She’s Charging the Net in Paris

Tennis pro Johan Kriek said the only reason he entered the French Open was because his wife wanted to do some shopping in Paris.

Today, he finds himself the only American remaining in the tournament after three rounds, but he refuses to get excited.

“I don’t think I have a chance of winning the tournament, so I don’t feel any pressure,” he said. “All I want to do is go far enough so I can pay my wife’s American Express bill.”

Trivia Time: Angel Manager Gene Mauch, Detroit Manager Sparky Anderson and Angel Coach Jimmie Reese all played second base for what team? (Answer below.)

For What It’s Worth: With a regular-season record of 67-15 and a playoff mark of 13-1, the Boston Celtics are 80-16. If they can complete a sweep of the Houston Rockets in the NBA final, they will be 82-16, for a winning percentage of .837, the best single-season record in league history.

The 1971-72 Lakers were 81-16, an .835 winning percentage. The 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers were 79-17, a percentage of .823. The center on both teams was Wilt Chamberlain.

Robert Reid of the Rockets admits he has been surprised by Boston’s fast breaks.

“You’ve got these guys with their no-bounce plays,” he said. “You know, a pass-pass drill. It’s like looking at the Harlem Globetrotters coming down. They thrive on that.”

The Celtics have done most of their damage in the third quarter, so what have they been doing to get pumped up at halftime?

“Well,” Jerry Sichting says, “we usually play some cards and watch a little MTV.”

Larry Bird said if the Rockets choose to double-team him in Houston, it won’t bother him a bit.

“I like it,” he said. “They tried it in the first game, and I just looked for the open man. A lot of times, I’d just dribble to the corner on purpose and the two guys would stay with me, and I’d find the open guy.”

He said he didn’t think anybody in the league could handle him one-on-one but said, “Michael Cooper of the Lakers comes the closest. I always enjoy playing against him, because he gives me the kind of competition I like.”

When he was coaching at the University of Texas, Darrell Royal used to say: “Three things can happen when you throw the ball, and two of them are bad.”

Today, he says: “The way those offensive linemen are allowed to block makes it look like wrestling. Hell, if we could have done that when I was coaching, we might have thrown the ball.”

Trivia Answer: The Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League.

Add Trivia: Tom Lasorda was a teammate of Sparky Anderson on the 1957 Angels.

Says Lasorda: “Sparky hit .400 for a while that season--for the first two days.”

Quotebook

USC basketball Coach George Raveling, on Indiana Coach Bob Knight: “I’ve told Bobby that if I ever need a heart transplant I want his heart because it’s never been used.”