Such Practices Could Bring About Last of Mohicans

Would you pay as much as $300 per ticket to see men kick and punch each other? Some people did Friday night in witnessing an old-fashioned barroom brawl.

It took place at the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation in New York. There are no gloves or headgear and the few rules include bans on eye-gouging and kicks to the throat.

The state has banned such matches. The Mohawks say they are not subject to state laws and have the right to hold the bouts. Gov. George Pataki, who signed the bill banning the fights, said he will not try to stop the tribe.

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Add brawls: Can you imagine hockey players as peacemakers? It happened Wednesday in Albuquerque, where a brawl broke out in the stands in the New Mexico Scorpions’ 14-7 victory over Amarillo in a Western Professional League game.

Sly Naud, the Scorpions’ star right winger, implored over the public-address system: “C’mon, stop it, we’re trying to play hockey here.”

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Trivia time: Who holds the Pacific 10 Conference season record for the highest three-point field-goal percentage?

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Sign her up: When pro tennis players Amanda Coetzer, Ann Grossman and Jennifer Capriati attended a recent Oklahoma City Blazers Central Hockey League game, they were chosen to participate in a goal-shooting exhibition.

Coetzer, a South African, promptly put her shot from center ice into a one-foot opening in front of the net.

No mention was made of what Grossman and Capriati did.

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The old dog story: Infielder Howard Johnson, on why he had a black eye when he showed up at the New York Mets’ training camp: “I tripped over my dog and fell. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.”

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Nanny needed: Louisiana State basketball center Bob Hall is now ineligible because of academic reasons. Hall couldn’t enter a recent game because he wasn’t wearing his jersey under his warmup jacket. Earlier this season, he had to leave a game because he put his jersey on backward.

Steve Rosenbloom of the Chicago Tribune wrote: “Wonder if the NCAA would want to investigate a program that accepts guys who can’t dress themselves.”

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Unthinkable: NBC’s Bill Walton, on Providence guard God Shammgod’s recent strong performance in a loss to Notre Dame: “Would you ever think Notre Dame would have so much trouble with God?”

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Gimme a U: Utah Jazz guard John Stockton, on the “play hard” attitude he and longtime teammate Karl Malone share: “There’s not a lot of cheerleading. The pompoms don’t come out too much with us.”

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FYI: It took the Cleveland Indians only nine days to sell out every home game for the second year in a row.

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Trivia answer: Steve Kerr of Arizona, 57.3% in 1988.

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And finally: Hector “Macho” Camacho, referring to the statues at Caesars Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, N.J., after stripping naked for the weigh-in for Saturday night’s fight with Sugar Ray Leonard:

“Nobody complains about them being in the hallway with no clothes on. Why should they complain about me?