
A roundup of the sports information of the week
BASKETBALL—SAN FRANCISCO (48-32) finished first in the Western Division, two games ahead of ST. LOUIS (46-34), as both teams split their last two games of the season. Last year's Western leader, LOS ANGELES (42-38), closed with a rush—six wins in its last seven games—and ended up six games behind in third. Fourth-place BALTIMORE (31-49) won its last game to break a nine-game losing streak, and DETROIT (23-57) finished deep in the cellar. BOSTON (59-21), the Eastern Division champion, missed a chance to equal its NBA record of 60 victories in one season (1961-62) when it lost its last game of the year. CINCINNATI (55-25) came in second, four games out, while far behind were PHILADELPHIA (34-46) and NEW YORK (22-58). Oscar Robertson of the Royals, who led the league in assists (averaged 11 a game), free throw percentage (.853) and came in second in scoring (averaged 31.4 points a game), won the NBA's most valuable player award. The Warriors' Wilt Chamberlain was the top scorer (36.9 average) for the fifth consecutive year and the Celtics' Bill Russell, the MVP the previous three seasons, pulled down the most rebounds (averaged 24.7 a game). Jerry Lucas of the Royals, the league's outstanding rookie (17.7 scoring average), tied Chamberlain's year-old NBA field goal percentage record (.528) and finished third in rebounds (1,375), behind Russell and Chamberlain.
BOXING—Top-ranked Welterweight LUIS RODRIGUEZ of Miami interrupted his training for a June title fight with Emile Griffith to pound out a unanimous 10-round decision over Middleweight Holly Mims at Madison Square Garden.
Fourth-ranked Heavyweight ZORA FOLLEY knocked out Tod Herring in the seventh round of a scheduled 10-rounder in Houston.
BRIDGE—The team captained by HOWARD SCHENKEN of New York led all the way and survived an upset in the semifinal round to take the Vanderbilt Cup at the ACBL Spring Nationals in Portland, Ore. It was Schenken's 10th Vanderbilt victory and set a new individual record for the event. On Schenken's squad were Peter Leventritt, Lew Mathe, Eddie Kantar, Donald Krauss and Robert Hamman.
FENCING—Led by Team Captain Bill Hicks, who won 32 of his 33 foil matches, PRINCETON came from behind to win the NCAA championships for the first time, in Cambridge, Mass. New York University was runner-up and defending champion Columbia placed third.
GOLF—BILLY CASPER of San Diego edged Jack Nicklaus by one stroke, 277-278, to win the $50,000 Doral Open in Miami. Casper was the 15th different winner of as many consecutive PGA tournaments (including the final four of the 1963 season), making it the longest streak in PGA history without a repeat tournament champion.
In Pensacola, Fla., 6-foot-2½ CAROL MANN shot a 72-hole total of 308 to gain the Women's Western Open, the first LPGA tournament of the season, by two strokes over Judy Kimball and Ruth Jessen.
HANDBALL—At the All-American tournament in St. Louis, JIM JACOBS of New York upset Defending Champion Oscar Obert 21-13, 21-12 to take the four-wall singles title, and PHIL ELBERT and JOHN SLOAN of Chicago defeated Oscar and his brother Ruby Obert 21-20, 21-9 for the doubles championship.
HOCKEY—MONTREAL, with 85 points, edged CHICAGO for the NHL title by one point on the last day of the season (see page 56). It was the second year in a row that the Black Hawks missed the championship by a point. What's more, the Hawks had the league's leading scorer (Stan Mikita with 89 points), the league's top goal-getter (Bobby Hull with 43) and one of the league's best goalies (Glenn Hall lost the Vezina trophy to the Canadiens' Charlie Hodge by two goals—169-167). TORONTO (78 points) held off DETROIT (71 points) for third place by going undefeated in its last six games, including two big wins over the Red Wings on the last two days of the season. NEW YORK (54 points) lost all six of its final games to finish fifth and BOSTON, with 48 points, rested uncomfortably in the cellar for the fourth consecutive season.
Michigan defeated home team Denver 6-3 in the championship game for its first NCAA title in eight years.
HORSE RACING—Raymond Guest's CHIEFTAIN ($4.60), ridden by Bill Hartack, went ahead in the stretch and won the $83,000 Governor's Gold Cup for 3-year-olds by 1¼ lengths over National at Bowie Race Course, Md.
