From: f67700241@violet.ccit.arizona.edu (Greg Franklin)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro
Subject: Suns Report: Phoenix creams Kings, remains undefeated at home
Date: 19 Nov 92 06:02:58 GMT
Distribution: world,local
Organization: University of Arizona
Nntp-Posting-User: f67700241

11/18/92
Sacramento Kings (4-3) at Phoenix Suns (4-1)
FINAL: Suns 127, Kings 111

SETTING:

America West Arena hosted Phoenix's first peek at the new-look Kings 
this year.  The game's start was delayed for 5 minutes by scoreboard 
malfunctions.

Negele Knight entered the game as the Suns' assist leader, but he only 
averaged about 6 a game.  The NBA assist leader is Stockton, and he's at 
12.  Phoenix needs KJ back.  Barkley led the Suns in scoring with 26 
pts/game.

Rumors are that Jerrod Mustaf will be back by the weekend, and KJ will 
return by next week.

STARTERS:
Sac: Simmons, Tisdale, Causwell, Richmond, Randy Brown
Phx: Ceballos, Barkley, West, Majerle, Knight

FIRST OFF THE BENCH:
Sac: Walt Williams, Jim Les, Pete Chilcutt
Phx: F. Johnson, Ainge, Chambers, Miller

QUARTER-BY-QUARTER:

1st Quarter: 33-26 Suns.  The quarter was plagued by clock problems that 
were a drag on everybody; the officials finally turned off the 
scoreboard clock and kept time themselves.  Both teams started out 
fairly active, driving to the hoop and hitting their shots.  But in the 
last few minutes the Kings only had a three-man offense (Williams, 
Richmond, Tisdale).  The Suns consistently scored from inside to build a 
modest lead.  TECHNICAL FOULS: Chilcutt (lashing out at Miller after one 
of O's in-your-face dunks), Causwell and Williams (hanging onto the rim.  
Ref Mike Mathis seems to be a hard-ass on this particular infraction).

2nd Quarter: 62-52 Suns.  The scoreboard woes continued; the AW Arena's 
manager was trying to diagnose what was happening to his expensive 
technology.  Anyway, Chambers made a couple of nice coast-to-coast 
swoops to the hoop.  TC's performance (almost all from inside) was the 
highlight of the quarter.  Majerle and Ainge got the bulk of the Phoenix 
backcourt minutes, leaving Knight and F. Johnson on the bench.  Barkley 
didn't score much, but did stop a 4-on-1 Kings fast break all by his 
lonesome.  Perhaps that last note indicates something else: how poorly 
the Kings played.

Halftime Impressions: Despite the not-so-large lead, the Suns were 
toying with Sacramento.  They were constantly driving into the lane to 
get easy buckets, and that's the surest way to stuff an offensive run I 
can think of.  Chambers had 14 pts, Ceballos 12, Miller 10.  As someone 
on the net mentioned before, the Sacramento starters just were playing 
too much, and the subs (excepting Williams) were CBA-quality.

3rd Quarter: 97-75 Suns.  Happily, the scoreboard was fixed up for the 
second half.  The Suns and Kings lapsed into an open-court game, and as 
you would expect, Cedric Ceballos thrived, getting 13 points.  West and 
CC were monsters on the offensive boards.  Tisdale bruised himself in 
the photographer's well and left the game for a bit.  In general both 
clubs were fouling a lot, and play got sloppy.  Near the 1-minute mark, 
both teams began sending in their scrubs: Anthony Bonner and Vincent 
Askew for the Kings, Alex Stivrins for Phoenix.  Garbage time beckoned.  
TECHNICAL FOUL: Barkley (yelling at ref after flagrantly fouling 
Causwell).  FOUL TROUBLE: Richmond.

4th Quarter: One big garbagey quarter.  Crappy basketball.  'Nuff said.  
The final score was 127-111.  TECHNICAL FOULS: Williams and Stivrins 
(scuffle).  EJECTIONS: Williams (2 technicals), Stivrins (swinging an 
elbow into somebody else's chin).

