Maybe They Can Duke It Out at the Telethon

Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post on Andrew Golota’s loss to Lennox Lewis:

“He went paws up in 95 seconds; he hit the deck so fast they should have checked for skid marks. After the fight, Golota collapsed from what was described as an ‘anxiety attack.’

“Who is he going to fight next, Jerry Lewis?”

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Trivia time: What with Teresa Edwards being player/coach of the ABL’s Atlanta Glory, who was the last NBA player/coach?

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Odd men out: Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post on baseball playoff telecasts:

“Why do both networks insist on three men in the booth? Bob Uecker on NBC and Bob Brenly on Fox are totally superfluous. Uecker’s act has grown so old and worn so thin over the years, it’s time to throw Mr. Belvedere over the side.

“With Tim McCarver dominating every conversation on Fox, Brenly can barely get a word in. So why bother at all?”

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Miserable matchup: The USC-Notre Dame game Saturday in South Bend, Ind., does have some significance. It will be only the second time in the series that began in 1926 that the teams have opposed each other with losing records.

In 1960, the Irish (1-8) defeated the Trojans (4-5), 17-0.

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Good timing: Dan McGrath of the Chicago Tribune on Lou Holtz, who resigned as Notre Dame’s coach after last season: “What did he know and when did he know it?”

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Lasting record: Johnny Vander Meer, who died recently, is remembered by Ira Berkow of the New York Times for his unequaled feat of pitching consecutive no-hit, no-run games in 1938.

“Only three pitchers besides Vander Meer have pitched two no-hitters in a season--Virgil Trucks, Allie Reynolds and Nolan Ryan. Ryan came closest with his two a month apart. Vander Meer’s were four days apart.”

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Net freak? Tampa Bay’s Rob Zamuner on Buffalo Sabre goalie Dominick Hasek: “I think the guy is double-jointed or something.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1960, Bill Mazeroski opened the bottom of the ninth with a home run off Ralph Terry of the New York Yankees to give the Pittsburgh Pirates a 10-9 victory in the seventh game of the World Series.

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Looking back again: On this day in 1973, UCLA routed Stanford, 59-13, at Palo Alto.

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Trivia answer: Dave Cowens of the Boston Celtics in the 1978-79 season.

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And finally: While playing for Dean Smith at North Carolina, Michael Jordan was not the spectacular player he is now, partly because of Smith’s disciplined system.

During an NBA playoff game, Mike Fratello, then an NBC commentator, kidded Smith: “Word is that you were the only person to hold Michael Jordan under 20 points.”

Replied Smith: “Wait a minute. Bobby Knight held him under 15 during the Olympics.”