Without Bird, Celtics Have Lost Their Way

The Boston Celtics must beat the Indiana Pacers at Boston Garden tonight if they are to go into the All-Star break as a .500 team. The Celtics, playing without injured star Larry Bird, are 22-23.

The Celtics, who play the Lakers Feb. 19 at the Forum, blew an 11-point, fourth-quarter lead in losing to Washington last week, and Sunday, in an 89-87 loss to Seattle, the Celtics were outscored, 10-1, in the final 3:57.

“We self-destructed again,” Kevin McHale said.

McHale, Robert Parish, Danny Ainge and Reggie Lewis accounted for all but two of the Celtics’ points.

Dennis Johnson, one for seven from the field, was the only other Celtic player to make a shot. Brian Shaw and reserves Jim Paxson, Mark Acres, Brad Lohaus and Ronnie Grandison all failed to score while attempting a total of five shots in 47 minutes.

“We played like a bunch of rookies,” Ainge said.

Said McHale: “Another chapter, a whole new chapter on how to lose a game. We’re writing the book on it.”

Trivia time: When broadcaster and former major league catcher Tim McCarver played his first game as a pro, at Keokuk, Iowa, in the Class-D Midwest League in 1959, who was the home-plate umpire? (Answer below)

NBC announcers Don Criqui and Bucky Waters, after working a recent basketball game at South Bend, Ind., took a small commuter plane to Dayton, Ohio.

They were in the back of the first-class section and right behind them, in the front of coach class, was Irv Smith, a high school senior from Pemberton, N.J., who is expected to sign a letter of intent today to play tight end for Notre Dame.

Criqui, a Notre Dame graduate, recognized Smith and, during the flight, offered the recruit a basket of fruit given to passengers in first class.

But Waters immediately grabbed the basket. “Here, let me give it to him,” Waters said. “If you give it to him, it could be construed as an NCAA violation.”

This one was making the rounds at the Los Angeles Open:

Q . What do you call it when you spill your coffee into your golf bag?

A . Ickey Woods.

Z Works: In a junior lightweight fight set for the Irvine Marriott Hotel Feb. 23, Gernaro Hernandez faces Louis Hernandez.

The bout will be televised by Z Channel, and the announcers will be Tony Hernandez and Pedro Fernandez.

From former San Diego Chargers kicker and new “Wheel of Fortune” host Rolf Benirschke: “If I ever do marry and have kids and one day my grandchildren ask me what I’ve done for a living, I’m going to feel a little funny when I try to explain what I did for a living. For 10 years I kicked around a crazy football, then I spend the rest of my time asking people if they want to buy a vowel.”

How badly did Louisville miss Pervis Ellison, its leading scorer, rebounder, shot blocker, ball stealer and field-goal shooter?

Apparently, not much. In the two games Ellison missed with a sprained knee ligament suffered against Ohio State Jan. 29, the Cardinals beat Virginia Tech, 108-95, and Memphis State, 101-85.

Explained assistant coach Scooter McCray: “They wanted to prove to everyone they can play without Pervis.”

Ellison returned Monday night and scored 19 points, but the Cardinals lost to Florida State, 81-78.

Trivia answer: Brent Musburger.

Quotebook

Denver Nuggets Coach Doug Moe, after the Houston Rockets scored 76 points in the first half and a team-record 44 points in the second quarter: “Guys who never scored in their life were getting four-footers against us.”