Sampras Survives Scare, Gets Past Johansson in Paris Open

Pete Sampras survived a first-set scare against Thomas Johansson before storming back to beat the Swede, 7-6 (9-7), 6-1, in Wednesday’s second round of the $2.55-million Paris Open.

Serving at 3-5 in the first set, the world’s top-ranked tennis player saved two set points before winning the game and immediately breaking Johansson’s service to force a tiebreaker.

Richard Krajicek of the Netherlands, seeded 11th, withdrew because of a knee injury while leading, 5-2, in the final set, giving Marc Rosset of Switzerland a place in the third round.

“My season is finished,” Krajicek said, adding that he will have an operation on his left knee next week.

Second-seeded Marcelo Rios of Chile, one of the players battling with Sampras for the end-of-year No. 1 spot, had an easy second-round contest, beating Todd Woodbridge of Australia, 6-0, 6-4. Third-seeded Patrick Rafter of Australia was in equally good form, beating France’s Nicolas Escude, 6-3, 6-1.

Spain’s Albert Costa, who has never won a match indoors, lost to unseeded Frenchman Jerome Golmard, 3-6, 7-5, 7-5.

Mark Philippoussis of Australia, this year’s U.S. Open finalist, ousted 10th-seeded Petr Korda of the Czech Republic, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.

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Steffi Graf overcame a slow start and beat sixth-seeded Ai Sugiyama of Japan, 6-4, 6-3, to reach the quarterfinals of the Leipzig Open in Germany.

In the quarterfinals, the unseeded German will play 19-year-old Anne-Gaelle Sidot of France, who upset top-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2.

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Jim Courier, the former top-ranked player who is now No. 93, upset top-seeded Felix Mantilla of Spain, 7-6 (7-4), 7-5, to reach the quarterfinals of the Club Colombia Open at Bogota.

College Basketball

Stevin Smith, a former Arizona State star who pleaded guilty last year to sports bribery conspiracy, soon will be telling his story in Sports Illustrated. Smith, who will write the first-person story with reporter Don Yeager, has told Yeager he was “well taken care of” during his stint with the Sun Devils, the Tribune, a suburban Phoenix newspaper, reported.

Though the federal probe of the 1994 scandal is over and resulted in a number of guilty pleas and sentences, Smith’s story suggesting gifts from boosters could lead to an NCAA investigation.

The Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Idaho men’s teams were picked by writers and coaches to win their divisions in the Big West Conference this season. Boise State and UC Santa Barbara were picked to win the women’s titles.

San Luis Obispo, eligible for postseason play on the Division I level for the first time, edged Long Beach State in the Western Division. Idaho was an overwhelming choice in the Eastern Division.

Jurisprudence

Neither St. Louis Ram linebacker Leonard Little nor his attorney showed up for the initial court appearance in St. Louis in connection with a fatal crash last month. A grand jury will hear the case Nov. 24 and arraignment will be Dec. 15. Little is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the Oct. 19 accident that killed a 47-year-old woman, Susan Gutweiler.

Tim Winn, the top returning basketball player at St. Bonaventure, was suspended from the team after being charged with assaulting a fellow student. Winn, 21, was charged with second-degree assault after a campus fight two days earlier.

Kevin Millen, a former Georgetown basketball player accused of stalking and making threatening phone calls to Coach John Thompson, was ordered held for a preliminary psychiatric evaluation.

University of Massachusetts basketball player Monty Mack is accused of punching and shoving a woman student in dining hall fight.

Miscellany

The first round of the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. soccer playoffs begin today at Cal State Bakersfield. For the men, Grand Canyon plays Chico State at 2:30, followed by UC Davis and Cal Poly Pomona at 7:30. The Cal Poly Pomona women play Sonoma State at noon, followed by Cal State Dominguez Hills and UC Davis at 5.

Kevin Barnett had 29 kills as the U.S. volleyball team defeated Brazil, 12-15, 12-15, 15-9, 15-5 and 28-26, late Tuesday at San Bernardino in their final tuneup for the world championships in Japan, Nov. 11-24.

Names in the News

Thomas Hearns, 40, begins what he hopes is a comeback Friday night at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. Hearns, who weighed 147 pounds when he made his professional debut in 1977, will carry close to 195 into the ring against Jay Snyder, 37, of Spartanburg, S.C. Hearns hasn’t fought since Nov. 29, 1996, when he won a TKO over Karl Willis in five rounds. . . . Larry Ellis, the coach for the 1984 U.S. Olympic men’s track team and a past president of USA Track & Field, died at his home in Skillman, N.J. He was 70. Ellis had a heart transplant in 1995. . . . Bob Thurman, a former Negro Leagues baseball player who finally made it to the majors when he was 38, has died in Wichita, Kan., at 81 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. . . . Walter Ray Williams Jr. won his 29th career title when he defeated Amleto Monacelli of Venezuela, 237-231, to capture the Professional Bowlers Assn. Tour’s National Finance Challenge at Indianapolis.