard to find someone who's better for our offense than him," Thomas said. "The way he's played the last couple of games, I think he's made a very conscious effort to correct the mistakes he was making"
(10/09/02 5:43am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Oliver Miller's travels to return to the NBA have been as wide as his portly 325-pound frame.\nMiller, a first-round pick in 1992 who helped Phoenix reach the NBA Finals as a rookie, is trying to win a roster spot in training camp with the Indiana Pacers. Miller, though, doesn't look at this as a last chance to revive a stagnant NBA career.\nInstead, he says he is hungry again. The 32-year-old, 6-foot-9 center has rediscovered his love for the game and says he can become a productive player again.\n"I'll never cut it out unless I'm in a wheelchair, a walker, or you see me somewhere on Jerry Springer stuck in a bed and I can't get out," Miller said.\nWhat Miller was stuck in was career limbo, wondering whether he would ever get the chance to play again in the NBA. Now, he's asking the Pacers for a fair shot at making the roster and not use his fluctuating weight as an excuse.\n"It's always about my weight, my weight," Miller said. "Even when I was in the CBA, it was we wanted you but we heard you couldn't run up and down the floor. We heard you were 500 pounds. Don't believe everything you hear. Put me out in the floor and then make a judgment."\nWhile he said his play will answer any lingering questions about his commitment to the game, it's the path he took to get invited to camp that Miller said proved how badly he wanted to return.\nHe didn't bounce around from the Harlem Globetrotters, to the CBA, to the ABA and USBL -- all in one year -- because he liked playing in front of a hundred people in the middle of nowhere.\n"I just wanted to prove to everyone in the league I'm still dedicated and committed," Miller said. "I put up the numbers people said I couldn't do."\nWant to talk about life as a big man with Miller?\nHe'll tell you how he comes up big, posting triple doubles and ranking among league leaders in everything from blocks to scoring everywhere he plays. With the USBL's Dodge City Legend he was even second on the team in assists with 72, while playing in only 15 games.\nDodge City was yet another pit stop for Miller, who played for five teams in an eight-year NBA career. He enjoyed his best season in 1995-96 with Toronto, when he averaged 12.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.88 blocks in a career-best 76 games.\nThat year, Brendan Malone, now a Pacers assistant, was Toronto's coach and Isiah Thomas, now Indiana's coach, was part owner. Their positive relationship allowed the Pacers to offer Miller a tryout.\nThomas said Miller's girth has caused his abilities to be overlooked.\n"There's a prejudice against people that we may consider overweight, but they're great athletes," Thomas said. "Oliver Miller is a great athlete. He gets up and down the floor and passes the ball."\nStill, Miller hasn't played in the NBA since the 1999-2000 season, when he played in 51 games in his second stint with the Suns. He said concerns about his weight, which he said ballooned to about 375 pounds, was the only issue that kept him out of the league.\nEven if this chance with the Pacers doesn't work out, Miller says he is confident he will play in the NBA this season.\n"If I go to the CBA, I won't last a month," he said. "I know I'm in shape to go play. I've gone through an NBA training camp and will be a step ahead of them.\n"People in the NBA will say, there's a big man in the CBA putting up numbers and we need a big man."\nFor now, Miller is content to help the Pacers in the frontcourt. It won't be easy, however, as the Pacers already have 14 players under contract and Miller is one of three free-agent signees left in camp.\n"If I don't make it here, hopefully a team that I play against I can make an impression," Miller said. "In my mind, I'm here. I'm just looking forward to being a Pacer"
(09/03/02 5:19am)
INDIANAPOLIS - Spain used the lessons it learned against Turkey a year ago to remain undefeated in the World Championships.\nSpain played poorly on defense and lost last year to Turkey in the European Championships in an ugly game that saw Spanish coach Javier Imbroda ejected and several players fighting late in the game.\nSpain shut down Turkey's 3-point game and beat Turkey 87-65 Monday to open the second round of the World Championships.\n"We knew them before from when we played them in Istanbul," Imbroda said. "We studied their moves. They're difficult to stop, but we got it done today. It was an important part of the game."\nTurkey entered the game second in the championships in 3-point shooting at 45 percent, but went 4-for-14 against Spain. Hidayet Turkoglu, Huseyin Besok and Ibrahim Kutluay combined for nine points. Kutluay, who scored 35 points against Spain in the European Championships, was scoreless Monday.\n"We knew Spain had impressive defensive power," Turkey coach Aydin Ors said. "We studied it and prepared offensive sets to run, but in the game we couldn't work them like we planned."\nSpain was led again by Pau Gasol, the NBA's rookie of the year with Memphis. He scored 19 points and Spain shot 12-of-24 from 3-point range. Gasol was averaging 20 points in three games entering Monday.\nIn other games Monday, it was: Puerto Rico 85, Yugoslavia 83, Germany 84, New Zealand 64, Canada 91, Lebanon 67; Venezuela 98, Algeria 83; and Brazil 86, Angola 83 in OT.