Atlantic City

Atlantic City coach Bill Devenny has erased a memory that haunted him for nearly a year. Last night the Vikings picked apart defending Cape-Atlantic League Division I champion Bridgeton, 79-61, to win their 17th boys basketball title in the last 18 years. "You know what I've been thinking about since last February," Devenny said after the win. "I've been torturing myself for not moving Bobby Martin into a different position at the end of our playoff game with Bridgeton. They took advantage of my mistake, scored and beat us to win the championship," he said.

New Jersey lawmakers gave final approval Thursday to a bill legalizing Internet gambling within the state's borders. The bill now goes to Gov. Christie, who vetoed a similar measure last year that would have made New Jersey the first state in the nation to legalize online betting. Nevada and Delaware have since passed online gambling bills, but have not set a date to begin taking bets. State Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D., Union) said he hoped New Jersey could beat other states to the punch and start taking bets by the end of April.

The Atlantic Ten Conference will announce today that its postseason men's basketball tournament is returning to Atlantic City for the next three years, a source said last night. The Jersey Shore resort prevailed among five sites bidding for the tournament. The others were Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Dayton, Ohio; and Springfield, Mass. The tournament has been played for the last three years at Boardwalk Hall. This year's event, held over four days, averaged 4,814 spectators for the six sessions, including a crowd of 6,823 that saw Temple defeat Duquesne for the championship.

Atlantic City Race Course begins its 51st season tonight with a Wednesday through Saturday night schedule that runs through Aug. 31. Post time will be 7:35 p.m. except for June 22, when the races will begin at 5 p.m. On that day the $500,000 Caesars International Handicap (Grade I), formerly the United Nations Handicap, will be presented for the seventh time and televised live on ESPN. Post time for the Caesars is 6:40. For the second consecutive year, a bonus will be offered to any runner who can win both the Caesars International and the $700,000 Caesars Palace Turf Championship at Hollywood Park on July 21. Sandpit accomplished the feat last season.

If you've ever stressed over a menu, torn between ordering a tender beef filet, a tempting tuna steak, or the spicy sausage and pasta medley that has your tastebuds reeling just thinking about it, you'll appreciate one advantage of buffet dining: You can have it all. And when the buffet is in an Atlantic City casino, having it all can be quite impressive. At the newly refurbished Sultan's Feast buffet at the Trump Taj Mahal, the menu includes freshly prepared Caesar salad, gourmet pizzas, rotisserie chicken, grilled Black Angus steaks (as many as you care to eat)

Gene Allen figures most teams still playing in the boys' basketball tournament have one thing in common. "I bet most of them have a senior guard who is a team leader," said Allen, whose Atlantic City team clearly falls into that category. "It's so important at this stage. " On a team with height and depth, 5-foot-8 senior guard Martel Johnson might be the Vikings' most valuable player. He certainly is his coach's choice. "He's an extension of myself out on the court," said Allen, whose team will face North Jersey power Elizabeth in the Group 4 championship game at 5 p.m. Sunday at Rutgers University.

The collegiate bowlers had their eyes on the high school kids who participated with them in the first Atlantic City Collegiate Invitational and College-Am recently at the Showboat Lanes in Atlantic City. The college bowlers in the event, which ran Dec. 25-27, were sizing up the talent among their younger counterparts. Of course, they would like to see the better ones bowling on their college teams in the future. Three who impressed them were John Ratliff of Chadds Ford, a student at Unionville High, who won the boys' event with a score of 1,155; John Spence of Havertown, a senior at Monsignor Bonner, who was second with 1,143, and Stephanie Marek of Wilmington, a senior at St. Elizabeth High, who won girls' honors with a 1,143.

"You in?" Arriving alone, I had teamed up with Paul and Ed, two buddies spending a long weekend hopscotching around golf courses and pool bars in South Jersey. We were at May's Landing, a daily-fee course cut through the abundant pine forests west of Atlantic City. It was my warmup for a weekend of golf (which gave me a more respectable reason to visit A.C. than gambling, although I had booked a room at the casino and had every intention of finding a seat at a blackjack table)

Drivers and bus-trippers have a similar concern in Atlantic City: parking. Where to put the car and where to meet the bus involve comings and goings and finding the right vehicle in the place it's supposed to be. The traffic crunch doesn't get any easier. So here is our vehicular survival guide to Gametown. PARKING. Here's help for the 17 million people who drive to Atlantic City each year and find themselves hunting for a parking place. First, a word about the lots.

ATLANTIC CITY - A Pennsylvania man is hospitalized after falling 40 feet from an escalator at Atlantic City's newest casino. Kevin D. Denker Jr., 29, was going up the escalator at Revel about 1:30 a.m. Monday. He suffered facial and other injuries and was in critical condition at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City. Investigators theorize that Denker was leaving Revel with his girlfriend when he jumped onto the moving escalator railing and then fell over, police said. - AP