Jordan's career ends
PHILADELPHIA, April 17 (UPI) -- The NBA regular season came to an end Wednesday night and so did the career of Michael Jordan.
Jordan's career ended amid cheers and tears as his Washington Wizards were trounced, 107-87, by the Philadelphia 76ers, who clinched home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Perhaps the greatest player in NBA history, Jordan scored 15 points in the finale to his 15-year career, which included 10 scoring titles, six championships, five MVP awards, two comebacks and a seemingly endless reel of highlights.
It was a day-long celebration in "The City of Brotherly Love," where the fans who perfected the art of booing showed No. 23 they could cheer long and loud, too.
Prior to the game, 76ers greats Julius Erving and Moses Malone accompanied Eric Snow in greeting Jordan, who received a hug from Erving and a golf cart from Snow on behalf of the team.
During the pregame introductions, the Sixers turned the microphone over to Ray Clay, the former public address announcer of the Chicago Bulls who launched into his patented growl, "From North Carolina, 6-6, No. 23, Michael Jordan."
As Jordan shook hands with Clay, a two-minute standing ovation ensued. Jordan rocked back and forth, trying not to cry while staring at the sneakers that he turned into a status symbol.
Although he departs with the highest scoring average at 30.2 points, Jordan's finale left the sellout crowd of 21,257 and a national TV audience wanting a bit more. He made six of 15 shots and had just one dunk -- from right underneath the hoop at the end of the first half.
With 4:13 left in the period and the Wizards trailing, 75-56, Jordan went to the bench for rookie Juan Dixon. Despite repeated chants of "We Want Mike," at the First Union Center, it appeared he would not return.
Then with 2:35 left, Jordan re-entered to a roar. Fifty seconds later, Snow gave a foul to put him on the line, and Jordan sank two free throws to countless glimmers of flash bulbs.
The Wizards quickly gave a foul and Jordan exited to an ovation that lasted three minutes and culminated with Washington Coach Doug Collins pushing him onto the floor to give a final wave to the crowd.
Elsewhere around the NBA Wednesday night, final playoff positions were decided and the first-round pairings were set.
In the Eastern Conference, the first-round matchups will be Detroit vs. Orlando, New Jersey vs. Milwaukee, Indiana vs. Boston and Philadelphia vs. New Orleans. In the West, it will be San Antonio vs. Phoenix, Sacramento vs. Utah, Dallas vs. Portland and Minnesota vs. the Los Angeles Lakers.
The combination of Portland's 107-93 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers and the Lakers' 117-111 decision over Golden State allowed the Lakers to move ahead of Portland into fifth place. That allowed the Dallas Mavericks to avoid the Lakers in the first round.
Flyers win marathon
TORONTO, April 17 (UPI) -- Mark Recchi scored on Philadelphia's 75th shot Wednesday night, giving the Flyers a 3-2, triple-overtime win over Toronto.
The Flyers evened their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series at two games each when Recchi's wrist shot trickled between the pads of Ed Belfour 13:54 into the third overtime.
Belfour made a team playoff-record 72 saves but was beaten on a wrist shot from just outside the right faceoff dot as Recchi scored his second goal of the game and fourth of the series, which he reduced to a best-of-three.
Jeremy Roenick also scored for the Flyers, who had a 75-38 advantage in shots in their longest game since a five-overtime win at Pittsburgh in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Travis Green had a shorthanded goal and Mats Sundin scored on the power play for Toronto, which managed just 10 shots in regulation.
Tampa Bay also evened its series with Washington while St. Louis, Colorado and Ottawa all took 3-1 leads.
Tampa Bay downed Washington, 3-1; Colorado was a 3-1 winner over Minnesota; St. Louis downed Vancouver, 4-1; and Ottawa disposed of the New York Islanders, 3-1.
Seau goes to Dolphins
MIAMI, April 17 (UPI) -- Perennial Pro Bowl linebacker Junior Seau was traded Thursday from the San Diego Chargers to the Miami Dolphins.
