Only a few years ago, Karl Malone could not have imagined the kind of afternoon he enjoyed on Sunday.
   
Because of lucky happenstance in the Western Athletic Conference women's basketball schedule, Malone was able to watch his daughter, Cheryl Ford, lead 10th-ranked Louisiana Tech to a 68-45 victory over SMU in Dallas.
   
Along with a large group of family, friends, Jazz coaches and teammates, Malone attended the game at Moody Coliseum, where a daughter who for so long did not play a part in his life was the center of attention and clearly a source of pride.
   
For Malone, it was a quick timeout during the hectic NBA season.
   
Immediately after Ford scored 13 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Lady Techsters' 70th consecutive conference victory, he boarded the Jazz's charter for Oakland, where Utah plays Golden State today at 2 p.m. MST.
   
"It's neat to see her play," Malone said. "I saw her in high school and it seems like she's back to that. . . . There were a couple of years where she was a little passive for some reason. Maybe because her work ethic wasn't great. It wasn't bad. It just wasn't great. But all of a sudden she's working out more, lifting more."
   
Ford and her twin brother, Daryl, are 20. They were raised by their mother and, for most of their lives, Malone barely knew them.