You can feel a different mood in the Bucks' locker room these days. It's not a family feeling at all. Dissension, which inevitably comes with losing, is present.

It's not overt, with players yelling at each other or at coach George Karl, but it is present. Some players resent that Karl continued his public criticism this season. Some of the lesser known "grunts" resent the attitude and selfish play of the Big 3.

Nobody will come right out and talk openly about it for public consumption, but some players will say privately the team has problems that can only be worked out in the off-season.

Anthony Mason, as has been his habit elsewhere, has been very critical of his teammates in recent weeks. If you read between the lines, Mason's comments also are directed at the coaching staff.

"As long as it's going to be allowed for us to play good basketball in the first 18 minutes, then people go off on their own, 1-on-1, 1-on-4, and there's nothing said about it or no repercussions from it, then we're going home in April," Mason said recently.

"The ball needs to move around. We've got a lot of talent on this team. We need to use it. Ain't no Big 3, Big 2, Big 1. This is a team."

Sounds good. In fact, it sounds like what Karl was saying before he decided to "put up and shut up."

As for Mason, those who live in glass houses probably better not throw rocks. He too has not played to the level necessary for the Bucks to consistently get back on the winning track.

Karl has remained relatively mild during the most recent poor performances. "I've tried to stay positive," he said last Wednesday night. "I still believe if we can get healthy, scrap and scrape out a surprise win in the first round of the playoffs we can do what we did last season."

Without using the dis word, Karl also admitted, "There is some internal frustration right now. We're not coming together when we need to."

The Bucks have always been a bit dysfunctional, from the coach down to the 12th man on the team. They had their ugly moments last season, but it was usually written off to being an "emotional team with an emotional coach." The team always came back together as a unit.

Veterans Scott Williams and Lindsey Hunter played the roles of mediators on that team, and often helped bring guys back together. They have been replaced by Mason, who tends to create dissension with his comments, and Greg Anthony, who hasn't been on the team long enough to really take a leadership role.

The Bucks might still get it together in time to surprise some people in the playoffs, but right now they are more like 12 guys who play basketball than a team.

The Wave set a franchise record by winning its 22^nd consecutive home game Friday night, with a 12-10 win over Philadelphia. The victory also wrapped up the Major Indoor Soccer League regular season championship for the Wave.

Milwaukee will end the regular season Saturday and then enter the playoffs.

Coach Keith Tozer now is only one win short of 500 for his career. He is the winningest pro soccer coach in North America.

Let me say right up front, I am not a draftnik. I have a great deal of trouble getting all excited about a bunch of potential rookies who might not even make it in the NFL.

But, this year's draft on April 20-21 will be an important one for the Packers. First, it is the first for coach-GM Mike Sherman without former GM Ron Wolf.

Second, Wolf didn't exactly look like the genius who built the Super Bowl teams of the Holmgren era in his last couple drafts. Very few of the picks from the last couple seasons have had big impacts thus far.

So, Sherman has to pick well, to keep the flow of young talent coming to the organization.

Kudos to Bill Verbrick of UW-Stevens Point, who pitched the first nine-inning perfect game in the history of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Saturday.

Verbrick beat UW-River Falls, 5-0. He struck out 10. Verbrick, who went to Appleton Xavier, is 3-0 this season and has struck out 24 batters in 23 innings.

On the Division I level, UW-Milwaukee will host Bradley in a doubleheader at Miller Park on April 24. The first game starts at 3 p.m. The games are part of a marketing agreement between UWM and the Brewers.