Shaquille O’Neal, upset after several games of what he perceives as a lack of support from referees, has again drawn a line in the sand, insisting he will now take matters into his own hands. Or arms.

“From now on,” the Los Angeles Lakers center said, “my elbows are going to be up, and whoever gets hit gets hit.”

The comments come about a week and a half after coach Del Harris spoke out on O’Neal’s behalf on the topic, noting, “I think he is taking a sure beating” and “I think some referees come in with the idea that, ‘We’re going to make the big guy earn it.”’

Surgery for Gugliotta

Tom Gugliotta, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ leading scorer, will have surgery today on his right ankle to shave away painful bone spurs and remove any bone chips.

The forward will spend several days recovering at the Long Island, N.Y., home of his mother.

On the courts

Shandon Anderson scored a career-high 26 points and Bryon Russell added 21 to lead a 55-point bench barrage as the visiting Utah Jazz beat the Toronto Raptors 108-93 Tuesday night.

Isaiah Rider scored 33 points as the Portland Trail Blazers survived the second-quarter loss of Damon Stoudamire with a sprained ankle to beat the Phoenix Suns 98-93 in Portland.

Larry Johnson scored 23 points and Charles Oakley grabbed a season-high 16 rebounds as the New York Knicks scored a 94-91 victory over the New Jersey Nets in New York.