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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL THE CURTAINCALL: :< ores, standing 6 and more National Basketball Association Eastern Conference Atlantic W L Pet Gil Coot Div Home Road LlO Streak New Jersey 16 12 0.571 0.000 9-8 2-2 8-6 8-6 7-3 Won 7 Philadelphia 15 14 0.517 1.500 7-11 4-2 10-5 5-9 7-3 Lost 1 Boston 11 16 0.407 4.500 6-9 4-0 9-6 2-10 4-6 Lost 2 New York 7 20 0.259 8.500 2-12 1-3 4-8 3-12 1-9 Lost 2 Toronto 7 22 0.241 9.500 6-11 1-5 2-12 5-10 4-6 Won 1 Central W l Pet Gb Cons Div Home Road LlO Streak Detroit 24 3 0.889 0.000 12-1 3-0 1 2-1 12-2 9-1 Won 9 Cleveland 17 10 0.630 7.000 1 0-5 3-2 1 2-3 5-7 6-4 Lost 1 Milwaukee 15 11 0.577 8.500 11-4 2-1 8-5 7-6 6-4 Lost 2 Indiana 15 11 0.577 8.500 8-6 1-2 9-3 6-8 5-5 Lost 3 Chicago 12 16 0.429 12.500 7-9 04 5-7 7-9 3-7 Lost 5 Southeast W l Pet Gb Cons Div Home Road LlO Streak Miami 17 13 0.567 0.000 11-8 4-1 114 6-9 7-3 Lost 1 Washington 12 15 0.444 3.500 6-8 1-3 7-5 5-10 4-6 Lost 1 Orlando 11 15 0.423 4.000 7-9 3-1 7-9 4-6 4-6 Won 2 Charlotte 10 19 0.345 6.500 9-9 2-2 6-8 4-11 5-5 Won 2 Atlanta 7 20 0.259 8.500 5-6 0-3 5-7 2-13 5-5 Lost 2 Western Conference Northwest W L Pet Gb Cons Div Home Road LlO Streak Minnesota 14 12 0.538 0.000 10-11 4-3 9-6 5-6 4-6 Won 1 Denver 14 16 0.467 2.000 8-8 2-1 9-6 5-10 3-7 Lost 2 Seattle 13 15 0.464 2.000 5-11 4-2 8-8 5-7 4-6 Won 1 Utah 13 16 0.448 2.500 7-8 3-2 6-8 7-8 5-5 Won 2 Portland 10 18 0.357 5.000 4-10 1-6 6-7 4-11 5-5 Won 3 Pacific W L Pet Gb Cons Div Home Road LlO Streak Phoenix 17 10 0.630 0.000 11-8 3-2 10-6 7 4 5-5 Won 2 L.A. Clippers 16 11 0.593 1.000 7-5 3-1 10-3 6-8 4-6 Lost 1 L.A. Lakers 15 14 0.517 3.000 7-9 0-2 6-7 9-7 5-5 Lost 3 Golden State 15 14 0.517 3.000 5-7 1-3 9-7 6-7 3-7 Won 1 Sacramento 11 17 0.393 6.500 7-11 2-1 7-9 4-8 4-6 Won 1 Southwest W L Pet Gb Cons Div Home Road LlO Streak San Antonio 23 7 0.767 0.000 11-2 3-2 14-1 9-6 7-3 Won 2 Dallas 21 7 0.750 1.000 11-5 5-2 11-3 104 8-2 Won 3 Memphis 17 10 0.630 4.500 11-5 4-1 9-5 8-5 5-5 Won 1 ' Oklahoma City 12 16 0.429 10.000 9-10 3 4 7-5 5-11 4-6 Lost 1 Houston 10 17 0.370 11.500 7-10 0-6 3-8 7-9 5-5 Lost 4 NHL Thursday's Games Philadelphia 4, Carolina 3, OT Pittsburgh 6, New Jersey 2 Toronto 4, Buffalo 3, So Thursday's Sports Transactions By The Associated Press New York Yankees-Agreed To Terms With Rhp Octavio Dotel On A One-Year Contract. Texas Rangers-Agreed To Terms With Rhp Kevin Millwood On A Five-Year Contract. Florida Marlins-Agreed To Terms With Inf Pokey Reese And Rhp Joe Borowski On One-Year Contracts. Pittsburgh Pirates-Agreed To Terms With Rhp Giovanni Carrara On A Minor League Contract. Washington Nationals-Agreed To Terms Petty Enterprises prepares for a new era By GREG ENGLE Scripps Howard News Service A new season is underway for Petty Enterprises, a sea son they hope will return the fabled team to its win ning ways. New crew chief Todd Parrott and driver Bobby Labonte spent Tuesday test ing the 43 Cup Series car at Kentucky Speedway. The test wasn’t all about speed, though. It was more about establishing solid team com munications between the seasoned veterans. Labonte, the 2000 series champion who finished 24th in the 2005 standings with Joe Gibbs Racing, and Parrott, who helped Dale Jarrett win the 1999 series title with Robert Yates Racing, join new Executive VP of Operations Robbie Loomis, who guided Jeff Gordon to 23 wins and the 2001 championship with Hendrick Motorsports. The trio hopes to rejuvenate a Petty program that hasn’t scored a series race win since . Loomis last