A roundup of the sports information of the week
BASKETBALL—NBA: Champion PHILADELPHIA won its Eastern Division semifinal playoff, while runnerup BOSTON held a 2-1 lead over fourth-place New York at week's end. The record-setting 76ers started lethargically against third-place Cincinnati as the Royals took the first game 120-116 on Connie Dierking's 29 points and all-round play at center. Stung by their unexpected loss, the 76ers then rolled over the Royals in three straight games—123-102, 121-106 and 112-94—to take the series 3-1. As usual, Wilt Chamberlain, who was voted the league's Most Valuable Player for the second year in a row, dominated play. In the first game he scored 41 points and in the second he tossed in 37 more. Then, switching tactics in the third game, Wilt scored only 16 points, but he tied Bob Cousey's playoff record with 19 assists, all the while pulling down 30 rebounds. In the other Eastern semifinal, the Celtics won the first two games from the Knicks 140-110 and 115-108. Then the Knicks surprised all by easily winning in Boston 123-112. The victory was the first for the Knicks over the Celtics in 22 games. The Western Division semifinals ran to form as first-place SAN FRANCISCO beat third-place Los Angeles three straight—124-108, 113-102, 115-112—and runner-up ST. LOUIS swept fourth-place Chicago 114-100,113-107 and 119-106. Outstanding for the Hawks was rookie Lou Hudson, who totaled 79 points for the series and was high scorer in two of the games. Another rookie, Archie Clark of the Lakers, scored 26, 24 and 27 points in the playoffs, but it wasn't enough to offset the absence of Jerry West, who missed the first two games because of an ankle injury. He started the third game and broke his left hand within the first minute.
BOWLING—Thirty-three-year-old CARMEN SALVINO of Chicago gained his ninth PBA championship by rolling five straight strikes in the finals of the $70,000 Mobile Sertoma Club's Open in Mobile, Ala. for a 232-169 victory over 26-year-old Wayne Zahn, last season's record-breaking money winner.
BOXING—MUHAMMAD ALI retained his world heavyweight title when he knocked out Zora Folley of Chandler, Ariz. in 1:48 of the seventh round at New York's Madison Square Garden (page 28).
Canadian Heavyweight Champion GEORGE CHUVALO, in his bid for another shot at the world title, floored Buddy Moore of Pittsburgh four times for an easy knockout in the second round of a scheduled 10-rounder in Walpole, Mass.
Germany's KARL MILDENBERGER, also interested in another chance at Clay's crown, successfully defended his European heavyweight title in London with an eighth-round knockout over Billy Walker of Britain.
Former welterweight champion LUIS RODRIGUEZ (76-6-1), entering a scheduled 10-rounder in Philadelphia as a 7-5 underdog, won a unanimous decision over Middleweight Benny Briscoe.
In another 10-rounder EDDIE COTTON of Seattle, the second-ranked light heavyweight, scored a TKO in the ninth round over Bobby Stininato of San Francisco, in Auckland, New Zealand.
CURLING—SCOTLAND, after beating defending champion Canada in the semifinals, took the world championship Scotch Cup for the first time as it defeated Sweden in the finals 11-5 in Perth, Scotland.
GOLF—GAY BREWER of Middletown, Ohio won the $75,000 Pensacola (Fla.) Open for the second year in a row with a 26-under-par 72-hole total of 262, including a dazzling 61 on the third round, the lowest score on the pro tour this year.
Kathy Whitworth, last year's leading LPGA money winner, shot a 4-over-par 76 for a 217 total to take the $10,000 Venice (Fla.) Open by one stroke over Gloria Ehret and Clifford Ann Creed.
HOCKEY—NHL: Bobby Hull raised his goal total to 52 as champion CHICAGO (38-16-12), marking time until the Stanley Cup playoffs, tied one game and lost another during the next-to-last week of the season. But there was action aplenty in the heated battle for second place. TORONTO (30-26-11) held a share of the runnerup spot by splitting four games, while MONTREAL (29-25-13) skipped from fourth to a second-place tie as the Canadiens extended their unbeaten streak to eight with three victories. NEW YORK (29-26-12), in the meanwhile, slipped from a tie for second into fourth place, only one point behind, with a 1-1-1 week. In the Rangers' lone win—4-0 over the Leafs—Ed Giacomin gained his ninth shutout of the season, tops in the league. Fifth-place DETROIT (27-36-4) won two of three games, and BOSTON (17-41-10) dropped three.
HORSE RACING—Mrs. Edith Bancroft's DAMASCUS ($6.80), with Bill Shoemaker up, won the seven-furlong $28,600 Bay Shore Stakes for 3-year-olds at Aqueduct, beating Disciplinarian of Wheatley Stables by two and a half lengths as favored Solo Landing finished a disappointing fourth (page 54).
Llangollen Farm's 4-year-old favorite PRETENSE ($7), ridden by Johnny Sellers, gained a two-and-a-quarter-length victory over Amberoid in the 1-mile $137,600 Gulfstream Handicap.
ROWING—Favored OXFORD, with two former Yale men in its eight-oar shell, took the lead at the outset of the 4-mile Oxford-Cambridge race on the Thames River and won, by three and a quarter lengths, over Cambridge for the third consecutive year. The victory for Oxford ran its record in the 113-year-old series to 51 wins, 61 losses and one tie.
SKIING—Canada's NANCY GREENE swept all three women's events at the Wild West Classic in Jackson Hole, Wyo. to win the World Cup with 176 points, leaving France's Marielle Goitschel, who was leading at the outset of the final day, four points behind (page 22).
SWIMMING—STANFORD UNIVERSITY upset four-time winner and defending titleholder USC 275-260 at the three-day NCAA championships in East Lansing, Mich., as GREG BUCKINGHAM set American marks in the 500-yard freestyle (4:37) and the 200-yard free-style (1:41.3), swam the anchor leg on the winning 800-yard freestyle relay team and finished second in the 1,650-yard freestyle (page 24).
The San Francisco MERIONETTES dominated the Women's Senior National AAU Indoor Synchronized Swimming Championships in St. Petersburg, Fla. with a clean sweep of all the events, taking the team title for the seventh consecutive time and winning the Governor's Trophy with 121.561 points. Solo champion with 126.950 points was Margo McGrath, who with teammate and solo runner-up Carol Redmond also took the duet title.
TRACK & FIELD—JIM RYUN won the mile in 4:01.1 and the 880 in 1:48.1 for his outdoor-season debut, but the victories were not enough to upset NCAA champion UCLA, which beat Kansas in a dual meet in Los Angeles 88-55.
WRESTLING—MICHIGAN STATE, with Dale Anderson (137 pounds) and George Radman (167) winning individual honors, took the NCAA championship in Kent, Ohio 74-63 over the University of Michigan to become only the second Big Ten team to gain the title in the 37-year history of the tournament (page 50). Defending champion Oklahoma State finished a shocking sixth. Other individual class winners were Richard Sanders (115 pounds) of Portland State, Mike Caruso (123) of Lehigh. Harold McGuire (130) of Oklahoma, Don Henderson (145) of the Air Force Academy, James Kamman (152) of Michigan, Vic Marcucci (160) of Iowa State, Fred Fozzard (177) of Oklahoma State, Tom Schlendorf (191) of Syracuse and Curley Culp (heavyweight) of Arizona State.
MILEPOSTS—DIED: Three-time world motorcycle champion FRITZ SCHEIDEGGER, 35, of Switzerland, who retired a year ago after the death of another Swiss rider but returned again to the circuit because "it is my life"; in an accident during a race at Mallory Park, England.
