I used to think that watching Rod Carew lay down a bunt was a pure thing of beauty–that is, until I saw a recent photo of actress Anna Kendrick in a form-fitting dress at Elle Magazine’s annual ‘Women in Hollywood’ tribute……….TRIVIA QUESTION: The lowly 1995-’96 Milwaukee Bucks–who finished 25-57 under coach Mike Dunleavy–DID have two players on the squad who averaged more than 20 points-per-game apiece. Can you name this pair of forwards? Answer to follow……….Yale football broadcaster Ron Vaccaro–using a baseball reference last weekend to describe a short run by Penn running back Michael DiMaggio: “DiMaggio ‘jolts’ forward for a few yards!”……….Following last week’s 50-14 victory over Rocky Hill, I had the pleasure of walking to the team bus with Berlin High’s All-State running back Max DeLorenzo–who had just rushed for 200 yards. A senior who’s heading to UCONN next year, I was just as impressed with this kid’s manners as I was with his spectacular performance. He constantly referred to me as “sir”, thanked me for covering his game, and was amazingly modest when I simply recognized his stellar on-the-field efforts. Yes–considering recent events–he’ll be a great addition to a college program that can surely USE a little more class on the gridiron……….*Mandi Schwartz Update: The Yale women’s hockey player recently spent six days in intensive care out in Seattle due to complications from stem-cell transplant surgery. However, recent engraftment test results now indicate that the transplanted stem cells have begun to grow in her bone marrow and manufacture new blood/immune cells–which puts her in a better position to fight off any potential infection. Continued thanks go out to Sam Rubin of Yale’s publicity staff for keeping me updated on this brave gal’s condition. More info on Mandi’s situation can be obtained by visiting www.yalebulldogs.com/mandi; keep fighting with your chin up, Mandi……….This week in sports history, November 2, 1990: In a game played at Denver’s McNichols Arena, the Golden State Warriors defeat the Denver Nuggets 162-158–setting an NBA record for combined points in a regulation game. The Warriors led this high-scoring affair 87-83 at halftime; the 320 combined points surpassed the previous record mark of 318 set in 1984–when Denver outscored San Antonio 163-155. Chris Mullin was the high scorer for Golden State–tallying 38 points–while teammate Tim Hardaway chipped in with 32 points along with an impressive 18 assists……….Lazzari’s “Lopsided Score of the Week”: In a college football game played in the midwest last weekend, Sioux Falls defeated Dakota Wesleyan 63-3; DWU actually LED this game 3-0 at one point before Sioux Falls reeled off NINE consecutive touchdowns. My first thought was that this chain of events surely gives birth to a whole new expression: “He who scores FIRST, laughs LAST”……….Congratulations go out to Penn football coach Al Bagnoli (an East Haven High (CT) graduate)–who recently broke the record for all-time coaching wins at the Ivy League school. Folks, this is a record that stood for 109 years (you read that correctly)–going back to when George Woodruff won 124 games between 1892 and 1901; Bagnoli now has 127 victories. The Penn football publicity staff included this milestone in pre-game press notes given to media members before last week’s Yale game–and also pointed out the following: Just HOW long has it been since the last time a Penn head coach set an all-time wins record? 1) Franklin Field had not yet been built 2) There were 44 U.S. states–and 3) Grover Cleveland was U.S. President. Yes– WOW……….Answer to trivia question: VIN BAKER (21.1) and GLENN ROBINSON (20.2)……….Happy birthday wishes go out to former major league outfielder Larry Herndon–who blows out 57 candles on November 3rd. A native of Sunflower, MS, Herndon played 14 seasons in the “bigs” between 1974 and 1988 as a member of the Cardinals, Giants, and Tigers; he was a .274 lifetime hitter–appearing in 1,537 games. Herndon’s best years undoubtedly came while in Detroit; in 1983, he drove in 92 runs while batting at an impressive .302 clip. The following season, Herndon helped the Tigers to a championship as he batted .333 (5-for-15) in the World Series vs. San Diego. Best wishes for many more birthdays to come, Larry……….Finally, condolences go out to former high school/college football coach Dick Corbin–who died recently as a result of a two-vehicle auto accident in Massachusetts; he was 71. Corbin was famous for developing Milford (MA) High School into a football power; during his eleven years at Milford, Corbin’s teams went 72-25-1–dominating the Midland League. While there, Corbin coached football Hall of Famer Howie Long–who referenced Corbin’s efforts during his induction speech ten years ago. Following his tenure at Milford, Corbin worked as a line coach at Harvard for 15 years and later served as athletic director at Griswold Junior-Senior High here in Connecticut. Rest in peace, “Coach.”