Notes on a Scorecard - April 16, 1990

The biggest roar Saturday night at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas wasn’t heard at the Michael Nunn-Marlon Starling fight or the crap tables or even the white tigers’ lair next to the lobby, but at the Sports Book where the King-Calgary game was being shown on a half-dozen screens. . . .

Bettors and non-bettors alike literally danced in the aisles after Mike Krushelnyski’s game-winning goal in the second overtime. . . .

“Look at these people,” said a man who had been glued to the tubes for nearly 4 1/2 hours. “I’m from Chicago. I know hockey. Hardly anybody here does. They’ve been cheering at the wrong times and for the wrong reasons. But anybody can enjoy a game like this one.” . . .

CBS, which usually limits its coverage of hockey to bench-clearing brawls, showed Krushelnyski’s goal at halftime of the Celtic-Knick game Sunday. . . .

The Kings have eliminated defending Stanley Cup champions two consecutive years, but they have a much better chance to advance this year against the Edmonton-Winnipeg winner than they did last year against Calgary after the Flames had the best regular-season record in the league. . . .

Of course, the Kings never have won two consecutive playoff series since entering the NHL in 1967. . . .

What made Los Angeles’ performance in 23 minutes 14 seconds of overtime so remarkable was that it is an older team that should have gotten tired instead of getting most of the good chances. . . .

The Flames, who had an apparent game-winning goal wiped out in the first overtime, probably would vote for instant replay in the playoffs. . . .

Calgary delivered more than a few cheap shots during the series, but the Kings kept their cool. . . .

“Last year, we tried to retaliate and we picked up some bad penalties,” Dave Taylor said. “This year, we kept our mind on business.” . . .

Michael Nunn’s problems making the weight Saturday morning for his International Boxing Federation middleweight title fight against Marlon Starling gave underdog players false hope. The odds that had favored Nunn by as much as 5 1/2-1 dropped to 3-1 in a matter of hours. . . .

Donald Curry, who once was considered among the best fighters pound-for-pound in the world, is likely to be Nunn’s next opponent. . . .

As usual, Starling cost himself points by not throwing enough punches and choosing to concentrate on defense behind raised gloves. . . .

So much for those in Starling’s camp who were calling him Marvelous Marlon. . . .

I had Nunn, the busier and sharper puncher, the winner by four points. . . .

However, Michael did nothing to enhance his drawing power by being content to outpoint a much smaller man and not taking chances in a match that lacked knockdowns, emotion and suspense. . . .

Angelo Dundee is among those who were impressed by Razor Ruddock’s knockout of Michael Dokes and believe the Canadian would have beaten Mike Tyson if their fight hadn’t been postponed before Buster Douglas got his chance against Tyson. . . .

Dundee, who once trained a heavyweight named Muhammad Ali, picks Douglas over Evander Holyfield. . . .

“Douglas is bigger than Holyfield and I don’t like the fact that Evander has gotten off his bodybuilding program,” Angelo said. “He’s changed his training routine and that’s not good.” . . .

The new heavyweight champion, who was ringside Saturday, continues to make appearances everywhere except in the gymnasium. . . .

Larry Johnson and Stacey Augmon of national basketball champion Nevada Las Vegas are insisting they will return for their senior seasons, but others in the city are wondering how they can turn down multimillion dollar contracts from the NBA. . . .

Mister Frisky has been bet down to an even money favorite at most Kentucky Derby future books in Las Vegas. . . .

However, the Derby picture is far more interesting now than it was a month ago. Summer Squall was impressive again Saturday winning the Blue Grass Stakes and Champagneforashley showed promise in winning a seven-furlong race at Aqueduct Friday. . . .

No complaints about Dick Stockton and Jim Kaat, who called the Dodger-Astro game Saturday. . . .

I guess the Athletics aren’t going to miss Storm Davis. . . . Mark Langston was not too shabby in his debut, but Chuck Finley may be the Angels’ best pitcher. . . .

The Dodgers will score more runs than a year ago, but will be in trouble if Jay Howell is their only dependable relief pitcher. . . .

Final reflection on the Nunn-Starling fight: Boxing is one sport where the fans don’t chant, “Defense, defense!”