Phillips Settles Battery Suit, Judge Criticizes Nebraska

St. Louis Ram running back Lawrence Phillips has settled a federal lawsuit filed against him by a woman who claimed he battered and sexually assaulted her, according to a published report.

The settlement between Phillips and Katherine McEwen of Topeka, Kan., a student at Nebraska, was reached this week only after a federal judge agreed to allow lawyers to black out more sensational aspects of the lawsuit, the Kansas City Star reported in today’s editions.

In making the decision, Chief U.S. District Judge D. Brook Bartlett severely criticized Nebraska’s handing of the matter, saying it warranted a “substantial investigation.”

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

“It has been settled in a way that is acceptable to Kate,” her lawyer, Victor Bergman, said. “A lot of that depends on Lawrence Phillips getting his life under control and continuing on with his career.”

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Old Dominion basketball player Joe Bunn, the team’s leading scorer and rebounder last season, was charged with misdemeanor assault and battery after his former girlfriend, Holly Rivers, told university police that Bunn repeatedly punched her during an argument over a recent break-up early Monday. Bunn has dropped out of school.

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Heavyweight Tommy Morrison, who last week announced his return to boxing, was scheduled for a hearing today in his hometown of Jay, Okla., on a misdemeanor charge of transporting a loaded .22-caliber pistol in his car.

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The U.S. House passed a bill that would establish unprecedented federal regulations on boxing, requiring state boxing commissions to recognize a fighter’s suspension by another state.

Pro Basketball

Center Robert Parish, who has played more games than any player in NBA history--1,568--signed a two-year contract with the Chicago Bulls. Parish, 43, will be playing his 21st season, also the most in league history. He had shared the record of 20 with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. . . . The Phoenix Suns traded Elliot Perry to the Milwaukee Bucks for reserve Marty Conlon and a conditional first-round draft pick. . . . The Philadelphia 76ers signed forward Mark Hendrickson, the team’s second-round pick from Washington State. . . . The Miami Heat signed free-agent forward Ed Pinckney, an 11-year veteran who finished last season with Philadelphia. . . . Boston swingman Greg Minor suffered a stress fracture in his right foot while working out and will be sidelined six to eight weeks. . . . The New York Times reported that the 1998 NBA All-Star game will be held at Madison Square Garden. The 1997 All-Star game will be held in Cleveland on Feb. 9.

Tennis

Playing in his first tournament since winning the U.S. Open, top-ranked Pete Sampras struggled to a 5-7, 6-3, 7-5 victory over German qualifier Alex Radulescu in the $1-million Swiss Indoors at Basel. Second-seeded Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia was upset, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, by German qualifier David Prinosil. . . . Fourth-seeded Alex Corretja defeated fellow Spaniard Carlos Costa, 2-6, 6-2, 6-2, to reach the quarterfinals of the International Championship of Sicily in Palermo.

College Sports

The Miami of Ohio board of trustees voted to drop the Redskin nickname the school has used for 68 years.