March 15, 2000
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Metro/Sports
Have a safe
and happy
St. Patricks Day
■■H
Trailblazers versus the Sacramento Kings
EASTERN CONFERENCE
the first tim e since a 101-92 victory
over Utah on Feb. 27.
W ith the Lakers failing to falter, the
Blazers have dropped four gam es
back o f first place in the Pacific
Division.
Portland had lost a season-high three
in a row before recording road wins
over the w eekend at D etroit and
W ashington.
“ 1 think our focus isjust handling our
business,” said Damon Stoudam ire,
who scored 16 points in S unday’s
102-86 win over the Wizards. “During
th e lo s in g s tr e a k , w e w e re
concentrating on the other team s too
much instead o f w orrying about what
we need to do.”
Dan Marino retires from football
A ssociated P ress
For m ore than an hour, Dan M arino
a n s w e re d q u e s tio n s a b o u t h is
retirem ent, his career and his future.
Then he stepped o f f a stage at the
front o f the room and out o f the
spotlight.
Friends and fam ily w ere w aiting, and
MN
NBA Standings
A ssociated P ress
T he Sacram ento K ings cap a brutal
four-gam e stretch as they go for a rare
w in at the Rose G arden against the
Portland Trail Blazers.
T he gam e com es tw o days after
Sacram ento was the victim in the Los
A ngeles L akers’ 18th straight win,
dropping a 109-106 decision to the
league’s top team .
B efore that setback, the K ings had
posted four straight w ins, the last
tw o c o m in g a g a in s t E a s te r n
C o n f e r e n c e p l a y o f f h o p e f u ls
C harlotte and Toronto.
S acra m en to g ets a m a jo r break
follow ing this stretch , playing a
h o m e -a n d -h o m e se rie s w ith th e
ieague-w orst Los A ngeles Clippers
before hosting the low ly W ashington
W izards.
T he K ings look to w in in Portland for
the first tim e since Nov. 16,1995 after
h av in g dro p p ed th e ir last seven
gam es there. T he K ings have lost
nine in a row to the Blazers overal 1 and
have won only once in their last 31
road in the series.
Portland ow ns the leag u e’s second-
best record but now hopes to knock
o ff a team with a w inning record for
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
fo rm e r te am m ate M ark C lay to n
greeted him with a hug.
“ W elcom e to retirem ent,” Clayton
said.
“ It’s not bad, is it?” asked M arino’s
wife, Claire.
M arino d id n ’t respond. He probably
w o n ’t know the answ er for a while.
W ith both re lie f and reluctance,
M arino announced his retirem ent
M onday at age 38, confirm ing a
decision he m ade last Thursday.
D u rin g an e m o tio n a l n ew s
c o n f e r e n c e , M a rin o s tr u g g le d
successfully to keep his com posure,
but the perception that the Dolphins
pushed M arino into retirem ent made
the occasion aw kw ard
BLAZERS
ATLANTIC DI V. W
MIAMI
39
NEWYORK
38
PHILADELPHIA 34
O RIANDO
30
BOSTON
27
NEW JERSEY
27
WASHINGTON 20
L
23
24
27
33
36
36
44
per
GB
.629
.613
.557
.476
.429
.429
.313
1
4 1/2
91/2
121/2
121/2
20
CENTRALDIV.
INDIANA
TORONTO
CHARLOTTE
DETROIT
MILWAUKEE
CLEVELAND
ATLANTA
CHICAGO
L
20
26
28
31
33
37
37
49
per
GB
.683
.581
.548
.500
.476
.403
.393
210
6 1/2
81/2
11 1/2
13
171/2
18
291/2
W
43
36
34
31
30
25
24
13
HOME ROAD DIV
23-6
16-17
14-4
26-7
12-17
11-8
21-11
13-16
8-9
17-13
13-20
6-9
21-11
6-25
9-8
19-12
8-24
9-11
13-20
7-24
5-13
STREAK
W ON 2
WON 2
LO ST2
LOST1
LOST 1
WON 3
LOST 2
HOME ROAD
28-3
15-17
20-11
16-15
23-8
11-20
23-10
8-21
17-16
13-17
18-12
7-25
17-13
7-24
9-22
4-27
S'I R E A K
LOST1
WON1
WON1
WON1
WON I
LOST 3
WON1
LOST 3
DIV
13-6
11-7
10-6
13-9
13-10
6-13
10-12
3-16
WESTERN CONFERENCE
M IDW ESTDIV.
UTAH
SAN ANTONIO
MINNESOTA
DENVER
DALLAS
HOUSTON
VANCOUVER
W
42
40
37
26
25
24
18
L
20
23
25
37
37
38
46
per
GB
.677
.635
.597
.413
.403
.387
.281
21/2
5
161/2
17
18
25
PACIFIC DIV.
X-LA LAKERS
X-PORILAND
PHOENIX
SEATTLE
SACRAMENTO
GOLDEN STATE
LACLIPPERS
W
53
48
39
39
36
16
13
L
11
15
23
26
26
46
50
per
GB
.828
.762
.629
.600
.581
258
206
41/2
13
141/2
16
36
391/2
HOME ROAD DIV
25-8
17-12
12-5
23-7
17-16
12-6
20-12
17-13
16-5
20-13
6-24
8-10
14-16
11-21
5-11
16-17
8-21
5-13
9-21
9-25
4-12
STREAK
WON 8
LOST1
WON 2
LO ST6
W 0N 1
LOST3
LO ST9
HOME RO A D
29-4
24-7
24-5
24-10
26-6
13-17
20-10
19-16
24-6
12-20
10-22
6-24
9-21
4-29
STREAK
WON 19
WON 2
LOST2
W ON1
LOST1
LOST6
W ON1
DIV
13-4
15-3
8-7
10-8
6-7
2-15
4-14
X — CLINCHED PLAYOFF BERTH
PISTONS
ROSE
GARDEN
N E X T W EDS.
march
2 2 @ 7 : 0 0 pm
RECEIVE A COUPON good for ONE FREE HOT DOG & ONE SODA with every
ticket you purchase for next Wednesday's Blazers vs. Pistons game when you
BRING THIS A D to the Rose Quarter Ticket Office
No service charges. A ll tic k e ts are in th e u p p e r b o w l. L im it 4 tic k e ts per person.
* The Rose G arden is accessible to p e o p le w it h d isa b ilitie s
For Accessible Seating, c a ll 503 231 8OOOITDD 503 231 1101
TICKETS ALSO AVAILABLE AT TICKETMASTER LOCATIONS - S E R V IC E C H A R G E S A P P LY O N LY AT TIC K E T M A S T E R LO C A T IO N S
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