Notes on a Scorecard - May 30, 1991

There will be a tomorrow for the Lakers if they lose tonight at the Forum, but probably not a next week. . . .

I mean, do you suppose the Trail Blazers would be tough in a seventh game at Portland Saturday afternoon? . . .

History that may or may not be pertinent: The Bulls beat the Lakers, 114-103, in Chicago Stadium on Dec. 21. The Lakers beat the Bulls, 99-86, on Feb. 3 at the Forum. . . .

In 14 games against the Bulls since 1984, Magic Johnson has averaged 19.9 points, 12.5 assists and 5.6 rebounds. In 12 games against the Lakers, Michael Jordan has averaged 31.3 points, 6.8 assists and 6.6 rebounds. . . .

George Foreman will be rooting for his favorite athlete, Magic, tonight at the Forum. . . .

Key numbers in Game 5: Buck Williams had 15 rebounds, Sam Perkins five. . . .

The Laker-Trail Blazer telecast Tuesday hurt attendance at Dodger Stadium, where a season-low crowd of 22,617 saw the Dodgers defeat the Houston Astros. . . .

I would rather be the next coach of the New York Knicks than the next coach of the Detroit Pistons. . . .

Virgil Hill will be making his 11th defense of the World Boxing Assn. light-

heavyweight championship Monday night against Thomas Hearns at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Only Bob Foster with 14 and the late Victor Galindez with 12 defended the 175-pound title more often. Archie Moore? Only nine. . . .

Hearns, on watching Sugar Ray Leonard lose to Terry Norris: “I turned off the set after the third round. I felt sorry for Ray.” . . .

Hill, 27, should outbox Hearns, 32, but the Hit Man has a puncher’s chance. . . .

One thousand fans are making the trip from North Dakota to see Hill, that state’s most famous athlete since Roger Maris. . . .

Booking agent Rafael Mendoza can’t lose in the Melchor Cob Castro-Humberto (Chiquita) Gonzalez World Boxing Council light-flyweight championship fight on the undercard. Mendoza, a former Mexico City sportswriter, books both fighters. . . .

Middleweight contender Reggie Johnson of Long Beach will get first crack at the International Boxing Federation title of Michael Nunn’s conqueror, James Toney, on June 29 at the Las Vegas Hilton. . . .

The United States amateur boxing team’s 6-6 tie with Cuba last week at Ft. Bragg, N.C., bodes well for the Americans in Barcelona next year. The Cubans had won 15 consecutive dual meets from U.S. teams. . . .

For the rest of this century, you will see replays of Vancouver’s Rodney McCray crashing through the right-field wall in a Pacific Coast League game at Portland. . . .

McCray is a former University High and West Los Angeles College outfielder. . . .

That 14-game winning streak should give Texas Manager Bobby Valentine additional job security. . . .

Team Youth defeated Team Experience, 13-11, in the annual tennis team challenge series at the L.A. Tennis Club on Memorial Day, but 1948 Wimbledon champion Bob Falkenburg won his singles debut in the series. . . .

Look-alikes: Mario Andretti and former middleweight champion Joey Giardello. . . .

At a recent NFL meeting, three franchises that have moved weren’t excited about expansion. The Indianapolis Colts voted against it, and the Raiders and the Phoenix Cardinals abstained. . . .

Drew Pearson is coach of the Dallas Texans of the Arena Football League, which opens play Friday. Among Pearson’s assistants is Dick Nolan. . . .

The Detroit Drive will be trying to four-peat. . . .

Farma Way is the runaway leader in the national thoroughbred poll. . . .

The Kings will open an NHL season on the road, Oct. 4 at Winnipeg, for the first time since 1976, when they played the old Barons at Cleveland. . . .

More people greeted the Penguins at the Pittsburgh airport after their Stanley Cup championship than met the Steelers after any of their Super Bowl victories. . . .

Kevin Costner taped a promotional bit for ESPN’s coverage of the College World Series but must not be too happy that the NCAA tournament selection committee ignored his alma mater, Cal State Fullerton. . . .

I got the shivers just watching the San Francisco Giants-Cincinnati Reds telecast from Candlestick Park on ESPN Tuesday night. . . .

Darryl Strawberry has the right idea about how to react to hecklers. Ignore them. . . .

The Phillies should have traded Von Hayes. . . .

Pitchers who throw to first base as often as to home plate are slowing down games terribly and driving me crazy.