BRIEFLY : WOODS WINS TWO AT U.S. AMATEUR.

Tiger Woods got all that he could handle on the second day of match play at the U.S. Amateur Championship, but he was simply too good for a 37-year-old veteran and a 17-year-old up-and-comer at Cornelius, Ore.

Woods won his second-round match 4 and 2 over Jerry Courville on Thursday, breaking open an even contest by winning three consecutive holes beginning at No. 12.

Then Woods advanced to the quarterfinals in the afternoon with a 3 and 1 victory over Charles Howell. The 17-year-old from Augusta, Ga. - home of the Masters - was the first of Woods' 19 opponents in U.S. Amateur competition who was younger than Woods.

Woods, now 17-2 in the U.S. Amateur, needs three more victories to get his unprecedented third consecutive U.S. Amateur Championship.

Woods faces D.A. Points, a 19-year-old LSU student, in the quarterfinals. Points defeated Randy Leen 3 and 2 to advance.

Also advancing to the final eight was Joel Kribel, who defeated Paul Simpson 4 and 3.

Hidemichi Tanaka, a long hitter despite weighing all of 128 pounds, three-putted for a bogey on the last hole to fall into a three-way tie for the lead in the first round of the World Series of Golf at Akron, Ohio.

Tanaka, Billy Mayfair and Paul Goydos finished at 4-under-par 66. They were two strokes better than Steve Stricker and three ahead of Justin Leonard and PGA champion Mark Brooks.

Defending champion Greg Norman, Masters champ Nick Faldo and U.S. Open winner Steve Jones were at 70. British Open champion Tom Lehman shot a 72 that included a double-bogey at the 625-yard 16th hole.

There was a one-hour suspension of play midway through the afternoon because of lightning and rain.

Registration is open for Golf For Life, a charity tournament taking place Oct. 17 at Brookside Country Club in Pasadena. The scramble competition benefits the World Children's Transplant Fund.

Entry is $200, $150 for those attending the post-golf dinner only. Information: [phone].

BASKETBALL

The Philadelphia 76ers signed 12-year veteran Michael Cage to a free-agent contract. The 6-foot-9 Cage, who has averaged 8.3 rebounds during his career, averaged 8.9 last season with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

An Alameda County judge ordered California basketball coach Todd Bozeman to stay away from a former student who alleges Bozeman threatened her and made telephone calls with sexual overtones.

The temporary restraining order was issued for Suzanne M. Wilson, 22, of Albany, Calif. Bozeman was ordered to appear in court on Aug. 30 for a hearing on the allegations.

Free agent Reggie Miller said he might be willing to sit out the 1996-97 season if the Indiana Pacers don't offer him enough money. Miller said his price is $10 million and that the Pacers have yet to come up with a satisfactory offer.

The Cleveland Cavaliers signed guard Reggie Geary of Arizona, the 56th overall pick in the NBA draft, and gave up rights to guard Darryl Johnson.

TENNIS

Fifth-seeded Andrei Medvedev of Ukraine reached the quarterfinals of the Hamlet Cup tennis tournament in Commack, N.Y., by beating Jan Kroslak of Slovakia 6-3, 6-2.

In other matches, Adrian Voinea of Romania beat qualifier Nir Welgreen of Israel 5-7, 6-0, 6-2; Thomas Johansson of Sweden eliminated Fernan Wibier of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-3 and Jonathan Stark beat Vincent Spadea 6-2, 6-7 (7-5), 7-6 (7-3).

Australian Pat Rafter ousted sixth-seeded MaliVai Washington, 6-2, 6-1 to advance to the quarterfinals of the $2 million du Maurier Open in Toronto. Other winners included: fourth-seeded Marcelo Rios of Chile, fifth-seeded Thomas Enqvist of Sweden and seventh-seeded Todd Martin.

ETC.

Southern Mississippi pitcher Brian McLelland suffered a compression fracture in his back and is expected to be in a body cast for about three months after falling 10 feet to a concrete floor . . .

Former Nebraska football player Christian Peter is serving a 10-day sentence for grabbing a woman at a bar last March. Peter began serving his sentence after an appeal was dismissed this week.. . .

Al LoCasale, an executive assistant with the Oakland Raiders since 1969, remained hospitalized in Los Angeles, six days after undergoing four-way bypass surgery.

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Photo

PHOTO Tiger Woods celebrates birdie putt in third-round mat ch at U.S. Amateur in Cornelius, Ore.

Associated Press