worked there in 1999. rou DON'T You could just tell they didn't want to be here. When we hung around them learlier in the week), you just couldn't see the ■sue that we had in our eyes. ... I was trying to be friendly, just talking to them lon the field), and they weren't. That's just how it goes when you get pounded like that." - Utah cornerback Eric Weddle, on the Utes' 38- 10 win over Georgia Tech Thursday in the Emerald Bowl "This was the biggest play that Ive ever made in any spoit. I verythmg we ve gone through, everyone made plays and I just made the last one. Oklahoma linebacker Clint Ingram, on the interception he made Thursday to pre serve Oklahoma's 17-14 win over Oregon in the Holiday Bowl SCOREbOfiPD Dallas 3, St. Louis 0 Phoenix 6, Los Angeles 5,0 T Calgary 4, Minnesota 2 NBA Thursday’s Games Tpfinsficnons With Rhp Ramon Ortiz And Rhp Tony Armas Jr. On One-Year Contracts. NBA-Suspended Seattle F Danny Fortson Two Games For Berating A Referee And Failing To Promptly Leave The Court After Being Ejected In A Dec. 28 Game At Minnesota. Houston Rockets-Signed F Josh Davis. Waived G-F Stephen Graham. Cincinnati Bengals-Signed Qb Carson Palmer To A Six-Year Contract Extension Through 2014. Oakland Raiders-Placed Cb Charles Woodson On Injured Reserve. Signed Te James Adkisson From The Practice For Labonte the new ride with Petty is his first in over a decade. He goes from being the veteran to the new kid in town. “It’s different,” Labonte said. “I was kind of jittery at first because it’s been 11 years since I’ve had any thing like this go on. It’s a little too cold here for me, but, so far, so good.” The temperatures in the low to mid 20s didn’t cool Labonte’s enthusiasm. “I’m just real excited to work with Todd and all these guys, “he said. “Hopefully, I understand Todd and when I talk, he can understand the language I’m talking. For us, today is about getting a feel for everybody and everybody getting a feel for Todd. He’s the main character here that everyone will have to look up to. When I’m on the race- \J\ L OCXS, LIKE OOR GKII yIG HA4>) -§?, BEEU "WHITEP CXJT" AGAIU. p, 'O •VtWfr gIIZZARP Ifr SPIC^/"o^ c ° r- issyi ° °o I —l f PO TME G\Rlb\ f WE 3E / LIKE TAEIf? 1 1 A3LE TO TALK TO l £SiOW3OAf?P9? J I TMEM UtfTlL THE \ VLOP£b CLO^E Play Better Golf with JACK NICKLAUS WgSm*'- I She faster tWgmffiml a *'M the clus>he.rd ffl travels rt k ■/ -1 M H IMPACT, assuming wMmmM am squrfle delivery, x the. frrthep. \ flies. W J THE LIGHTER the CLue?. !/ THE ersier it is to sluing fast THROUGH 1 THE bRLL. STflnDinos National Hockey League Eastern Conference Atlantic Gp W L Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Philadelphia 37 24 8 5 53 140 116 13-5-3 11-3-2 8-1-1 Ny Rangers 38 22 12 4 48 119 97 11-5-2 11-7-2 54-1 New Jersey 38 16 17 5 37 109 121 10-6-3 6-11-2 3-5-2 Ny Islanders 36 17 17 2 36 118 133 8-8-1 9-9-1 4-5-1 Pittsburgh 36 9 19 8 26 100 143 5-9-5 4-10-3 2-6-2 Noftl)63St Gp W L Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Ottawa 35 26 6 3 55 154 77 15-3-0 11-3-3 5-2-3 Buffalo 38 25 11 2 52 126 117 12-5-1 13-6-1 8-1-1 Toronto 38 21 14 3 45 125 122 14-7-1 7-7-2 64-0 Montreal 35 18 11 6 42 101 112 11-5-2 7-6-4 44-2 Boston 37 13 18 6 32 109 124 6-6-2 7-124 4-5-1 Southeast Gp W L Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Carolina 37 23 10 4 50 135 122 14-4-1 9-6-3 6-2-2 Tampa Bay 38 19 16 3 41 119 123 11-8-1 8-8-2 4-6-0 Atlanta 38 16 16 6 38 131 136 9-74 7-9-2 6-1-3 Florida 39 14 20 5 33 104 126 11-6-2 3-14-3 54-1 Washington 35 12 20 3 27 101 140 8-8-2 4-12-1 4-5-1 Western Conference Central Gp W L Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Detroit 37 25 9 3 53 140 98 12-5-1 134-2 7-2-1 Nashville 35 24 8 3 51 116 99 16-3-0 8-5-3 64-0 Chicago 36 13 19 4 30 99 128 7-7-1 6-12-3 3-5-2 Columbus 37 11 25 1 23 77 132 8-11-0 3-14-1 3-6-1 St Louis 35 9 22 4 22 92 137 4-12-2 5-10-2 4-5-1 Northwest Gp W L Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Calgary 38 22 12 4 48 99 95 134-2 9-8-2 6-3-1 Vancouver 37 21 11 5 47 126 116 14-3-3 7-8-2 5-2-3 Edmonton 38 21 13 4 46 124 119 9-6-2 12-7-2 6-2-2 Colorado 38 19 16 3 41 142 130 10-6-3 9-10-0 4-6-0 Minnesota 38 17 17 4 38 107 95 10-6-1 7-11-3 64-0 Pacific Gp W l Ot Pts Gs Ga Home Away LlO Los Angeles 40 24 14 2 50 141 119 13-6-0 11-8-2 7-2-1 Dallas 36 24 11 1 49 122 96 11-7-1 13-4-0 64-0 Phoenix 39 20 17 2 42 115 112 11-7-1 9-10-1 5-5-0 Anaheim 37 16 15 6 38 103 102 13-6-3 3-9-3 44-2 San Jose 36 15 16 5 35 109 116 94-3 6-12-2 54-1 Detroit 106, Miami 101 San Antonio 111, New Orleans 84 Seattle 112, Denver 105 Men's Top 25 Fared 11. Ucla (11-1) Beat Slanford 71-54. Next: Vs. California, Saturday Squad. San Diego Chargers-Placed S Terrence Kiel On Injured Reserve. Signed Cb Markus Cherry From The Practice Squad. Anaheim Mighty Ducks-Assigned D Jason Marshall To Portland Of The Ahl. Chicago Blackhawks-Recalled G Adam Munro From Norfolk Of The Ahl. Columbus Blue Jackets-Recalled D Andy Delmore And F Mark Hartigan From Syracuse Of The Ahl. Los Angeles Kings-Placed D Aaron Miller On Injured Reserve. Phoenix Coyotes-Recalled D Matt Jones track, they’ve got to know what to do next and he’s the guy leading them.” Parrott was encouraged by his team’s early results. “Not to say that we’re not looking for great success right off the bat, but I’m throwing things at him, he’s feeling it and that’s good. Just from some things he’s said this morning, I think it’s going to be a great year.” The moves by the veterans surprised some; while others agreed that the lackluster performances during the last few seasons for the respec tive teams could only be turned around by dramatic changes. Labonte's motiva tion was Petty’s sincerity to help him win races. “I just thought that I need ed something different Labonte said. “Those people (Gibbs racing) treated me / YOU KIPS> PAy=.||4G TOE A ( TIME PLAYIUG CARP?.? ) \ S CRAZY EIGHTS.? POKER?/ L J r>\ :) I (c) 2005 Bill Hinds, DisJ. by Universal Press Syndicate i—— 1 (c) 2005 Bill Hinds, Dist by Universal Press Syndicate •i' 3l www -uc° m 'CS-Com e-mail: Cleatsmail@aol SPORTS Cleats www ucomics.com e-mail: Cleatsmail@aol com 1 ./ WSpjpJ COOPS hy King Features Syndicate loc World rights tcterved 12-30 20. Nevada (10-1) Beat Louisiana-Lafayette 65-58. Next: Al Saint Mary’s, Calif., Saturday. Note: Rest did not play Women's Top 25 Farad Nothing on slale From San Anfonio Of The Ahl. Assigned F Steve Gainey To San Antonio. Pittsburgh Penguins-Recalled F Colby Armstrong And F Maxime Talbot From Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Of The Ahl. Assigned F Matt Hussey To Wilkes- Barre/Scranton. St. Louis Blues-Activated G Curtis Sanford From Injured Reserve. Assigned G Reinhard Divis To Peoria Of The Ahl. Vancouver Canucks-Assigned F Tyler Bouck And G Maxime Ouellet To Manitoba Of The Ahl. St. Vincent, Pa.