Morrison Is Stopped in 1:33

Tommy Morrison saw his chance at a $7.5-million payday against Lennox Lewis go by the boards Friday night at Tulsa, Okla., when he was stopped in the first round by Michael Bentt of New York.

Bentt (11-1) took the World Boxing Organization heavyweight title from Morrison by knocking him down three times after being stung by a Morrison punch.

Referee Danny Campbell stopped the bout 1 minute 33 seconds into the round as a stunned crowd of 7,200 watched. Morrison was raised 90 miles away in Jay, Okla.

Morrison (38-2) was supposed to fight Lewis, the World Boxing Council champion, in the spring, with the winner facing Riddick Bowe.

Earlier on the card, James Toney retained his International Boxing Federation super-middleweight title with a tentative 12-round unanimous decision over Tony Thornton.

Toney (40-0-2) spent most of the fight out of the reach of Thornton (35-6-1).

Basketball

The Lakers, facing the possibility that both Anthony Peeler and Doug Christie will be sidelined when the regular season starts next Friday, will close their exhibition schedule tonight against the New York Knicks at St. Petersburg, Fla.

Peeler is “at best 50-50” to play against Phoenix at the Forum because of tendinitis in a knee. Christie, who suffered a sprained left ankle two weeks ago, is still a few days away from returning to practice.

Scott Williams, a backup center for the Chicago Bulls, injured a knee during a practice and could be lost for the season.

Baseball

While 30 more players became free agents, the Angels, after failing to reach an agreement with designated hitter Chili Davis on a two-year contract extension, will exercise the option on his contract for next season.

Davis, who hit 27 home runs and had a career-high 112 runs batted in, will be paid a base salary of $2.4 million. If he makes 500 plate appearances, he will earn $3.05 million.

The Oakland Athletics exercised their option on pitcher Bobby Witt, and reliever Marvin Freeman became the first player to sign with a new team, agreeing to a $500,000, one-year contract with the Colorado Rockies.

Darryl Strawberry drove in the go-ahead run in the Dodgers’ 4-2 victory against the Taiwanese All-Stars in Taipei. It was the first time Strawberry has played with his Dodger teammates since June 16, after which he went on the disabled list to strengthen his surgically repaired back.

The Atlanta Braves will increase ticket prices from $1 to $5 per seat next season, despite drawing a franchise-record 3,884,720 fans. . . . Cal Koonce, a relief pitcher for the 1969 “Miracle Mets” team that won the World Series, died after spending nearly four years battling cancer. He was 52.

Tennis

Michael Stich rallied from 1-3 in the third set for a 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 upset victory over Stefan Edberg to reach the semifinals of the Stockholm Open. Unseeded MaliVai Washington defeated Jonas Svensson of Sweden, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Top-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain rallied to beat Mary Pierce, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1, and advanced to the semifinals of the Nokia Grand Prix at Essen, Germany.

Names in the News

Bob Murphy and Tom Wargo, rookies on the Senior PGA Tour, shot six-under-par 65s to share the opening-round lead in the $550,000 Kaanapali Classic in Hawaii. . . . Oklahoma State quarterback Gary Porter, whose two-year career has been marked by off-field troubles, was suspended indefinitely because he failed to “fulfill academic and team responsibilities,” the team said. . . . USA Track & Field announced the reinstatements of shotputter Dustin Carlson and decathlete Nathan Boyd, following three-month suspensions after they tested positive for banned substances.

Miscellany

Jeremy Laster scored five goals and Chris Wallin scored the winner with 16 seconds to play as top-ranked Stanford defeated No. 2 USC, 11-10, in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation water polo game at Stanford. . . . Gehache, a polo team from Santa Barbara, will play Fish Creek of Canada in the finals of the U.S. Open Championship Sunday at 2 p.m. at Eldorado Polo Club in La Quinta. The finals of the C.V. Whitney Handicap Cup--between BTA and Revo--are today. . . . U.S. Women’s Challenge, the only all-female entry in the Whitbread Round the World Race, quit the sailing competition, citing a lack of funding.