Who Knew Rodman Was a Material Guy?

According to Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News, Dennis Rodman’s mother, Shirley, never worried that Madonna would end up as her daughter-in-law.

In their only conversation about Madonna, Shirley asked: “Dennis, why would you go out with that woman?”

Replied Rodman: “She has $250 million, Mama.”

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Trivia time: Which American Basketball Assn. franchise folded in 1975-76 after playing only 11 games?

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Objective journalist: Dwight Jaynes in the Oregonian on UCLA’s prospects in the NCAA basketball tournament:

“I think somehow they’ll find a way to blow it. They’ll get in a close game and Jim Harrick will panic and make a wrong move, and they’ll bomb out. Again. Just as they have so many times in recent years.

“At least I hope so. It’s so much fun watching them lose.”

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No sidebars: Jay Leno on Steve Young’s plans to become an attorney: “He’ll be the first quarterback in history to play three quarters and be able to bill the team for four.”

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Bench pains: Dwayne Schintzius, New Jersey Net center, on the most difficult thing about being a backup:

“The angle of the chairs is about 63 degrees, rather than a 68-degree angle, which puts more pressure on the spine.”

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Washed up: Paul DiPietro of the Montreal Canadiens complained to the press about his lack of playing time.

The day the story ran, Di Pietro came to work and discovered Coach Jacques Demers had tossed DiPietro’s hockey gear--skates and all--into the whirlpool.

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Replacement trim? Bo Dodson, Milwaukee Brewer first baseman, missed a recent exhibition game against the Seattle Mariners. He thought the game had been rained out, so he went and got a haircut.

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Fun City? Dave Checketts, president of the New York Knicks, in an interview with Jackie MacMullan of the Boston Globe:

“I’ve compared running a sports club in New York like living inside a giant blender. You are constantly looking up at that stainless steel blade, knowing someone is going to turn it on at some point, and you are liquid.”

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Trial update: A report from Cal-Hi Sports: “From the National Enquirer portion of our publication: Andrea Terry, the so-called secret witness at this week’s O.J. Simpson trial, is the wife of BYU All-American football player Evan Pilgrim.

“Pilgrim, a former standout at Antioch High in the S.F. Bay Area, is expected to be chosen in the first five rounds of the upcoming NFL draft.”

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Lots of luck: Tony Kornheiser on ESPN’s “Sports Reporters”: “Baseball is lost. It is the Atlantis of sports. Yet, St. Petersburg and Phoenix will pay $260 million for expansion franchises, which is the equivalent of buying a time share condominium in Bosnia.”

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Trivia answer: The San Diego Sails, formerly known as the Conquistadors.

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Quotebook: A Minnesota Twin replacement player, when approached by a reporter from the St. Paul Pioneer Press: “St. Paul. . . . That’s in Minnesota, right?”