CONTENTS

32 Now for Serious Business
All unimportant preliminaries having been completed, the basketball and hockey playoffs are on us. In the NBA, the East—Washington or Boston—seems to have a better shot than any team in the West. And in the NHL, when they solve the playoff system, Philadelphia is again the team to beat.
by Pat Putnam and Mark Mulvoy

24 Love Conquers All
Chris Evert, $40,000 richer, is back to holding hands with Jimmy Connors
by Joe Jares

28 A Crew of Perfect Gentlemen
Harvard went West to unveil its powerful and impeccably mannered 1975 eight
by Dan Levin

30 Keep Cool and Collect
Borrowing an old Japanese theme, a band of U.S. gymnasts moved up in the game
by Larry Keith

38 Tales of Leo and Larry
In which Durocher fights for and with the volatile MacPhail and wins a pennant
by Leo Durocher with Ed Linn

54 They Also Serve...
The wives of players at the Masters help with cheers or sympathy near the tee
by Sarah Pileggi

82 The Best at Everything
Strongest man in the world, Vasili Alexeyev admits he also excels at other pursuits
by William Johnson

The departments

19 Scorecard
60 Wrestling
68 Badminton
73 Skiing
76 Track & Field
103 For the Record
106 19th Hole

Credits on page 103

Cover photograph by Jerry Cooke

ILLUSTRATION

ARNOLD ROTH

Next Week

Marching on Augusta is a regiment of top golfers led by Jack Nicklaus, who will be out gunning for his fifth Masters title. Can Gary Player, Johnny Miller or anyone else stop him? Dan Jenkins will let you know.

A woman's place is on the tube, say the growing numbers of female sportscasters. Profiling the new talents in the big time and the bushes, Curry Kirkpatrick finds that while they are not wonders, neither are the men.