-Joe Sanchez reporting
GAMES OF JUNE 23:
WARRIORS 11 CELTICS 6
WARRIORS: First place Warriors rolled to their sixth consecutive win in a game where they led from start to finish… Manager Terry Cole had a single, double and home run to drive in five runs…. Cole and Ted Cox are the only Warriors who have hit safely in every game… On Thursday, the Warriors will put their perfect home record (6-0) on the line against the Mavericks
CELTICS: Held to six runs for the second consecutive game… The 11 runs scored by the Warriors represented the first time in seven games that the Celts give up more than nine…. Lee Hebert retired the last seven batters to face him…. After playing four of the five top teams in the division (Warriors, Knicks, Bulls and Pacers), the Celtics will next face the 13th and 14th place teams
KNICKS 10 PISTONS 2
KNICKS: Took sole possession of second place by checking the Piston offense on just nine singles….. Knicks remained undefeated at home (6-0) … Warriors hold a two-game lead over them, but they lost to the Knicks once; the two teams meet again in the last game of the season….. Art Loesel and John Zrinski missed their first game
PISTONS: End of three-game win streak dropped Pistons into sixth place. They could only score twice against Rich Franzwa who took a shutout into the seventh inning….. After playing the Rockets on Thursday, the Pistons will face the first place Warriors
SIXERS 17 TIMBERWOLVES 16
SIXERS: Remarkable win for Sixers who were on the verge of a mercy defeat (down 16-2) before coming up with eleven runs in the fifth and four in the sixth to edge T-Wolves….. The Sixer defense shut out the home team over the last two innings…. Sixteen hitters came to the plate during the 11-run explosion…. The win moved the Sixers into tenth place tie
T-WOLVES: Costly loss for T-Wolves who drop to third place tie, three games off the lead…. Bill Taylor had two triples, a home run and three RBI…. First home loss of the season and first time that Wolves lose two straight…. T-Wolves turned three double plays… The 29 hits by the Sixers were the most given up by T-Wolves… Big games coming up: third place Pacers and second-place Knicks
PACERS 7 SUNS 5
PACERS: On a three-game winning streak for the first time, Pacers jumped into third-place tie…. What looked like a comfortable shutout (7-0 in the seventh) became a tight 7-5 win as the Suns rallied for five runs in the bottom of the seventh. Up until then, Ed Meyer had held the Suns to six singles (6-for-23 or .261)…. Pacers are 7-1 as visitors, but their next four games are at home (where they are 1-4).
SUNS: Fourth loss in last five games drops Suns to tenth place tie … Team avoided a shutout with five runs in the seventh (a triple, three doubles and two singles), but that was still their lowest run total of the summer…. The second-place Knicks are next.
BULLS 12 BLAZERS 6
BULLS: Third straight win puts Bulls into third place tie. In those three wins, they have held opponents to an average of six runs a game…. …. Team has needed subs for the last seven games. Sub Dave Robarts, playing his third game with the Bulls, had a single, double and triple
BLAZERS: Fall to sixth place after third straight loss, their longest losing streak…. Committed season-high five errors…. Needed a sub only for the second time…. Jack DiMaggio missed his first game.
CAVALIERS 8 BOBCATS 5
CAVALIERS: With fourth win in last five games, Cavs climb to sixth place tie…. For the fifth straight time, they held their opponent to a single-digit run total and for the first time they allowed fewer than ten hits (9) … In the first five innings, pitcher Don Bump shut out the Bobcats on just four singles which was greatly aided by Kevin Murki’s three super catches in left center field…. Cavaliers are now 5-2 on the road… Their next two games are against two of the four teams at the bottom of the standings.
BOBCATS: Despite coming up with their best defensive game of the season (holding Cavs to eight runs), Bobcats went down to their fourth straight loss and remained in three-way tie at the bottom of the standings… Nine hits was a new offensive low…. The two Garys (Miner and Coleman) missed their first game.
MAVERICKS 17 ROCKETS 9
MAVERICKS: After the Rockets had tied the game 7-7, the Mavericks outscored them 10-2 in the last three innings…. Ross Islam was 4-for-4 with two triples, a double, a single and five RBI; Dennis Hartman was also 4-for-4…. Mavs’ two-game winning streak will be on the line when they play the first-place Warriors on Thursday
ROCKETS: Lost for the fifth straight time and remained tied for last place…. Lack of offensive punch illustrated by Rockets hitting into ten fielder’s choices… Road record is now 1-5 and next two games are “away.”
KINGS 14 WIZARDS 8
KINGS: By stopping their two-game losing streak, the Kings moved two games in front of the three teams tied for last place….. After five innings, the Kings trailed 8-7; they then picked up seven runs while keeping the Wizards from scoring…. Dan Salvatore drove in five runs with a grand slam and a triple…. Kings’ next two games are against teams directly above them.
WIZARDS: Fifth loss in last six games kept the Wizards in three-way tie for 14th place….. Every player had at least one hit, but no one had more than two…. Wizards’ next go up against teams (Bulls and Cavaliers) with winning records.
THURSDAY. JUNE 26 GAMES:
9:00 #13 Kings at #6 Cavaliers
#14 Wizards at #3 Bulls
#10 Suns at #2 Knicks
#10 Celtics at #13 Bobcats
10:30
#6 Mavericks at #1 Warriors
# 6 Blazers at #10 Sixers
# 14 Rockets at #6 Pistons
#3 T-Wolves at #3 Pacers
