2B SPORTS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, AUGUST 24, 2007
sports trivia
"You have to be able to center yourself, to let all of your emotions go. Don't ever forget that you play with your soul as well as your body"
—Kareem Abdel-Jabbar, in Pro Basketball Hall of Fame
sports fact
Watch and learn
In 1973, six football games Kansas was involved in were decided by 2 points or fewer — the most games decided by that margin in NCAA history. The Jayhawks won three of those encounters and finished the season 7-4-1, losing to North Carolina State in the Liberty Bowl.
sports trivia
Q. Which school has Kansas defeated the most times in football?
A. Kansas State. The Jayhawks have won 63 times against their in-state rivals.
PRICE CHECK Oregon still searching for new baseball coach
Yet another leading candidate to be the University of Oregon's first baseball coach in 26 years has dropped out of contention, meaning more interest may be shown in KU baseball coach Ritch Price.
UC Irvine coach Dave Serrano was scheduled to interview with Oregon athletics director Pat Kilkenny on Monday, but Serrano pushed the interview back because of a scheduling conflict. Now, Serrano won't interview at all after pulling his name out of consideration for the position on Wednesday.
Katherine Loeck/KANSAN
Serrano is the third high-profile candidate to turn down Oregon in the last two weeks and it remains to be seen who's left at the top of the Ducks wish list, but it was reported that Oregon has been contacted by more than 100 potential applicants.
Abe Jacobs, St. Paul, Minn., sophomore, demonstrates a frisbee drill to new club members at a meeting of the HorrorZontals, the KU men's ultimate frisbee club. The team practices from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at Shenk Field, 23rd and Iowa streets. Jacobs is a team captain and one of eight returning members.
-Shawn Shroyer
LAS VEGAS
Sports stadium will join hotels,casinos on Strip
BY RYAN NAKASHIMA ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS — Casino giant Harrah's Entertainment Inc. announced Wednesday that it will partner with AEG, the company that brought David Beckham to the Los Angeles Galaxy, to build
a 20,000-seat arena in Las Vegas capable of housing an NBA or NHL team.
The 5500 million arena, behind the Bally's and Paris hotel-casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, is projected to open in 2010. It's a step toward attracting a pro sports franchise to a city that has tried to persuade reluctant league officials to look past its legalized sports betting.
The deal puts a dent in Mayor Oscar Goodman's plans to have an arena built downtown with the help of tax breaks, but he said such plans would go forward. The site for the Harrah's-AEG arena, a block east of the Strip, is in unincorporated Clark County, outside city limits.
"It's our ambition to create a place that transcends a series of hotels," Loveman said. "The presence of a state-of-the-art events center of this size provides a reason for people all around us on the Strip to come into our neighborhood."
Gary Loveman, the chief executive of Harrah's, which is being bought by two private equity firms in a $17.1 billion deal, said the development was "very much a part of our master plan for Las Vegas."
Harrah's has yet to fully detail its long-awaited vision to link or redevelop its nine hotel-casino properties in Las Vegas, including Caesars Palace, Flamingo, Harrah's and Bally's, which are near the same intersection.
AEG, a subsidiary of Denver billionaire and Qwest Communications founder Philip
Anschutz's Anschutz Co., owns the Galaxy and the Staples Center in Los Angeles and has booked such acts as Celine Dion and Bette Midler at Caesars Palace. It said it was in talks with professional leagues and potential team owners about bringing hockey or basketball to Las Vegas.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the arena announcement "positively impacts the prospects of Las Vegas attracting a major-league franchise" but said there was "nothing new to report" regarding league expansion or the NHL's intentions about a team in Las Vegas.
"It just so happens 2010 is an opportune time for an expansion team in Vegas for either or both (leagues)," said Timothy Leiweke, president and chief executive of AEG.
"That is a matter our Board of Governors would have to consider at an appropriate time," he said in a statement.
The NBA, which has appointed a committee to study a proposal by Goodman to locate a franchise in Las Vegas, postponed meetings after the league was rocked by a betting scandal involving one of its referees. The city hosted the NBA All-Star game in February.
BY BRIAN MAHONEY ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS — Kobe Bryant regards Las Vegas as Lakers country. So where were all his fans on opening night of the FIBA Americas tournament?
USA plays for small crowd in Las Vegas
FIBA TOURNAMENT
Not at the Thomas & Mack Center, where the Americans debuted before a crowd that was less than half of what they drew last month for a scrimmage game.
The United States was back on the court Thursday night against the U.S. Virgin Islands, hoping to see more people in an arena that was roughly two-thirds empty for the opener.
