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Show Ghe Salt Lake Tribune SPORTS THE BELMONT C-2 MEFRENCH OPEN C-3 MI BASEBALL C-4 MENBA PLAYOFFS C-4 ECTOy, THBRSBAY OBITUARIES C-7 * JUNE 3, 1999 Whata Rip: Ewing’s Season Ends Unexpectedly NBA PLAYOFFS Partially torn left Achilles’ tendonsidelines Knick center THE ASSOCIATED PRESS {Best-of-7) Sunday, May 30 New York 93. indiana 90 1 dune $ Indianc 88, New York 86, series tied 1-4 Saturday, June 5 Indiana ot New York, 4:30 p.m. indiana at New York. 7 p.m. jednesday, June 9 New York at Indiana,7 p.m, if necessary Friday, June 44 Indiana at New York, TBA, it necessary Sunday, June 43 New York at Indiana, TBA, I necessary WESTERN CONFERENCE Saturday, 29 San Antonio 80, Portiand 76 nday, May 34 San Antonio 86, Portiand 85, Spurs lead series 2-0 4 San Antonio at Portland, 7 pn. Sunday, June 6 San Antonio ot Portland, 4:30 p.m Tuesday, June 8 Portiand at San Antonio, 7 pm, if necessary dune 44 NEW YORK — Patrick Ewing's missed shot at the buzzer ended up be- ing his last of the season. The 36-year-old center, who played through injuries all year, learned Wednesdaythat he has a partial tear of his left Achilles’ tendon andwill miss the restof the season, a stunning blow to the New York Knicks and their quest for a championship. Ewing felt a “ripping sensation” during warmupsbefore Game2 of the Eastern Conferencefinals against the Pacers in Indianapolis on Tuesdaynight. Nonetheless, he played, limping his way to 10 points and three reboundsin 25 minutes in the Pacers’ 88-86 victory that evened theseries. He had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer with a 15foot jumper but missed. Ewing, criticized throughout his 14year career for not bringinga title to Sunday, June 43 Portiand at San Antonio, TBA I necessary NewYork, has been to the NBA Finals just once, when the Knickslost to Houston in 1994. If his team returnsthis sea- son. Scott said it was rarethat tendinitis would develop into a tear The 11-time All-Star also has strug- son, he will have to watch from the benchin a suit. “It's frustrating to work so hard and be so close to something I've dreamed about for so many years,” Ewing said “To not be able to be on thefloor to help my teammatesis very frustrating and disappointing. But if my Achilles rup- gled with sore knees that need to be packed in ice after every game. He was out for mostof last season with a broken wrist but camebackin the second round of the playoffs, when New Yorklost to the Pacers. His absence now makes the Knicks tures completely, it would end myca- Tests on Wednesday confirmed the job even more difficult against favored Indiana. New Yorkis the first eighthseeded team to makethe conferencefin- six weeks, does not need surgery and a full recovery is expected, said Norman Scott, the team’s physician. Ewing was stunned when Scott deliv- the Knicks upset Miami and Atlanta. In reer.” als, and the 7-foot Ewing wasa big reason why, despite his injuries. injury. Ewing, whowill be in a cast for He played a significant role in the first two rounds of the playoffs when NewYork's Game1 victory over the Pacers, he played 40 minutes, scoring ered the news. “He said, ‘You're kidding.’ He didn't 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. believe me,” the doctor said. “He was anted Press Patrick Ewing is out for the season with a tear of his left Achilles’ tendon. “Patrick has been onthis journey,” really depressed.” Ewing has been struggling with the injury, diagnosed as tendinitis, al] sea- See EWING, Page C-5 Are College ‘Little Guys’ On Way Out? 98 Open Champ Pak Burdened By High Hopes, Low Finishes THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WEST POINT, Miss. — Standing in waterup to her calves, staring at a ball buriedinthe grassy bankof a creek on the 18th hole of a playoff, Se Ri Pak Big Sky boss: Big changes necessary to save football figured winning the U.S. Women’s Open would be the toughest task she ever faced The real challenge is dealing with expectations that have swelled since BYJOE BAIRD that remarkable Mondayat Blackwolf Run, when the 20-year-old South Ko- THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE The gap between college football's big andlittle guys keeps getting bigger, conferences are breaking apart and a growing numberof programs