Audie Attar

Another day, another rationalization offered by UCLA coaches for another fight involving a player. Junior guard Shane Lehmann pleaded no contest Tuesday to a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from an incident that occurred in May outside Madison's Neighborhood Grill, the same Westwood establishment where cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. got into a fight in April that resulted in felony charges.

Michael Jordan took the NBA finals television ratings to a new high, but in the first season without him, they fell to their lowest levels in 18 years. NBC's five-game series average between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks posted a 11.3 national rating and a 21 share, down 40% from last year's final series. The 1998 finals between Jordan's Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz went six games and had a 18.7 rating--the highest in league history.

Hearing the news was as nauseating as watching somebody pull into a blue curbside parking spot, then sprint from the car. Criminal charges were filed Thursday by the Los Angeles City Attorney's office against 14 current and former UCLA football players who allegedly submitted phony applications to obtain handicapped parking placards.

UCLA senior cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. was arrested Tuesday night and charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon stemming from an April incident outside a Westwood bar. Manning, a two-time All-Pacific 10 Conference pick and the Bruins' most charismatic leader, was in custody for three hours and released on $60,000 bail at 9:15 p.m. Coach Bob Toledo said that Manning, 21, would remain with the team and play pending the outcome of the legal process.

Scott McEwan isn't sure he'll be able to watch his former UCLA teammates in the fall. A Bruin reserve quarterback the last five years, he is close to signing a contract with the British Columbia Lions and doesn't know whether he'll have the necessary cable channels in Vancouver. So he's getting his fill by attending UCLA spring practices. And he considers himself filled in. "It is real interesting watching the scrimmages," McEwan said.

The Bruins are back in the bowl business, and what bowl game wouldn't want to feature this team? They score a lot of points. They give up a lot of points. They have a stud at running back and another at wide receiver. And they keep fans in the stands, because for all the points they score, they never score enough to drive a dagger deep enough into the heart of their opponents. The Bruins sweated out the final quarter, and final minute, of a 37-35 victory over Stanford at the Rose Bowl Saturday.

The wife of goaltender Dominik Hasek said Monday night that her husband is retiring, although Detroit Red Wing General Manager Ken Holland would not confirm it after meeting with him. Alena Hasek told television station WDIV that her husband was leaving the Red Wings to return to the Czech Republic, something Hasek would not confirm. Neither would Holland, although the Red Wings tentatively scheduled a news conference for this morning at Joe Louis Arena.

The man in the wheelchair was shouting, "Fight on!" and giving the traditional two-finger USC victory salute just outside the courthouse--not far from where UCLA football players walked away without answering questions after having said they would do so--but it didn't take that image to serve as a reminder of what awaits the Bruins.

Ryan Nece portrayed Shawn Sandoval. Oscar Cabrera was Jeremy Mankins. Durell Price became Shay Swan. Audie Attar, at least able to keep his usual uniform number, played Ryan Brinkley. And so on. Part of the penalty for being suspended for the season opener against Boise State was serving as Boise State during UCLA practices, a temporary demotion to the scout team that some Bruins did not take well.