Miami acquired the 12-time Pro Bowler for a conditional pick in the 2004 draft.
According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the Dolphins will send a fifth- or sixth-round pick to San Diego. Seau restructured his contract with the Chargers to make the trade possible.
The 34-year-old Seau, arguably the best defensive player in Chargers history, is tied for first on San Diego's all-time list with 200 games, including 199 starts. He was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-Decade team for the 1990s and also was named Chargers MVP each season from 1997-01.
"The day Junior finally decides to hang up his cleats will be the day we honor him as one of the greatest, if not the greatest defensive player in our history," Chargers President Dean Spanos said. "Though his last game may not be in a Chargers uniform, to me he will always be a San Diego Charger."
Born in San Diego, Seau thanked the Chargers organization and fans at a news conference with Dolphins Coach Dave Wannstedt.
"I'm humble. This is a great organization and a great team," Seau said about the Dolphins. "It has all the parts for winning a championship. I'm going to tell you the truth, Junior Seau needed the Miami Dolphins more than the Miami Dolphins needed Junior Seau."
Seau is joining a defense that was ranked third in the NFL last season, allowing just 291 yards per game.
Cardinals go on offensive splurge
MILWAUKEE, April 17 (UPI) -- Matt Morris pitched six innings and hit his first career home run Wednesday as St. Louis cruised to a 15-2 victory over Milwaukee.
Scott Rolen hit two home runs, drove in four runs and scored three times for the Cardinals, who produced their highest run total since a 16-14 win against San Diego on Aug. 29, 2001.
Miguel Cairo -- the only St. Louis starter not to record a hit -- led off the game with a walk off Wayne Franklin (1-2) and, one out later, Rolen hit a 425-foot home run over the center field wall for his fourth shot of the season to stake Morris to a 2-0 lead.
With two outs in the second, Morris sent Franklin's 2-2 offering over the wall in left-center. He had not homered in his first 255 career at bats.
The Cardinals added three runs in the third inning and four runs in both the fourth and fifth frames to blow open the game. Every starter except Mike Matheny scored for St. Louis, which had 16 hits.
Other National League results: Chicago 10, Cincinnati 4; Atlanta 3, Montreal 2; Florida 3, Philadelphia 1; Houston 8, San Francisco 5; Pittsburgh 6, New York 3; Arizona 4, Colorado 3.
Toronto snaps losing streak
NEW YORK, April 17 (UPI) -- Kelvim Escobar struck out Jorge Posada swinging for the final out Wednesday night, giving Toronto a 7-6 win over the New York Yankees.
There were runners on the corners when Posada struck out as the Blue Jays snapped a six-game losing streak. Despite squandering a 5-0 lead, Toronto beat New York for the first time in six meetings this season.
Dave Berg snapped a 5-5 tie with an RBI double off Sterling Hitchcock (0-1) in the top of the sixth before Tom Wilson reached Juan Acevedo for a solo homer in the ninth that turned out to be the game-winner.
Starter Cory Lidle (2-2) got the win despite giving up a five-run lead.
Escobar recovered after giving up a leadoff homer to Alfonso Soriano in the bottom of the ninth to record his second save.
David Wells, who came in with a 0.53 ERA, was not sharp for the Yankees, allowing five runs and 11 hits in five innings. Carlos Delgado's three-run homer in the top of the fifth staked the Blue Jays to a 5-0 lead.
But the Yankees came alive in the bottom of the fifth, stringing together six straight hits to pull even. New York tied it on Jason Giambi's two-run double.
Other American League results: Boston 6, Tampa Bay 4; Baltimore 4, Cleveland 3; Chicago 4, Kansas City 3; Anaheim 9, Texas 8; Minnesota 4, Detroit 2.