-Named Bob Colbert Football Coach. great and I had a great time there, but I felt like a change was needed. “The Petty operation is very similar in that the peo ple are real sincere. I felt like I could fit in here, kind of like when I went to Gibbs. I had some other opportuni ties, and they were awesome, but this is the No. 43. When I put my heart to it in terms of my family and myself, I felt like this was the place I’d like to be. “Robbie was the first domino that fell into place here and that attracted me because I know his leader ship will be a plus. Then, we were able to get Todd. What a no-brainer that was. I guess it goes to show you that the Petty’s weren’t happy with just sitting there after the way they’ve run the past couple years.” /key, keira kuightleyA AUTOUIO BAHPERA4. Vl£ PEEKING AT YOUR/ SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2005 ♦ 2005: The year ie sports Scripps Howard News Service The Chicago White Sox shook off a post-season curse to win their first World Series in 88 years while Rafael Palmeiro shook his finger on Capitol Hill and rued the day he did. Lance Armstrong prevailed again, Notre Dame football celebrated a rebirth and the world said farewell to a boxing legend (Max Schmeling), half of a fabled football backfield (Glenn Davis) and an NFL pio neer (Wellington Mara). Those were among the high lights - and lowlights - that marked 2005 for sports fans. A look at the year in sports. TOP 10 SPORTS STORIES OF 2005: 1) Baseball toughens its ste roids policy after severe fallout from Congressional hearings where Mark McGwire declined to answer whether he took steroids, and Rafael Palmeiro insisted that he didn’t, then failed a drug test. 2) The Chicago White Sox end an 88-year drought and win World Series by sweep ing Houston Astros, which was playing in their first Series ever. 3) Lance Armstrong wins a record seventh straight Tour de France, then retires. 4) Hurricane Katrina wreaks havoc on New Orleans’ sports, forcing the NFL Saints, the NBA Hornets, Tulane University and others to move all their games. 5) The New England Patriots defend their Super Bowl title, prompting calls of a dynas ty after winning their third championship in four seasons. 6) Quarterback Peyton Manning leads Indianapolis Colts toward a possible unde feated season, the first since the Miami Dolphins in 1972. 7) Behind Heisman trophy winner Reggie Bush, two-time defending national champi on USC extends its winning streak to 34 games, setting up a national championship showdown with also undefeat ed Texas. 8) Tiger Woods wins two major tournaments, including his fourth Masters, bringing his career total to 10 majors, trailing only Walter Hagen (11) and Jack Nicklaus (18) 9) Danica Patrick becomes the first woman driver to lead Indy 500 before finishing fourth. 10) Coach Roy Williams wins his first national title as North Carolina beats Illinois for NCAA Division I basketball championship in game featur ing six players who are drafted in the first round by NBA. WINNERS: ■ Notre Dame football and coach Charlie Weis. Weis woke up the echoes with a 9-2 sea son that included the Fighting Irish’s first BCS bowl bid since 2000. An offensive master mind, Weis’ attack set numer ous ND offense and scoring records. ■ Reggie Bush. The USC tailback not only led the Trojans to a second consecu tive unbeaten regular season, but he also won ithe Heisman Trophy with the second-most first-place votes in the award’s 70-year history. ■ Roger Federer. The Switzerland native started to make his case as the best men’s tennis player ever by winning the U.S. Open and Wimbledon, downing top Americans Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick in the finals, respectively. Only 24, Federer now has six Grand Slam titles among his 33 ATP Tour victories. ■ Tony Stewart. Once the bad boy of NASCAR, Stewart cleaned up his act in 2005 win ning his second Nextel Cup points title. Stewart won five