\nBrazil 86, Angola 83, OT\nBrazil, which was expected to win this one easy, scored the first six points of overtime to remained undefeated in the championships.\nBrazil trailed with 8.9 seconds left in regulation, but Rogerio Klafke made three free throws to tie the score. In overtime, Angola had one last chance to tie the game, but Victor Muzadi's 3-point attempt from the corner went out of bounds.\nAngola is in the second round for the first time in its fourth World Championships appearance.\n"Maybe we were looking ahead," Brazil forward Sandro Varejao said, referring to Tuesday's game with defending champion Yugoslavia. "If we play the way we did today against Yugoslavia we'd lose by 40, 50 points. But we found a way to win another close game."\nCanada 91, Lebanon 67\nLebanon had a new coach but the same result: another loss against Canada.\nJohnny Neumann was fired as coach of Lebanon's national basketball team for criticizing the country's government but the change didn't help as Canada won 91-67.\nRowan Barrett and Prosper Karangwa each scored 18 points and Canada used a 16-0 third-quarter run for its first victory of the championships.\nAssistant Saskis Koryian will coach Lebanon the rest of the tournament.\n"He made some statements in front of some players that hurt the image of Lebanon," said team manager John Mamo, also a member of the Lebanese Basketball Federation. "He should not have talked this way. He should not have gotten on national TV to insult the government in front of players."\nThen Canada snapped a 51-51 game with a decisive 16-0 run. Karangwa and Steve Ross each scored six points during the run.\nVenezuela 98, Algeria 83\nVictor Diaz scored 29 points to lead Venezuela to a 98-83 victory over Algeria in the classification semifinals of the World Championships.\nOscar Torres, who plays for the Houston Rockets, added 20 points for Venezuela, while Richard Lugo had 17 points and 16 rebounds.\nAmine Benramdane was 7-for-11 from 3-point range and had 29 points for Algeria (0-4), which is making its first appearance in the World Championships.\nPuerto Rico 85, Yugoslavia 83\nOne of the oldest players in the tournament is still making a large contribution.\nJose Ortiz, 38, made two free throws over the final 2.1 seconds to give Puerto Rico a victory over Yugoslavia.\nOrtiz, a former Pac-10 player of the year at Oregon State and first-round draft pick of the Utah Jazz, finished with 15 points and eight rebounds. He said he'd keep playing as long as he enjoyed the game.\nGermany 84, New Zealand 64\nDirk Nowitzki, used to carrying the offensive load for Germany, had some help in its 84-64 victory over New Zealand. Mithat Demirel scored 14 points, and Misan Nikagbatse added 13 for Germany (3-1).\nKirk Penney had 15 points for New Zealand (2-2).\nNew Zealand was without Sean Marks, of the Miami Heat, who will miss the rest of the championships with a blood clot in his right eye.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Hamchetou Maiga's 17 points and 17 rebounds led Old Dominion to a 74-70 overtime upset Monday night of Purdue, last year's runner-up in the NCAA tournament.\nNo. 2-seeded Purdue lost in the second round one day after defending national champion Notre Dame did.\nSeventh-seeded Old Dominion (27-5) will play No. 3 Kansas State in the Mideast Regional semifinals on Saturday in Milwaukee.\nOld Dominion blew a five-point lead with three minutes left in regulation but scored five of the first six points in overtime.\nSharron Francis sank two free throws for a 70-66 Old Dominion lead with 41 seconds left in OT.\nAfter Shereka Wright, who led Purdue with 22 points, made one of two free throws, Old Dominion's Monique Coker made two from the line to push the lead to 72-67.\nKelly Komara's baseline 3-pointer pulled Purdue to 72-70 with 13.8 seconds remaining, but Francis' two free throws with 9.5 second left sealed the victory.\nFrancis scored 14 points, and Coker and Lucienne Berthieu had 11 each for the Lady Monarchs.\nKomara had 14 points, and Erika Valek 13 for Purdue.\nOld Dominion led by 10 midway through the first half and still held a 57-52 lead with 3:02 remaining in regulation. But the Boilermakers (24-6), the 1999 national champions, went on a 7-0 run to go ahead 59-57 with 1:13 left.\nFrancis' 3-pointer put Old Dominion up 60-59 with 49 seconds to go, and Komara went just 1-of-2 from the line for Purdue 24 seconds later, sending the game to OT.\nThe Boilermakers went 29-for-42 from the line and shot 32 percent overall. Old Dominion shot 40 percent.\nThe Boilermakers ended their season on their home court for the second time in three years. They lost to Oklahoma in 2000.\nOld Dominion lost in the first round a year ago. Before that, the Lady Monarchs reached the round of 16 five straight times, including a trip to the 1997 title game.\nThe Lady Monarchs beat Purdue 69-65 in overtime in the second round of the NCAA tournament in 1997.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Al Unser Jr., who had worked to put a racing slump and troubled personal life behind him, is accused by a girlfriend of hitting her after they left a strip club.\nJena L. Soto, 38, of Albuquerque, N.M., told police Unser struck her Tuesday while she was driving him home because he was drunk. She accused him of hitting her in the face and leaving her on the side of a highway in the middle of the night.\nThe report dismayed Unser's uncle, Bobby Unser, who said his nephew, a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, was having a positive year after some personal and professional struggles.\n"He lost a lot of weight and seemed to be going good. He turned this year into a good year," Bobby Unser said.\nUnser, who won the Indianapolis 500 in 1992 and 1994, posted a $30,000 bond on preliminary misdemeanor charges of domestic battery and domestic violence. He avoided reporters when he left the Marion County jail and could not be reached for comment.\nSoto told police she hit Unser first to stop him from trying to shift the gears of the car, and that Unser responded by hitting her in the face. She also told police she pulled to the side of the highway after Unser hit her, got out of the vehicle and that Unser then drove away.\nShe was found standing next to a guardrail on Interstate 465 at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday.\nBobby Unser, a three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and brother of Al Unser Sr., a four-time Indy winner, said Soto was a stripper who met his nephew in Las Vegas. He said her accusations seemed out of character for his nephew.\nBut he also said he had talked to his nephew about his behavior off the track, but he wouldn't listen.\n"I support him, but I don't support him for doing some of these things," he said. "He needs to get his life straightened out. He's an Unser. He can do it."\nUnser Jr.'s problems began in 1995 when he failed to qualify as the defending champion for the Indianapolis 500. He soon parted with team owner Roger Penske; divorced his first wife, Shelly; was overweight; and in 1999 his then 12-year-old daughter, Cody, was paralyzed from the chest down by a rare nerve disease called myelitis.\nUnser's career seemed to be on the rebound. He started third in Texas in June, his best start since joining the Indy Racing League in 2000. He finished second in that race and has two other top-10 finishes since then.\nUnser, 40, was arrested at his motor home on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway infield. A hearing is scheduled for July 19, sheriff's Col. Scott Minier said.\nThe preliminary charges against Unser are each punishable by up to a year in jail. The Marion County prosecutor's office will determine whether to file formal charges after a review, Minier said.\nTeam owner Tom Kelley said Unser had "the unqualified support of everyone at Kelley Racing." Repeated telephone messages left for Unser's attorney, James Voyles, were not returned.\nSoto could not be reached for comment. Two phone messages were left at her Albuquerque home on Tuesday and Wednesday.\nUnser first denied knowing Soto, police said. After being told of her accusations, Unser told police Soto had hit him first.\nUnser was to play in a charity golf tournament Thursday at the speedway's course and then drive Saturday in an IROC race at Chicagoland Speedway, Nancy Miller said.\nIRL spokesman Ron Green said a driver could face suspension or other penalties if convicted but said it was too early to determine if the league would take action.\n"He's one of the most respected drivers and still one of the most popular drivers in all of motorsports," Green said.
(04/11/02 4:22am)
INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana's slim playoff hopes are still alive.\nJermaine O'Neal scored 29 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and Brad Miller added 23 points and 11 rebounds as the Pacers beat Toronto 98-82 Wednesday night, snapping the Raptors nine-game winning streak.\nThe Pacers are now one game behind the Raptors and Milwaukee for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers play host to the Bucks on Friday. Milwaukee has won all three games against Indiana this season, clinching the tiebreaker.\nReggie Miller added 15 points and Jamaal Tinsley had 14 points and nine assists for the Pacers.\nAntonio Davis led the Raptors with 24 points and Morris Peterson added 22.\nTen times this season the Pacers have turned a double-digit lead into a loss. They appeared headed toward No. 11 when a 21-point lead was cut to three early in the third.\nThe Raptors outscored Indiana 24-8 during the second quarter to trail by five at halftime, and Keon Clark's layup 1 minute into the third made it 47-44. Knowing a loss would all but end their playoff hopes, the Pacers turned to Reggie Miller.\nMiller, the lone Pacer with considerable postseason experience, pushed the lead back to 11 with a couple of free throws. When the lead dipped to nine, he hit a 3-pointer that made it 62-50.\nA driving layup by Brad Miller gave Indiana a 68-52 lead -- its largest of the quarter -- with 3:31 remaining.\nThe Raptors never came closer than 12 in the fourth.\nO'Neal provided the Pacers, who had lost seven of their last nine, with a much needed jolt of energy to start. He scored 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting in the first quarter. He had a steal, then drove three-quarters of the court on a fastbreak. He missed his shot, but sank two free throws. He hit two more on the next possession for a 37-16 lead at the end of the first.\nThe Pacers could not maintain their momentum in the second quarter, a year-long problem and perhaps the biggest reason why they are fighting for a playoff spot. They made only three of 19 shots and matched a team-record for fewest points in a quarter with eight.\nTwo free throws by Davis sliced the deficit under 10 points and a 20-footer by Derrick Dial made it 45-40 at the half.\nNotes\nIU coach Mike Davis was at the game and received a standing ovation… Pacers forward Austin Croshere played four minutes after three straight DNP-CDs… Toronto point guard Chris Childs sat out with a strained right heel.