are making the leap fromDivision I-AAto I-A. All in the nameof prestige, not to mention television exposure and bowl revenue. The worry is, if things don’t change soon, the game maynot snap out of it. rean became the youngest champion in the longest Women’s Open. Having not won in the past 10 months, Pak arrived at Old Waverly Golf Club for the 54th Women's Open trying to defend more than her title. “T try mybest, but every weekI can- notget No. 1 in the trophy,” she said, still struggling to learn English. The Korean press wonders if her new boyfriend is the reason her best Doug Fullerton, commissionerof the Og- den-based Big Sky Conference (a I-AA league), and a growing number ofschool administrators argue that the time has finish this year has beena tie for 18th. Some question her decision to split with swing coach David Leadbetter at come for an overhaul. the end of hersensational rookie sea- “If college football is going to prosper, we've got to get out of this mode where people are always looking for someplace else to go,” Fullerton said Wednesday “We need some stability. We need a new son, when she won two majors. A year ago, her countrymen didn't knowthe difference betweena birdie or a bogey. Now, they expect her to win every time she sticks a tee in the ground. “Sometimes I not play good,’ Pak said. “They don't understand how tough all players, golf course condition, anything. Sometimes they are model.” Fullerton and others are proposing a major realignment for Division I football, financially and geographically. It has been long predicted that schools in the ACC,Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac10 and Southeastern Conferences — and Rogelio Solis/TheAssociated Prees U.S. Women’s Open defending champion Se RiPak is without a winfor the past 10 months. makesprettyhard time.” The conditions at Old Waverly are not nearly as brutal as they were a year ago at Blackwolf Run, when Pak and JennyChuasiriporntied at 6-over 290 before their 20-holeplayoff. With showers Wednesday making the course even softer, rough thatis little more than a nuisance and not much windin the forecast, the record pretty upset, not playing good. That See PAK, Page C-3 perhapsthe top programs in the Moun- tain West, WAC and Conference USA — will eventually form a super division. Reform proponents want a similar face- n Trent Nelson/The Salt LakeTribune Brighton’s Devin Matsumori (5-A), Bountiful’s Josh Robbins (4-A) and Ben Lomond’s Shad “Bubba”Laughter(3-A)are this year'sall-state soccer MVPs. lift for the secondtier of schools. “Somewhere in between the superpowers and the top I-AA programs, there appears to be another level developing, and that's what we're trying to de- The majordifference between I-A and I-AA football is scholarships. are limited to 63. And that comes into play when thetwo levels collide on the field said Weber State Coach Jerry Graybeal. “But eventually, a L-A team’s depth is going to wear you BY ME CROTTY ‘THESAL! KE TRIBUNE | Complete Listof First, Second Teams C-3 When a statesoccer title is on the line, Brighton's Devin Matsumori, Bountiful’s Josh Robbins and Ben Lomond’s Shad ‘Bubba’ Laughter arerelentles: The players, named this year's Salt Lake Tribune MVPs, cover the field from defender to forward, andareag: gressive, hard workers — especially down, I know that if I had to chance to recruit the same numbers as Utah State orl P, we could make a goof it.” Financially, thereis hardly anydiffer- ence, according to Fullerton. “There are two distinct groups within both I-A and I- AA,” he said. “Thebig guys in I-A are spending 40 million dollars a year [on athletics}, then there’s another groupat the bottomspending 5 to 10 million dol- when it comes to winning champion shi ips mailed to the schools. bottom of I-A are almost exactly the thestate the opportunity to vote. ‘Theall-state team was selected via a balloting proc: giving every coachin ‘The groups at the topof I-AA and the most demanding jobonthesoccer field At center midfield, the senior was the ¥ ys in the middle Matsumori has playedfour ye: 8 for the Bengals, starting as a sophomor: maturing into a star “emotionally physically," Cushing said. The senior was the team’s second-leading scorer “Heis even-keeled; he plays withalot cluding the Southlandand Southern con- See