AGASSI WITHDRAWS BECAUSE OF HURT BACK.

Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer

Top-seeded Andre Agassi has dropped out of this week's Mercedes-Benz Cup because of a back injury, he announced Monday at UCLA's L.A. Tennis Center.

Agassi was rear-ended in his car in Las Vegas on July 9 - two days after reaching the Wimbeldon semifinals - and hasn't recovered. He practiced for 40 minutes Sunday but said his back stiffened overnight.

``I love playing here, but it feels like someone kicked me in the back,'' Agassi said. ``I was looking forward to coming back and had high hopes, but I'm just not ready yet. My first priority is to get 100 percent healthy.''

Agassi, 30, is ranked No. 2 in the world. He won the Mercedes-Benz Cup in 1998. On Friday he dropped out of Monday's charity set - with Michael Chang, Dennis Miller, Dustin Hoffman, Marcelo Rios and Mark Philippoussis - but was hoping to be ready for tonight's first-round matchup with 19-year-old Taylor Dent.

On Monday morning he telephoned tournament director Bob Kramer and formally requested a Wednesday start instead of tonight. Otherwise, Agassi said, he couldn't play.

Kramer said he told Agassi that wasn't possible.

``We're very disappointed,'' Kramer said. ``Andre's the No. 1 seed, and we're sorry he's not able to play. We know a lot of people like to watch Andre Agassi and he's got a lot of fans in L.A., so it's a little disappointing. I'm sure (not having Agassi) is going to have an effect, but ticket sales are already ahead of last year by about 30 percent.''

Agassi said he originally didn't think the injury was serious - he said a ``friendly neighbor'' collided with Agassi's car at about 20 mph - but Agassi's condition worsened.

``(The accident) really didn't seem like much. I was more startled than anything,'' said Agassi, who said there was $11,000 damage to his car. ``I knew my neighbor who hit me. He's a friendly neighbor, so it was just a coincidence. I guess you shouldn't feed rabbits in the street. He's incredibly embarrassed, he felt horrible and he still feels horrible.''

Agassi said he underwent an MRI, which showed no structural damage. He said he had two injections and took anti-inflammatory medicine and painkillers. He also tried massages and rest, but when he was awakened early Monday with a back spasm and was still sore later in the morning, he decided there was no way he could be ready by today.

``Andre just didn't respond to treatment,'' said Dr. Domenick Sisto, the tournament physician. ``He's still very tight and tender in that area and he's in consistent pain. It's best that he doesn't play.''

Agassi, 30, won his sixth Grand Slam title in January. Last year he won his second U.S. Open and the French Open. He's amassed 45 career ATP career singles titles and almost $20 million in prize money.

After Agassi, the top seeds, in order, are Philippoussis, Rios, Chang and Wayne Ferreira.