WNBA labor talks resume Thursday
NEW YORK, April 17 (UPI) -- The WNBA and its union plan to resume contract talks Thursday with the entire season on the line.
The meetings will take place one day before a deadline to get a new collective bargaining agreement done or possibly lose out the 2003 season. A brief meeting was held Monday after the league postponed its player draft. A league official gave no indication if the sides are close to a deal.
"I don't have a prediction," WNBA spokeswoman Traci Cook said.
NBA commissioner David Stern said last week that the WNBA and its union has until Friday to iron out their differences or the upcoming season will be canceled.
Entering its seventh season, the WNBA saw four of its 16 teams fall by the wayside. Two teams were relocated to San Antonio and Connecticut and Stern would like to see the league -- which has been subsidized by the NBA -- eventually become self-sufficient.
Stern said he has been given authorization from the owners on a budget that allows a $12 million subsidy for this year.
The commissioner said the subsidy allows for a cost of living increase for WNBA players. The union does not think the increase is sufficient and said as much in fruitless negotiation sessions two weeks ago in Chicago.
The bargaining agreement expired on Sept. 15 and negotiations have stalled.
Gardner wins Pomeroy Naismith Award
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., April 17 (UPI) -- Arizona guard Jason Gardner was named Wednesday as the winner of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award.
The award goes annually to the nation's best senior under six feet and is presented by the Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
The highest-scoring guard in school history, the 5-10 Gardner averaged 14.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game this season. He joins Sean Elliott (1989) and Jason Terry (1999) as the only Arizona players to earn the honor.
Gardner, who started 135 of 136 games at Arizona, finished his career with 1,984 points, an average of 14.6 per contest, and also amassed 462 rebounds, 622 assists and 225 steals.
Mattiace tries to back up Masters showing
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C., April 17 (UPI) -- Len Mattiace will try to put his emotions and a stunning near-miss behind him this week at The Heritage.
A number of the PGA Tour's prominent members are taking the weekend after the Masters off, but Mattiace will play in the $4.5 million event just days after losing a gut-wrenching playoff to Mike Weir in Augusta.
Fifteen years after competing in the tournament as an amateur, Mattiace came from nowhere to take the lead, missing the best closing round in Masters history by a stroke with a 7-under-par 65. He finished regulation with a bogey and lost on the first playoff hole.
Before Sunday, he was best remembered for his collapse at the 1999 Players Championship, where his mom watched from a wheelchair shortly before she died of lung cancer.
While Mattiace is entered, Weir is among those resting on the holiday weekend, as will Tiger Woods.
The field includes Ernie Els of South Africa, who tied for sixth at The Masters but tied Mattiace for the lowest final 54 holes, following a 79 with rounds of 66-72-70. Els opened the season by winning the first two PGA Tour events of the year, then claimed two more in Europe. But Els been slowed by a recent wrist injury suffered on a punching bag.
Jim Furyk, who was in contention Sunday at The Masters before settling for a fourth-place finish, also is entered. He has been ninth or better in five consecutive starts, including a controversial Monday playoff loss to Scott Hoch at Doral.
Hoch is back in action this week after missing the cut at The Masters and withdrawing from the Players Championship.
Dvorak out with fractured hand
EDMONTON, April 17 (UPI) -- Edmonton right wing Radek Dvorak is expected to miss the remainder of the Oilers' series against Dallas with a fractured right hand.
Dvorak scored the game-winning goal of Game 3 in the Western Conference quarterfinal series. He suffered the injury in the third period of Tuesday's 3-1 loss that evened the series at two games apiece. He is out indefinitely and did not travel with the team for Thursday's fifth game at Dallas.
On Sunday, Dvorak scored with 14:22 remaining in the third period to cap a three-goal comeback and lift the Oilers to a 3-2 win. It was his first playoff goal in seven years.
Acquired from the New York Rangers at the trade deadline for leading scorer Anson Carter, Dvorak had four goals and four assists in 12 games with the Oilers.