Gedney Farm's GUN BOW ($3.60), Willie Shoemaker aboard, took an early lead and held it to gain the $116,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap by 1¼ lengths.
American-owned TEAM SPIRIT, a 12-year-old gelding and the smallest horse in a field of 33, won the Grand National steeplechase in Aintree, England. Purple Silk was half a length behind in second, and Peacetown third in the 4½-mile, 30-obstacle race on which the first Irish Sweepstakes of the season was based.
MOTOR SPORTS—England's MIKE PARKES and Italy's UMBERTO MAGLIOLI, driving a Ferrari, won the overall title at the Sebring (Fla.) 12-hour endurance race (see page 20).
SKIING—As expected, JEAN SAUBERT gained the women's combined title in the National Alpine Championships in Winter Park, Colo. with victories in the downhill and slalom events and a second to Italy's PIA RIVA in the giant slalom (Miss Riva was runner-up in both the other races). The men's titles went to 19-year-old NI ORSI of Stockton, Calif. in the downhill, BILLY KIDD in the giant slalom and BILL MAROLT of Aspen, Colo. in the slalom, but GORDON EATON of Littleton, N.H., who was runner-up to Orsi and Marolt and finished ninth in the giant slalom, gained the combined championship.
At Alpine Meadows, Calif. REBEL RYAN, 18, of Rutland, Vt. just missed sweeping the boys' Alpine events in the National Junior Championships. He finished first in the downhill and giant slalom, but was runner-up by .3 second to GREG SCHWARTZ of Cadillac, Mich. in the slalom. In the girls' Alpine events 15-year-old VICKI JONES of Tahoe City, Calif. was a surprise winner in the downhill; CATHY NAGEL, 15, of Enumclaw, Wash. successfully defended her 1963 title in the giant slalom; and CATHY ALLEN, 18, of San Pedro, Calif. who was runner-up in both of the other events, finished first in the slalom. The Nordic events were held concurrently at Squaw Valley, Calif., and the combined title went to RANDY GARRITSON of Kirkland, Wash., who took the jumping title after a poor finish in the 10-km. cross-country race.
SWIMMING—BUCKNELL of Lewisburg, Pa. took first place in five events and tied in a sixth to win the NCAA College Division championships in Grove City, Pa. by a decisive 33 points over runner-up East Carolina.
Macalester of St. Paul gained its first NAIA title, but with only a slim four-point margin over Eastern New Mexico, in St. Paul.
TRACK & FIELD—New Zealand's PETER SNELL, the mile world record-holder (3:54.4), brought the sub-four-minute mile to the African continent as he won the event in 3:59.6 at a Durban, South Africa meet. And in a Melbourne, Australia race, ALBERT THOMAS took the mile in 3:58.3, closely followed by John Davis of New Zealand (3:58.9).
Writer HAL HIGDON of Chicago, the U.S. 20-km. record holder, won the AAU National Senior 30-km. title in 1:41:47.4 in Silver Spring, Md.
WRESTLING—After three days of competition among 51 colleges in Spearfish, S. Dak., MOORHEAD (Minn.) STATE overpowered defending champion Lock Haven (Pa.) State in the final match to take the NAIA title by three points.
MILEPOSTS—APPOINTED: Two assistant basketball coaches, DON DONOHER, 32, of the University of Dayton (two years), and PAUL VALENTI, 43, of Oregon State (17 years), as head coaches at their respective schools.
TRADED: The Philadelphia Eagles' flanker back TOMMY McDONALD, 29, to the Dallas Cowboys for kicking specialist Sam Baker, plus linemen Lynn Hoyem (center-guard) and John Meyers (defensive tackle). A 1956 All-America halfback at Oklahoma, McDonald caught 287 passes for 5,499 yards and 66 touchdowns in his seven years with the Eagles.
DIED: DRAKE H. SPARKMAN, 66, founder and president of the firm of Sparkman & Stephens, Inc., yacht designers and brokers, whose business acumen complemented the creative talents of his partner Olin J. Stephens II, of cancer in New York's Memorial Hospital.
DIED: JOHN L. (Johnny) BRICKELS, 57, athletic director at Miami University of Ohio since 1950, of a heart attack in an Oxford, Ohio hospital.