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A roundup of the sports information of the week
BASKETBALL—NBA: Milwaukee, the fastest gun in the West, shot down five more opponents on the way to a new NBA record for consecutive victories—19. The Bucks maimed Boston 111-99, Philadelphia 127-103, Los Angeles 112-97, Buffalo 116-113 and then hit for 63% from the field in the first quarter of a 108-95 win over Detroit in the record-breaker. The Atlanta Hawks moved 1½ games ahead in their playoff spot struggle with Cincinnati by winning three straight after being nipped by Detroit 106-105 in the week's opener. The Hawks belted Seattle 128-116, then broke a 102-102 tie with six straight points in the last three minutes to down San Francisco 109-105 and finish the week with a win over Los Angeles 105-104. In the East the Knicks lost to second-place Philadelphia 121-116 but clinched a playoff berth by beating Boston 112-104.
ABA: Kentucky, 7½ games behind Virginia in the East Division, beat both Carolina and the Floridians twice: the Cougars 122-112 and 131-128, Florida 128-119 and 118-113. In the West, Indiana cut into Utah's lead by winning two of its three games. The Pacers dropped a 113-110 decision to Pittsburgh but conquered Memphis 122-98 and Utah 98-97. Pittsburgh's Stew Johnson broke the league single-game scoring record with 62 points to lead the Condors to a 142-129 win over the Floridians. The fifth-year pro from Murray State eclipsed the previous single-game high of 59 established last year by Spencer Haywood.
BOATING—RUNNING TIDE, owned by Jakob Isbrandtsen, was the overall and Class A winner of the Southern Ocean Racing Conference championship (page 24).
BOWLING—DICK WEBER, using a borrowed ball after his had been stolen before the semifinal round, defeated his brother-in-law, Norm Meyers, 237-235 in the final game of the $60,000 Buckeye Open in Toledo. Meyers led most of the way, but Weber finished with four straight strikes to win.
BOXING—BOB FOSTER, beaten in his last bout by Joe Frazier, knocked out Hal (TNT) Carroll with right hands at 2:32 of the fourth round in Scranton, Pa. to defend his share of the world light-heavyweight championship. Foster won the title from Dick Tiger in 1968 but was stripped of it two months ago by the World Boxing Association when he failed to defend against Jimmy Dupree within six months. Foster is still considered the champ by all bodies but the WBA, which recognizes Vicente Rondon of Venezuela.
GOLF—J. C. SNEAD overtook Gardner Dickinson with a third-round 66 and finished with a three-under-par 69 for 275 to win the Doral-Eastern Open in Miami. Snead, a onetime baseball player who didn't take up golf until five years ago, scored his first professional win at Tucson a month ago.
HOCKEY—Even seven stitches in his forehead couldn't stop Phil Esposito. Boston's explosive center. Esposito scored the Bruins' fourth goal to give them a 4-3 win over Toronto, increasing his scoring total to 117 points with his 52nd goal and 65th assist. Boston, as usual, continued cutting up everyone in the league: Minnesota 6-3, Pittsburgh 6-3 and California 7-0. The Rangers won six in a row before tying Detroit 2-2. Chicago got five of a possible six points and held an excitement-ending 22-point lead over St. Louis.
HORSE RACING—In the first of the season's $100,000 races for 3-year-olds EXECUTIONER ($14.80) caught speed-horse Dynastic in the stretch to take the Flamingo Stakes at Hialeah by a head (page 22).
High-weighted 5-year-old MANTA ($8.20) led a field of 11 all the way to capture the Santa Margarita Handicap for fillies and mares at Santa Anita. Scoring her seventh victory in nine starts on the California track, Manta won by two lengths and covered the 1‚⅛ miles in 1:48[4/5]. Beja was second and favorite Last of the Line third.
SKIING—MARILYN COCHRAN of Richmond, Vt. dominated the French National Women's championship in La Plagne, winning the giant slalom and the special slalom and finishing fourth in the downhill. Her impressive performance gave her the combined championship.
The University of Denver won its 14th National Collegiate championship in 18 years at Terry Peak in Lead, S. Dak. Favored Denver's four-event total was 394.7 points, 21.6 more than second-place Colorado.
SWIMMING—DAVID EDGAR of Tennessee broke his American record of 20.4 in the 50-yard freestyle with a 20.2 clocking at the Southeastern Conference championships in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Mark Spitz of Indiana lowered the American record by one-tenth of a second in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:49.50 as the Hoosiers won their 11th straight Big Ten title.
TENNIS—MARGARET COURT avenged an earlier loss to Evonne Goolagong by beating her 3-6, 7-6, 6-2 in the finals of the Centennial Open at Auckland, New Zealand. BOB CARMICHAEL won the men's title with two exciting tie-breakers for a 7-6, 7-6, 6-3 victory over Allan Stone.
TRACK & FIELD—PAT MATZDORF, a junior, equaled the American indoor high-jump record of 7'3" on his second attempt to help Wisconsin capture its fifth consecutive Big Ten championship, in Madison.
MILEPOSTS—ANNOUNCED: By the NCAA, that its investigation of premature signings of pro contracts by college basketball players had not uncovered enough evidence to warrant action at this time. Walter Byers, executive director, said the organization had sworn affidavits from seven players, including Villanova's Howard Porter and Jim McDaniels of Western Kentucky.
COACHING CHANGES: GARY THOMPSON, basketball coach of Wichita State, was dropped when his three-year contract expired. Citing personal problems, DICK BESTWICK returned to Georgia Tech as assistant football coach after having accepted the head position at Marshall University a week earlier. EDWARD DOHERTY, a former Boston College quarterback, was named head football coach at Holy Cross, B.C.'s sturdiest rival, succeeding Bill Whitton, who stepped down a month ago. At Purdue. Basketball Coach GEORGE KING was given the job of athletic director, replacing the late Red Mackey. Former Boston Patriot Head Coach CLIVE RUSH was hired as offensive coach of the Washington Redskins. STAN HUNTSMAN, track coach at Ohio University, was appointed track coach at the University of Tennessee, replacing Chuck Rohe. University of Miami Basketball Coach RON GODFREY resigned after four years, and after the Hurricanes' worst season ever (7-19).
PROPOSED: The purchase of Yankee Stadium by New York City for about $24 million from Rice University and the Knights of Columbus to forestall a move by the baseball Yankees and the football Giants to another city.
DIED: CHARLES W. ENGELHARD, 54, multimillionaire industrialist and racehorse owner; in Boca Grande, Fla. He had 14 U.S. stakes winners in the last 10 years, but his most famous champion was Nijinsky II, who won 11 straight races, including the English Triple Crown. Some other notable Engelhard horses: Alley Fighter, who won the 1968 Santa Anita Derby; Ribocco, the winner of the 1967 Irish Derby; and Ribero, who took the same race a year later. At his death Engelhard owned 300 horses.
DIED: MILLARD (Dixie) HOWELL, 58, whose passes to Don Hutson and his own runs led Alabama to a 22-point second quarter in a 29-13 upset of Stanford in the 1935 Rose Bowl; after a two-year illness; in Hollywood.
