PRO BASKETBALL—The Trail Blazers, on lop in the Pacific Division, were handed their first loss of the season, after 11 wins, 123-109 by the Suns. Portland converted only seven of 26 shots in the final period. The Blazers were back on the beam in their next game: They built a 20-point halftime lead and coasted to a 107-92 defeat of the Timberwolves. Then Portland's Clyde Drexler made four free throws in the final 27 seconds of the third overtime period as the Blazers outlasted the SuperSonics 130-124. Seattle also fell victim to the Midwest Division-leading Spurs, 124-111. The Spurs were then done in by the Lakers, who used an 18-2 surge to take a 24-point third-period lead en route to a 97-80 victory. Then, against the Mavericks, San Antonio's David Robinson had 23 points and 12 rebounds in a 109-97 triumph. The Pistons, first in the Central Division, got 25 points from Bill Laimbeer in a 120-97 rout of the nose-diving Hawks, whose season record fell to 4-10. James Edwards' 22 points paced Detroit to a 90-83 defeat of the Knicks. The Bullets ended Detroit's 10-game winning streak with a 21-7 third-quarter spurt on their way to a 94-83 victory. The Celtics won two of three in a week that saw Larry' Bird become the 15th NBA player to score 20,000 points (page 34).
BOWLING—DUANE FISHER beat Jess Stayrook 248-244 to win a PBA event and $27,000 in Taylor, Mich.
PRO FOOTBALL—The Bears clinched the NFC Central Division title with a 23-17 roller-coaster win over the Lions. The lead changed hands five times before a Jim Harbaugh-to-Neal Anderson 50-yard touchdown pass sealed the victory for Chicago in overtime. The Vikings humbled the Packers 23-7 for their fifth straight win. while the Bucs ended their six-game losing streak by defeating the Falcons 23-17. The decisive play for Tampa Bay was Vinny Testaverde's 35-yard TD pass to Mark Carrier with 39 seconds left. While the NFC East-leading Giants and the 49ers got ready for their Monday clash, San Francisco on Sunday clinched the NFC West title, thanks to the Saints' 17-13 loss at the hands of the Cowboys. After the AFC East-leading Bills were shocked by the Oilers 27-24 on Monday night, they almost lost again, to the gritty Eagles. Philadelphia scored 23 unanswered points—including six on a 95-yard Randall Cunningham-to-Fred Barnett pass play—after Buffalo had built a 24-0 first-quarter lead. But despite that long gainer, Philly came up on the short end of a 30-23 score. The Redskins rolled over the Dolphins 42-20 as Earnest Byner rushed for 157 yards and three TDs. After trailing by 11 in the fourth quarter, the Cardinals rallied to beat the Colts 20-17. The decisive play was an interception by Phoenix's Cedric Mack of a Jeff George pass that resulted in a Cards touchdown. Charger Marion Butts shredded the Jet defense for 159 yards rushing and two TDs in a 38-17 win. The Raiders, tied with the Chiefs atop the AFC West, beat the Broncos 23-20 when Bo Jackson turned on the afterburners for two second-half TDs. In other games, the Rams ripped the Browns 38-23 as Jim Everett threw for four touchdowns; the Steelers fell to the Bengals 16-12; the Seahawks slid past the Oilers 13-10 in OT; and the Chiefs pummeled the Patriots 37-7.
HOCKEY—It was a so-so week for the division leaders but a high-flying one for the Red Wings. The Blackhawks, in front in the Norris Division, were crushed by hot Detroit 5-1 and 4-3. In the latter game, Chicago rallied for three goals in the third period. The Smythe Division-leading Kings also rallied in the final period against the Wings, after trailing 3-1. Still, L.A. fell 4-3. The Kings went one better in their next rally, getting four goals in the third period to pull out a 4-4 tie against the Blues. The Maple Leafs then broke L.A.'s franchise-record home winning streak at 11 with a 4-3 victory, only their second on the road this season. The Patrick Division-leading Rangers, who began the week by blasting the Sabres 5-0, embarrassed themselves by losing 6-3 to the Caps. Rookie Peter Bondra had a hat trick for Washington. New York looked even worse in losing 5-1 to the hard-checking Flyers, who ended the week riding a 5-0-1 surge. The Rangers recovered to knock off Boston, the Adams Division leader, 5-4, though the Bruins outshot New York 37-20. Earlier Boston had come from behind to beat the Oilers 4-2 and run its record against Edmonton at Boston Garden to 6-0-1 dating back to 1986.
SKIING—FRANCK PICCARD of France won a World Cup men's Super G in Valloire, France, defeating Franz Heinzer of Switzerland by .18 of a second. In women's competition in Val Zoldana, Italy, defending overall champion PETRA KRONBERGER of Austria won a giant slalom and a slalom, beating Vreni Schneider of Switzerland in the former and Ingrid Salvenmoser of Austria in the latter, each by 1.14 seconds.
SOCCER—UCLA beat Rutgers, after a 0-0 tie through four overtimes, 4-3 in penalty kicks to win the NCAA championship, in Tampa.
TENNIS—The UNITED STATES beat Australia 3-2 to win the Davis Cup in St. Petersburg, Fla. (page 42).
MILEPOSTS—AWARDED: The Heisman Trophy, to Brigham Young quarterback TY DETMER (page 52).
DROPPED: By The Athletics Congress, a lifetime ban against two-time world indoor long-jump champion Larry Myricks, 34, for testing positive for a stimulant at three meets during the 1990 indoor season. Myricks will be eligible to compete again on April 13, 1991.
FINED: By the NFL, for misconduct toward Boston Herald reporter Lisa Olson in a locker-room incident on Sept. 17. New England Patriots ZEKE MO WATT, $12500: ROBERT PFRRYMAN. $5,000: and MICHAEL TIMPSON, $5,000. The Patriots management was assessed $50,000 for mishandling the incident and its aftermath.