The Americans beat Venezuela 112-69 on Wednesday night before an announced crowd of 6,537. That couldn't have been the home-court advantage USA Basketball was hoping for when it won the right to bring the regional Olympic qualifier to the States.
"I think as the scene picks up a little bit, maybe the crowds will start picking up a little bit, too," Bryant said.
The quiet atmosphere may have contributed to the slow start for the Americans, who didn't pull away until the second quarter.
Venezuela was originally slated to be the home team as the host country. But when the Venezuelans missed their payment deadline, FIBA Americas reopened the bidding. The United States, by then having been forced to qualify for the Olympics after not winning the world championships, decided to bid and beat San Juan, Puerto Rico, by committing to pay FIBA Americas more than $3 million.
"I almost forgot we were in the United States for a minute, we're so used to playing overseas in these kinds of tournaments," Anthony said.
"I thought it was going to be more packed," Carmelo Anthony said. "I thought it was going to be a sellout crowd, but I'm pretty sure they'll get that throughout the tournament."
And yet, it still felt a bit like a road game.
baseball trvouts
Las Vegas has a large basketball fan base, but maybe it's already seen enough this year. The city hosted the NBAs All-Star game in February, Greg Oden and Kevin Durant made their first pro appearances here in summer league, and the U.S. team closed its minicamp last month at Thomas & Mack by drawing 15,132 fans for a scrimmage.
**Who:** The Kansas baseball team is holding open tryouts this fall.
What: An informational meeting
**When:** 4 p.m. Thursday
Where: West Conference Room in Anderson Strength Center
**How:** Those who attend the meeting should bring proof of medical insurance and a physical completed within the past six months. Those interested in trying out should also pick up and complete a packet of forms from 220 Allen Fieldhouse before the meeting.
E-mail base@ball@jayhawks.org for more information
MLB standings
ALEAST
Boston 76-51
NY Yankees 71-56 (5 GB)
Toronto 63-63 (12.5 GB)
Baltimore 58-68 (17.5 GB)
Tampa Bay 48-79 (28 GB)
AL WILDCARD
Seattle 72-53
NY Yankees 71-56 (2 GB)
Detroit 68-59 (5 GB)
ALWEST
AL CENTRAL
NLEAST
AL CENTRAL
Cleveland 70-56
Detroit 68-59 (2.5 GB)
Minnesota 64-63 (6.5 GB)
Kansas City 56-70 (14 GB)
Chicago 56-70 (14 GB)
Los Angeles 74-52
Seattle 72-53 (1.5 GB)
Oakland 55-64 (10.5 GB)
Texas 67-51 (18.5 GB)
NLEAST
NY Mets 71-55
Philadelphia 66-60 (5 GB)
Atlanta 66-62 (6 GB)
Washington 58-70 (14 GB)
Florida 57-71 (15 GB)
NL CENTRAL
Chicago Cubs 65-61
Milwaukee 65-62 (0.5 GB)
St. Louis 61-63 (3 GB)
Cincinnati 57-70 (8.5 GB)
Houston 57-71 (9 GB)
Pittsburgh 55-71 (10 GB)
NLWEST
NLEWEST
Arizona 72-56
San Diego 68-58 (3 GB)
LA Dodgers 66-61 (5.5 GB)
Colorado 64-63 (7.5 GB)
San Francisco 56-72 (16 GB)
NL WILDCARD
San Diego 68-58
Philadelphia 66-60 (2 GB)
LA Dodgers 66-61 (2.5 GB)
Atlanta 66-21 (2.5 GB)
- Game times and standings current as of 11 p.m. Thursday
Thursday
$2 Dom. Bottles
$2 Jager Bombs
ML8.com
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Cleveland 3, Detroit 1
Minnesota 4, Baltimore 2
Oakland 12, Tampa Bay 2
Seattle 9, Texas 4
Toronto, Los Angeles LATE
Boston-Chicago PPD
AMERICAN LEAGUE
NATIONAL LEAGUE
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Los Angeles 5, Philadelphia 2
Pittsburgh 5, Colorado 1
San Francisco 4, Chicago 1
San Diego 9, New York 8
Cincinnati 9, Atlanta 7
Washington 7, Houston 6
Florida 11, St. Louis 3
Friday
$3 Double Captain
$2 Dom. Bottles
$3 Import Bottles
Saturday
$3 32 Ounce *
Big Beers
$3 Vodka Energy
$3 Jager Bombs
3
Sunday
$5 Any Pitcher
$3 Bloody Marys
Monday
Tuesday
$2 Dom. Pints
$2 Wells
$3 Smirnoff Vodka
$2 Dom. Bottles
Wednesday
---
$3 Domestic
Pitchers
$3 Malibu
$2 ScoC Lime
Shots