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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 13, 2001)
Ian trademiii -ilo Bills, win as “The Hi -i having a set Webpage, is recQgffiu Fame,” sii - Bills direct! Wednesday, June 13, 2001 Sports Page 3 THE BATTALION ns. e Bills do Dr commern, zhat “it'weh nt aware of it Philadelphia might not be a pretty team, but they are a match for Shaq, Kobe and overrated Los Angeles ike, chill. Laker fan — Sixers are like, tough lege, saidh sry small at a family, ow to allofis was one ofo: try way and ■ously pope, _ssmates, = vet school^ nd to deal v is stunned f Heidi Ho| accident,” s ^ Adams, dej of Veterinii di wasach v and a fri ly missed. C nr prayersi - memorialse t>f yet for He; la us band, Jans n Houstonv Station bea. en closed du: Column by. Michael Balhoff The Philadelphia 76ers have served notice that the Los Angeles >akers wall have to earn their second consecutive championship. This is a shock to the media and fans who hopped on the Laker apdwagon and expected the team to stroll through the playoffs ndefeated. Considering the hype surrounding the “mastery” of coach Phil ackson, the “sheer dominance” of center Shaquille O’Neal and ne “brilliance” of guard Kobe Bryant, some people wonder why le Finals are being played. Forgive the 76ers if they do not believe the Laker lype.The Sixers ended all the sweep talking with a Game win in Los Angeles, postponing the celebration for at Ifast a few days and relegating all the brooms in the Sta les Center to post-game cleanup. Despite losing the next two games, Philadelphia has de ed the odds-makers by taking Los Angeles to the wire in ery game, making foy the most entertaining NBA Finals tatchup in recent years. It has become a series that pits o teams that epitomize completely 7 different styles: the arrior mantra of the Philadelphia 76ers against the lamour of the Hollywood hunks from Los Angeles. The Western conference has claimed superiority over te East for the last two years, but Philadelphia has been a bugher foe than in past years. The West may have the more plented teams from top to bottom, but Philadelphia has shown it can hold its own with the big boys. The Lakers take the court with the biggest guy of all. O’Neal, all 7-foot-1-inch and 315 pounds of him, is a behe moth compared to the 6-foot, 165 pound stature of Sixers star and league MVP Allen Iverson. This Allen vs. Goliath mis match gives some credence to the selection of the Lakers as an overwhelming favorite in the series. When you factor in Bryant, it is hard to find fault with RUBEN DELUNA/THf Battalion fans who prematurely scheduled a Los Angeles ticker tape pa rade on their calendars. The Sixers, however, are not a team completely inferior in talent. Philadelphia boasts of the league MVP, the sixth man of the year (Aaron McKie) and the defensive player of the year (Dikembe Mutombo). Relying on these strengths and a team concept preached by coach Larry Brown, which stresses defense and getting everyone involved, Philadelphia has managed to keep itself in striking dis tance in their two losses. They also hope to increase their depth with die return of injured power forward George Lynch. The Lakers rely on Shaq and Kobe for the bulk of their scoring, and their supporting cast feeds off of the crumbs the two stars leave, Veterans like Ron Harper and Brian Shaw may be old and wise, but their eroded skills will not win many games. The two teams are better matched than many be lieved and Philadelphia has shown that the Lakers are not the invincible machine they were made out to be. The Sixers have proven they belong on this postseason stage as much as the Lakers, but gaining the respect of their opponent is not their only goal. The Sixers are do ing their best to change the expected venue of the victo ry parade from Los Angeles to Philadelphia. Michael Balhoff is a senior journalism major. ter workers < mating t >und schol; lent scholars::, the kind ofr; ect on you to forget, ill just tninr :nt workers ,-e can attend noneo! Teresa Earnhardt defends her reasoning for lawsuit DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Dale Earnhardt’s widow testified Tuesday that she has aid the Ham? tried to stop the public release of her husband’s autopsy photos to spare her family “painful emo tional distress.” “The photographs are hu miliating, disgusting and nega- jtive,” Teresa Earnhardt said. “That could be nothing but harmful and painful to anyone involved with my family, my company, our fans, anyone.” Appearing slightly irritated under questioning from oppos ing lawyers, Earnhardt said she filed a lawsuit blocking the re lease of the photos to spare her family from “humiliation and harm.” She said NASCAR did not influence her decision. She also said the decision had nothing to do with her interest in protecting her company, Dale Earnhardt Inc., and Fiarnhardt’s image as a revenue source. “I don’t think it has anything to do with sales. I think it has to do with personal feelings and privacy,” Earnhardt said. “It would affect our state of minds because we would be personal ly harmed.” A student newspaper at the University of Florida and a De land-based Web site are seeking access to the autopsy photos. An attorney for the newspaper, The Independent Florida Alligator, ar gued the images should be made public to show whether investi gators did an adequate job of de termining what killed him. “We don’t know if the photo graphs are consistent with the au topsy report or inconsistent with the autopsy report,” said attorney Tom Julin. “It’s an important check on the medical examiner’s office and an important check on the police deparunent.” , The Alligator and Web- sitecity.com were rebuffed in their first attempt to gain access to the photos. On Monday, Volusia Circuit Judge Joseph Will upheld the constitutionality of a new law forbidding the release of post mortem photos unless allowed by a judge. Florida lawmakers passed the legislation follow ing Earnhardt’s death in a last- lap crash in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 18. Will had ordered the photos sealed four days after Earn hardt’s death. Teresa Earnhardt sought the order saying her fam ily’s privacy would be violated. Monday’s ruling left: the Alli gator and Websitecity.com to argue that the law violates the state’s public-records statutes. Websitecity.com owner Michael Uribe said he wants to view the photos to prove the Volusia County medical exam iner’s office did a poor job of Earnhardt’s autopsy. Uribe al ready has posted autopsy pho tos of drivers Rodney Orr and Neil Bonnett on his Website. :e al serviceVitS a. at the Mete in Conroe. >ack up bee® lat more rain*', said. “Web? trouble ifitdif urs of searefc nd a way tockj ig directed by- ess reporter the less-tlooi Memorial Pi? :e wereescapi i — out of a aid. “There* here and the if direction, c ill directions^ ere just lined- ix made it toe*' tghts stay wife ;e of his family be takes comft this brotheri life when he« JUNIOR GOLF (LINK lent for Stud? lalon Southerly, as currently? e a scholarship m DON'T MISS OUT! July 23-27 Ages 8-12 meet from Sam to 1 Oam. Ages 13-17 meet from 1 Oam to noon. !OST: $75 per camper. Space limited to first 20 golfers in each group. his clinic will cover all aspects of golf including: • Full Swing • Chipping • Putting ‘ • Trouble shots • Rules • Etiquette {te fall and springse? I i\egistration forms are available at the Texas A&M Golf lays and exam period; I “““jCourse Pro Shop or by calling 845-1723. ill in the Division of! Itnald Building. New* ://www.thebattcoii tiiylhe Battalion. Ford’ !,tall 845-0569. Advert igh Friday. Fax: 845-2f 1 tto pick up a single coif; (school year, ISOfortht’- si, MasterCard, Disco#'' Ac Texas A&M Coll coarse OPEN TO THE PUBLIC 1 COLLEGE STATIONS #1 LANCE CELL THUESDArS 5C cent CAR DRINKS 75 cent LCNGNCCKS S - 11 R.M. 18 + N€ a VE! CHARGE WITH COLLEGE 1.1. reiCAy & SATLEDAy S1.CC BAR CLINES A LCNONECES TILL 11 P./H. OVER 21 UNDER 21 NO COVER NO COVER WITH COELEGE I.D. WITH COLLEGE I.D $3.00 Without $5.00 Without OUR DRESS CODE IS CASUAL BUT WE NEVER AELO W JERSEYS OR A THEETIC APPAREL DRESS CODE IS DOORMANS DISCRETION Texas Avenue @ Southwest Pkwy. (Next to 4.0 & Go) 694-0018