Sunday, February 25, 2007

"Lazzari's Sports Roundup" ---- 03-03-07

ITEM: Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens requires more surgery on his injured right ring finger. For some strange reason, I don't think this will deter "T.O." from raising one of his OTHER fingers to fans the first time he gets booed for dropping passes early in the 2007 season..........TRIVIA QUESTION: During the 1968-69 NBA season, the San Francisco Warriors had two players among the league's top 10 in rebounds per game. Can you name these two gentlemen? Answer to follow..........Can you imagine if Villanova women's basketball player Maria Getty married former big league pitcher Chris Eddy, divorced, married retiring Southern CT State University SID Rick Leddy--divorced again--then married NASCAR driver Kyle Petty? She'd be running up and down the court with the catchy, full married name of Maria Getty Eddy Leddy Petty..........Lazzari's "Non Sports-Related Tidbit of the Week": Just two words why parents should be subject to licensing: BRITNEY SPEARS..........This week in sports history, March 4, 1962: Philadelphia Warriors center Wilt Chamberlain tops the 50-point plateau for the FIFTH consecutive game--tallying 58 during his team's 129-128 victory over the N.Y. Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Wilt "The Stilt" connected on 24 field goals and added 10 free throws in the game--raising his season point total to 3,921..........A rational person would assume that, due to the GAZILLIONS of dollars currently being earned by A-ROD and Jeter, the Yankees' duo would have hired a "spin doctor" by now to at least make it APPEAR that the two actually liked each other..........ATTENTION METS FANS: I'd match up a starting pitching staff of Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez, and Aaron Sele with ANY NL team--ummm, SIX years ago, that is..........The "Unwatchable NBA" Update: In a game (I use that term lightly) last weekend, the Spurs beat the Sonics 102-71--with Seattle scoring a pathetic total of just 25 points in the second and third quarters COMBINED. Embarrassing--for sure. Mind you, San Antonio's George Gervin scored 33 points by himself in ONE quarter back in 1978. Ughhhh..........I recently had a dream where New York Yankees pitcher Carl Pavano called a press conference to announce that he was donating $10 million of the $20 million he's stolen from the Yankees so far to a charity for underprivileged children. Ah, then I woke up; shame on me for having such a wild, irrational imagination..........Answer to trivia question: NATE THURMOND (19.7 rpg) and CLYDE LEE (13.8 rpg)..........Lazzari's "Lopsided Score of the Week": In a Connecticut boys high school basketball game last week, East Catholic annihilated Plainville 82-27; the winning squad held a 46-8 lead AT THE HALF. What does a coach tell his/her team after losing THAT badly? I dunno--but for some reason, I don't think saying "a 55-point deficit is better than 65" will succeed in making these kids feel any better..........Happy birthday wishes go out to former major league pitcher Jerry Ujdur--who blows out 50 candles on March 5th. Some hard-core fans may remember that the Minnesota native had a decent year in 1982 for the Detroit Tigers--winning 10 games (7 complete games) and pitching to an ERA of 3.69. Ujdur's problem was that he won only TWO other games in a career that spanned from 1980-1984 with Detroit and Cleveland; he also never compiled an ERA UNDER 6.43 in any other season. Hey, they all can't turn out like Mickey Lolich, right? Best wishes, Jerry..........Finally, condolences go out to the family of former NBA guard Dennis Johnson--who died last week in Texas at the age of 52. Johnson, who was coaching the Austin Toros of the NBA Developmental League, collapsed suddenly outside the Austin Convention Center after a team practice. Johnson played 14 seasons with the Supersonics, Suns, and Celtics and was named to the NBA's All-Defensive first team SIX times. A member of three championship squads (Seattle-1979, Boston-'84 and '86), Dennis was a five-time All-Star and the MVP of the 1979 Finals. Looking at Johnson's career stats as the years unfolded, the obvious stands out: He went from being a scorer in his early NBA days to being the ultimate team player when he arrived in Boston; he put scoring aside as his assist totals rose significantly while with the Celtics. In short, his unselfishness and clutch play were major reasons why Boston was so successful in the mid-’80s. A helluva free throw shooter, too, Johnson averaged nearly 80% from the line during his career. You'll be missed, D.J.

Bob Lazzari


Reprinted by permission of the Valley Times.

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