Malone Is Still the Big Man

A week before the Christmas Day game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Washington Bullets, Charles Barkley of the 76ers said: “We’re not even worried about the Washington Bullets. We don’t even think about them. They only average 60 points a game.”

Of former 76er teammate Moses Malone, he said: “I’ll tell you what, he better bring more than 60 points with him. He’s got to get out of that Volkswagen and into something faster. You can’t catch a Mercedes in a VW.”

Washington won the game, 102-97. Malone scored 28 points; Barkley scored 16. Malone had 21 rebounds; Barkley had 10.

Afterward, they asked Malone what he thought of his old team.

“They need a big man inside,” he said.

Larry Guest of the Orlando Sentinel, on the fact that Auburn tailback Brent Fullwood, who faces USC in the Citrus Bowl, hasn’t attended classes since early in the fall: “Auburn is giving Citrus Bowl tickets to Fullwood’s profs so they’ll finally get to see him in person.”

Trivia Time: Jim Young is the answer to what Rose Bowl trivia question? (Answer below.)

From George Kiseda of Los Angeles: “You keep saying Oscar Robertson averaged a triple-double for a season. Try five seasons in a row.

“At the end of his first five seasons in the NBA, he had 11,620 points, 3,993 rebounds and 4,076 assists in 384 games, averaging 30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 10.6 assists.

“You could look it up.”

Ugh Dept.: When Kevin McHale became a father for the third time, Boston teammate Rick Carlisle suggested the boy be named Gorbachev--as in “McHale Gorbachev.”

Jim McMahon, on Doug Flutie: “He did all right for himself against Dallas, but he needs to learn more about the offense. He still looks uncomfortable out there.

“In the playoffs, you definitely have to have some experience. That’s why I think Steve Fuller will play a big part before this is all through.”

Said Chicago Coach Mike Ditka, when informed of McMahon’s views: “It’s a shame, but you’ll find I don’t ask his opinion on anything.”

Note: In McMahon’s last game this season, against Green Bay, he completed 12 of 32 passes for 95 yards with 3 interceptions.

Washington defensive coordinator Richie Petitbon, on Ram quarterback Jim Everett: “He’s in a difficult spot. Any rookie in a playoff game is in a tough spot. I don’t care how good he’s going to be. There’s no substitute for experience, and right now he doesn’t have it.”

Would-you-believe-it dept.: Miami’s Dan Marino and Minnesota’s Tommy Kramer, the passing champions of the AFC and NFC, are both out of the playoffs. That hasn’t happened since 1969 when the passing leaders were Sonny Jurgensen of Washington and Greg Cook of Cincinnati.

Trivia Answer: He was the Michigan assistant coach who took over as the head coach in the 1970 Rose Bowl against USC after Bo Schembechler suffered a heart attack. USC won the game, 10-3. Young later became head coach at Arizona, then Purdue. He’s now at Army.

Quotebook

Auburn basketball Coach Sonny Smith, on the dour demeanor of Alabama Coach Wimp Sanderson: “It takes 15 muscles to smile and 65 muscles to frown. This leads me to believe Wimp is suffering from muscle fatigue.”