OVERHAUL, Page C-6 Class 5-A: Devin Matsumori has the See ALL-STATE, Page C-3 Sky, andtheother top I-AAleagues (in- SCORE.LIN Tampa Bay 7, Oakland 6 Detroit 4, Boston 2 American League Toronto 9, Chicago 7 Cleveland 10, New York 7 National League San Diego 9, Chicago 8 Texas 7, Anaheim 2, Minnesota 1 Arizona 15, Montreal 2 j Cougars camefrom behind and blazed The Cougars owned only the seventh- to thefastest qualifying time Wednes \ Field Championships at Bronco um, The Cougars rantheir lapin 3 seconds, leaving in their wake higher seeded teams South Carolina, Florida and USC. We're ready to go,” said sopho best time in thefield entering the race, but Patch blamed that on the NCAA's altitude adjustment that changestimes runat higher elevations ‘on account of the thinner air there. So it was that the Cougars’ school-record mark of 38.88set at the WAC Champi- to perform, just do what we do in onshipsat Fort Collins, Colo., turned into the 39.12 that showed up on the seedingcharts, and the Cougs became team that can beat us. Andam ran second But remainingfresh andhealthyfot the final is no guarantee. Myles-Mills “We just have after fellow sophomore Thobias Akwenyeled off He handed off to senior Clayton Patch, who was back in the Cougars lineup after missing the WAC Cham. pionships with a sore hamstring Nothing bothered me,” he said ‘The Cougars trailed by about three meters when Patch stuck the stick in motivated to provethesystem flawed, and Andam bothran preliminaries of the 200 on Wednesday fied, both quali- too, with Myles-Mills in 20.93 seconds and Andam in 21.24 — and both will run prelims in the 100 today before reachingtherelay final on Friday. And Myles-Mills battled a ham string injury earlier this season that Myles-Mills’ hand, andtherecord-set ting senior surgedpast Florida's Bob could give him trouble if the cool, 8o fast it was hard to believe he was ever behind. Bythe time he reached the line, Myles-Mills was so sureof his first day of the meet Wednesday, and by Williams and USC's Jerome Davis clammy weather doesn't change Only four finals weredecidedon the See TRACK, Page C-2 A quicklookatkeyfinal results in the world of sports Seattle 4, Baltimore 2 Salt Lake at Calgary, ppd. (rain) Kansas City 4 he insisted. champion Leonard Myles-Mills, the practice every day, andthere's not a of work in theair,” coach Tom Cushing said, “He's extremely aggressive defen sively, and attacks hard when he comes Our goal here was just to makeit Still, his teammates said they were motivated by a feeling of disrepect. more Kenneth Andam. Robbins, Sky View's Justin Traveller, East's Travis Nicolaides, Tooele’s Jason Hiett and Ben Lomond’s Chris Dean. Tworecent events have pushed theBig j to thefinal,” look at the clock Anchored by defending 100-meter light. “He collects loose balls and does alot of energy,” Cushing said. “Heis very consistent; you always know what to ex pectfrom him. Matsumori was especially dependable Repeat first-teamers this year were same,” PCL about to change. of the action, but not alwaysin thespot out of midfield.” The MVPs receivedtrophies, while the first-team all-staters will get medallions. lars. In I-AA, you've got the top group spending 5 to 10 million dollars and the other group spending next to nothing. A victory that he slowed and turned to day at the NCAA Outdoor Track & becauseofthat, we can compete with I-A C2 BOISE — The BYU Cougars have never won a national men’s 400-meter relay championship. Butthat might be to state high school championships “Our top 22 players can match up, and WFirst-Day Results THE SALT LAKETRIBUNE Trio of soccer MVPsled squads In I-A, schools are allowed 85; I-AA programs teams for a while,” BY MICHAEL C. LEWIS KICK-STARTERS fine,” said Montana Athletic Director Wayne Hogan. ‘But becauseofthis mystical I-A versus I-AA thing that’s been created, it's difficult to do.” Cougars Blaze to Top Relay Time In NCAA 400-Meter Qualifying Florida 10, St. Louis 2 Pittsburgh 8, Low An, cles 4 Philadelphia 7, San Francisco 6 Cincinnati 8, New York 7 Colorado 3, Atlanta 2 (11) Houston 9, Milwaukee 1 BYU Golfers in Third BYU's men's golf team, coming off a third-place finish in’ an NCAA regional, is tied for third after the first day Go! npionship National Golf Club of the NCAA Minn. See story, C6. at Hageltine in Chaska, Ly é |