races in the No. 20 car to help claim the title for Joe Gibbs’ Racing. ■ San Antonio Spurs. With TOP QUALITY TOPSOIL Also: Fill Dirt and Sand, Foundation Work, Light Backhoe Work, Lot Preparation, Reasonable Prices. Call Bobby Evridge JiT Byron, GA understated stars Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker leading the way, the unselfish, team-oriented Spurs won their third NBA title in the last five years rallying from a 3-2 deficit in the Finals to defeat defending champ Detroit in seven games. LOSERS: ■ Terrell Owens. Woe is T.O. Poster boy for the modem self centered athlete, the Eagles receiver went from heroic fig ure after playing in the Super Bowl on a badly injured ankle to whining over his $47-mil lion contract to suspended and banished from the Philadelphia Eagles. ■ Rafael Palmeiro. In March, the Baltimore Orioles first base man vehemently denied using steroids, waving his finger at Congress for added emphasis. But it all came crashing down in early August when it was revealed that Palmeiro had failed a drug test. ■ University of Tennessee football. Ranked third in the preseason, the Volunteers col lapsed to a 5-6 finish, missing out on a bowl game with their first losing season since 1988. ■ New York Yankees. Despite a payroll that exceeded S2OO million, the Yankees failed to win the World Series for the fifth consecutive season, falling to Anaheim in the American League Divisional Series. ■ Barry Bonds. Entering the season only 11 home runs shy of Babe Ruth for second on the all-time list, Bonds instead complained of knee pain dur ing spring training and went on the DL in April languishing for nearly five months before finally playing in 14 games in September hitting .256 with five HRs. Meanwhile, his for mer trainer and the founder of the BALCO laboratory complex were sentenced to prison for distributing illegal steroids. LEST WE FORGET .... ■ Vic Power, 78, a seven time All Star and one of the first Hispanics to play in the Major Leagues, Nov. 29 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. ■ George Best, 59, Northern Ireland-born soccer star who rose to fame with Manchester United and became one of sport’s first international celebrities, Nov. 25 in London. ■ Frank Gatski, 83, Hall of Fame center with the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions, Nov. 23 in Morgantown, WVa. ■ Steve Courson, 50, former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive guard who devoted much of his post-football career cam paigning against performance enhancing drugs, Nov. 10 at his home near Pittsburgh. ■ Wellington Mara, 89, New York Giants co-owner and NFL pioneer, Oct. 24 ■ Chris Schenkel, 82, leg endary sports broadcaster sportscaster who called sports ranging from football to bowl ing, Sept. 11 in Fort Wayne, Ind. ■ Charlie Williams, 61, the first African American umpire to work behind home plate in a World Series game, Sept. 10 in Oak Lawn, 111. ■ Sue Gunter, 66, women’s basketball coach who led LSU to 14 NCAA tournament appearances, Aug. 7 in Baton Rouge, La. ■ Jim Parker, 71, offensive tackle for the Baltimore Colts and member of the NFL Hall of Fame, July 18 in Baltimore. ■ Chico Carrasquel, 77, Venezuelan shortstop who became the first Latin American player to appear in a MLB All-Star game, May 26 in Caracas, Venezuela. ■ Tunney Hunsaker, 75, Muhammad Ali’s first profes sional boxing opponent, April 25 in Fayetteville, W. Va. ■ Earl Wilson, 70, the first black pitcher to throw a no-hit ter in Major League Baseball, April 23 in Southfield, Mich. GREEN ACRES FARM 956-4550 11A [24015^