AFTERMATH:

It was an easy win for the Suns.  Ceballos led the way with 13 boards 
and 30 points.  Barkley only logged 26 minutes, but got 8 boards.  
Oliver Miller set a new career high scoring 19 pts.  Randy Brown led the 
Kings with 18 pts.

The second half showed the Kings at probably their low point.  Simmons 
and Causwell were invisible, Tisdale was unremarkable, and Richmond and 
Williams were simply pooped out.  The bench failed the Kings big time.  
The inside was all soft and flabby.  This looked just like the 29-53 
team of last year.  So much for the new-look Kings.

The Phoenix crowd was about as out of it as you can imagine, what with 
the lopsided score and the scoreboard difficulties.  Big, big yawns.

OTHER STRANGE OCCURRENCES and FACTOIDS:

Tom Chambers is endorsing a local chiropractic firm in a radio ad; it 
ends with "...and tell 'em Tom Chambers sent you!"

At one point Chambers, disgusted with the scoreboard glitches, sat with 
a fan in the 1st row during a break in the action.

Alexander Julian, superstar fashion designer who designed the Charlotte 
Hornets uniforms, provides Paul Westphal's wardrobe.  What other NBA 
teams have fashion consultants for their coaches?  (Riley and Daly would 
seem to be obvious candidates.  Doug Moe?  Naaah....)

I once saw Jim Les play for Marathon Oil against the Arizona Wildcats in 
1989.  The Cats, of course, creamed his butt.

Alex Stivrins was interviewed on the postgame radio show.  His story:

He was drafted by Seattle 6 years ago, played for them a bit, got an 
ankle injury, then spent 3 years in France, 2 in Italy, and never 
thought he'd play in the NBA again.  He stayed in his Phoenix home 
during the off-season ("hot but cheap" he said of the city).  Alex 
started as an athletic-type post player out of college, but given free 
rein in Europe as a "designated American," he started hogging the ball 
and developed some perimeter shooting.  He said the Euro leagues were 
slower paced and less intense, with more of a finesse game.  Stivrins 
basically invited himself to Suns pre-season tryouts this season, and it 
has paid off so far with an NBA contract.  However, it definitely looks 
like he'll be cut loose when Mustaf and KJ come back.  Too bad.  I'd 
rather it be Kempton and Rambis.

QUESTIONS I WANT ANSWERS TO:

Randy Brown is a second-year player with the Kings, but I don't remember 
how he did his rookie year.  What kind of player was he regarded as when 
he was drafted, and what did he do as a King in 1991-92?

Why does Barkley feel compelled to shoot three-pointers?  Why does 
Westphal let him?  He did this crap with the Sixers, as I recall.

SUNS SCORECARD:

         Saturday, 11/ 7 LA Clippers  at PHOENIX      (6:30 pm)  W 111-105
          Tuesday, 11/10 PHOENIX      at Portland     (7:30 pm)  L  89-100
         Thursday, 11/12 PHOENIX      at Utah         (6:00 pm)  W 102- 91
         Saturday, 11/14 PHOENIX      at Minnesota    (5:00 pm)  W 108-101
           Monday, 11/16 Seattle      at PHOENIX      (6:30 pm)  W 108-117
        Wednesday, 11/18 Sacramento   at PHOENIX      (6:30 pm)  W 111-127
         Saturday, 11/21 PHOENIX      at LA Clippers  (7:30 pm)
           Sunday, 11/22 Chicago      at PHOENIX      (6:00 pm)
        Wednesday, 11/25 Portland     at PHOENIX      (6:30 pm)
           Friday, 11/27 Golden State at PHOENIX      (6:30 pm)
         Saturday, 11/28 PHOENIX      at Golden State (7:30 pm)

It is a happy time to be a Suns fan.
-- 
Greg "Mockingbird" Franklin      Interviewer: "Sir, how do you spell relief?"
f67700241@ccit.arizona.edu               Dan: "R-O-L-A-I-D-S-E."

"[George Bush is] the most ruthless white man in the history of the planet."
	-- Richard Ben Cramer, author of _What It Takes_
"The President scores much better than Bill Clinton."
	-- Dan, comparing Bush's record of marital infidelity to Clinton's
Organization: Freshman, H&SS general, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA