It’s a Zoo Out There, Especially at Garden

With one-tenth of a second to play at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 15, the New York Knicks’ Trent Tucker took an inbounds pass and made a three-point shot that beat the Chicago Bulls, 109-106. The Bulls protested the game, claiming the clock was started late.

Will the Bulls’ protest be upheld? Said Rod Thorn, NBA vice president of operations: “I recognize it’s impossible to catch a ball with two hands and shoot it in one-tenth of a second.

“If somebody had thrown a lob pass toward the basket and a player had tipped it in, that’s a horse of a different color. But in this case, the referee should have taken the bull by the horns and waved off the basket.” It is assumed no pun was intended.

Add Bulls: Michael Turner, a University of Chicago astrophysicist, said of the controversy: “A lot of things can happen in one-tenth of a second. A star explodes every tenth of a second in the universe, and light travels at 186,000 miles per second and can circumnavigate the globe. The only thing I can’t think of is a three-point shot with that much time on the clock, unless, of course, you’re playing in New York.”

Last add Bulls: The Bulls’ Michael Jordan blames the Detroit Pistons’ Isiah Thomas, president of the NBA players’ union, for vetoing the proposed $1-million one-on-one showdown between Jordan and the Lakers’ Magic Johnson.

Said Jordan: “I wonder what Isiah’s position would be if he were playing Magic. But, of course, if he were playing Magic, no one would want to see it.”

Trivia time: On Jan. 30, 1971, who scored 28 points to lead UCLA to a 74-61 victory over UC Santa Barbara, starting the Bruins’ record 88-game winning streak?

Designing woman: Track star Florence Griffith Joyner attended a news conference in Indianapolis last week to introduce the uniforms she designed for the Indiana Pacers. The uniforms are navy blue, yellow and white. Griffith Joyner favored a Laker look--a purple dress and gold shoes.

Haskins update: Texas El Paso basketball Coach Don (the Bear) Haskins says he probably will not return to the bench this season because of a severe case of laryngitis.

Haskins said his voice has improved recently, but he is fearful of returning courtside because he tends to yell during games. Assistant Coach Norm Ellenberger has guided the Miners in Haskins’ absence.

Haskins said he watched the Miners lose a road game on television recently. Did he get excited?

“I even screamed at the TV set,” he said.

Oski update: Oski, the University of California mascot who was suspended by the school after he tossed a two-layer cream cake onto the laps of visiting Oregon State fans on Jan. 7, has been reinstated.

Kathy Rittler Andrews, spirit coordinator at Cal, said Oski “apologized and knew he was wrong. He was very upset with the whole situation. (He) wasn’t using common sense.”

Grass is greener: How popular is soccer outside the United States? A West German merchandising company recently reached an agreement with Italia ’90 organizers to sell the turf from Rome’s Olympic Stadium after the World Cup final.

Trivia answer: Curtis Rowe.

Quotebook: The Kings’ Luc Robitaille, on the possibility of playing with the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Mario Lemieux: “A fire hydrant could score 40 goals playing on Lemieux’s line. He is amazing the way he moves the puck. I’d be all-world on his line.”