Early Boyd Team May Get the Big Worm

Fifteen years ago, former USC basketball coach Bob Boyd left Del Mar for Starkville, Miss. . . .

“It was an easy decision,” he recalls. “I was out of work and needed the money.” . . .

His Mississippi State Bulldogs never reached the postseason during his five-year tenure, but he helped hone the skills of Jeff Malone, won 17 games one season, made plenty of friends and enjoyed the experience. . . .

“If you are a coach or a minister, you gain immediate acceptance in the Deep South,” Boyd said. “Starkville was fine. I lived a mile away from the gym and went home for lunch every day.” . . .

Among those in Mississippi who still keep in touch with him is Bulldog Coach Richard Williams. . . .

After the Bulldogs upset Cincinnati on Sunday to advance to the Final Four, Williams called Boyd from a portable phone on the team bus. . . .

Boyd hired Williams, a former junior high math teacher who was coaching a junior college team, as a part-time assistant at Mississippi State in 1984. . . .

Williams brought Boyd back as a consultant during preseason drills last November. . . .

“Under NCAA rules, I couldn’t coach on the floor, but I watched practice and talked to the players,” said Boyd, who did the same at a dozen other schools, including Indiana, Iowa State, Louisiana State and Alabama Birmingham. . . .

Williams has invited Boyd to the Final Four in East Rutherford, N.J. . . .

“I made a commitment a long time ago to [former UCLA basketball and tennis star] Ron Livingston to play in a tennis tournament this weekend,” Boyd said. “But if Mississippi State beats Syracuse, I’ll go back for the championship game.” . . .

Boyd says the Bulldogs will be able to handle Syracuse’s zone defense on Saturday. . . .

What about the prospect of facing the winner of the Kentucky-Massachusetts game? . . .

“I know they can beat Kentucky,” Boyd said. “They did it a few weeks ago on a neutral court. It can happen again.” . . .

Boyd might have been the best basketball coach USC ever had. . . .

He had a 62% winning percentage during 13 seasons. But his greatest team never made it to the NCAA tournament. It was 24-2 in 1970-71, but the two losses were to UCLA and conference runners-up were not invited to what was then a smaller dance. . . .

At 65, he lives in Palm Desert and still closely follows his two favorite sports, basketball and horse racing.

*

It’s hard to believe that the Dodgers’ opening game Monday against Houston at the Astrodome won’t be televised locally. . . .

The Dodgers’ home opener traditionally is a matinee that sells out, but the Angels have had less box office success in the afternoon and will open at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Anaheim Stadium against the Milwaukee Brewers. . . .

Jenny Spangler, who won the U.S. Olympic marathon trials, will compete in the “World’s Fastest 5K” Sunday at Carlsbad. . . .

Fifth-ranked Corey Pavin is the only American in the top nine of the world golf rankings. . . .

XTRA would be wise to pick up Joe McDonnell, the talk radio personality whose latest station, KMAX-FM, has switched formats from sports to rock ‘n’ roll. . . .

If the watered-down Indy 500 draws 50,000 fewer fans than usual this year, who will notice? . . .

USC will play Florida State and Nevada Las Vegas in football for the first time in 1997 at the Coliseum--the Seminoles on Sept. 13 and the Rebels on Oct. 4. . . .

There is early-bird betting and then there is wagering for the Dubai World Cup this morning at Santa Anita, where the telecast will begin at 6:30. . . .

Corey Nakatani, who has won riding titles at every other major Southern California meeting, is well on his way to his first Santa Anita championship. . . .

The final four teams in the NCAA women’s tournament--Tennessee, Georgia, Connecticut and Stanford-- are the same as last year’s. The men’s tournament is a lot older, but never has there been a repeat foursome. . . .

Jacque Vaughn will go higher in the draft and be better prepared for the NBA if he stays at Kansas for his senior season. . . .

The Lakers are the only team in the NBA that hasn’t played an overtime game this season. . . .

Now that San Antonio is on a 14-game winning streak and Dennis Rodman on a six-game suspension, the Spurs’ trade with the Chicago Bulls has been upgraded from dumb and dumber to smart and smarter.