| |
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
 GAME FLOW
NEW YORK (AP) -- If looks could kill, Allan Houston would have
strangled the rim. That's how evil his gaze was after he missed a
pair of free throws with 13.1 seconds left.
|  | | Kurt Thomas works the ball past the defense of Minnesota's Bobby Jackson, left. |
"I was shocked to the point I couldn't believe I missed them,"
said Houston, who got another chance with 3.9 seconds left and made
both free throws to clinch the New York Knicks' 93-89 victory over
Minnesota on Wednesday night.
Houston, an 83 percent free-throw shooter, has shown a tendency
this season to miss foul shots at critical times.
It happened at least twice in December, at least once in January
and again against the Timberwolves. After missing these two, he
turned and gave a nasty look at the basket.
"It's become almost a barrier for him now that it's happened
four or five times," coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "It's almost like
he got so upset after he missed the second one that he just went up
and knocked the next two in."
Latrell Sprewell scored 19 points and Houston had 18 to lead five Knicks in double figures. Kurt Thomas had 16, Patrick Ewing 15
and Charlie Ward 10.
The Knicks learned after the game that Ward has a non-displaced
fracture of the little finger on his right hand, an injury that
will sideline him 3-4 weeks.
In a game in which they survived an 18-0 run by the Wolves, the
Knicks posted their seventh double-digit comeback victory of the
season and won for the ninth time in their last 10 games at Madison
Square Garden.
Kevin Garnett had 23 points and 13 rebounds to lead Minnesota,
which lost its fourth straight. The losing streak is the
second-longest of the season for the Wolves, who lost eight in a
row in early- and mid-December.
|
Ward out 3-4 weeks
|
|
Knicks point guard Charlie Ward has a
broken finger, an injury that will sideline him 3-4 weeks.
The news came following New York's victory over Minnesota.
The team described the injury as a displaced fracture of the right
little finger.
"It's been hurting for two weeks. I tried to play through it,"
Ward said. "I couldn't take the pain any longer. I got X-rays
tonight and found out it was broken. I'll be back sooner than you
think."
Ward injured the finger against Charlotte on Feb. 7. He played
three games after that, scoring 21 against Milwaukee, zero against
Toronto and 10 against Minnesota.
Ward played only 1.5 seconds of the fourth quarter against
Minnesota.
Chris Childs, averaging 5.0 points and 4.0 assists, will take
Ward's place in the starting lineup. Rick Brunson, currently the
third-string point guard, will become the backup.
|
"We have to stop the bleeding somewhere," Garnett said.
"These upcoming games at home are very crucial now."
The Timberwolves also were hurt by a pair of missed foul shots,
theirs coming from Joe Smith with 42.8 seconds left to leave them
trailing 89-87. Houston missed a jumper but Larry Johnson grabbed
the offensive rebound, forcing Minnesota to foul. Sprewell hit two
from the line with 18.5 seconds left, and Garnett made a pair with
14.6 seconds left to make it 91-89.
Houston was immediately fouled, and his misses gave Minnesota a
chance to go for the tie or the lead. But Sam Mitchell missed a
runner across the lane, Garnett missed a tip and Houston rebounded
and was fouled.
"I was so thankful that I had another opportunity," Houston
said. "That's all you can ask for. The bottom line is I made the
two free throws, so it canceled out what had happened."
Thomas contributed some strong defense on Garnett, helping hold
him to 5-for-17 shooting. The Timberwolves lost for just the second
time in 23 games when leading or tied heading into the fourth
quarter.
The Timberwolves scored the final 12 points of the first half
and the first six of the third quarter to take a 54-43 lead, but
the Knicks came right back with an 8-0 run to keep things close.
Thomas slammed home a missed shot to make it 66-66 entering the
fourth quarter, and New York's reserves put the Knicks in front
from there by scoring 11 of the team's next 13 points.
Thomas twice gave the Knicks a six-point lead, once on a baby
hook with 5:56 left and next on a putback of Chris Childs' airball
to make it 85-79 with 4:57 left. A three-point play by Mitchell and
a pair of foul shots by Garnett made it a one-point game with 4:15
left, and Garnett hit a jumper to give Minnesota an 86-85 lead --
its first since the third quarter.
A jumper by Sprewell, a foul shot by Garnett and a short jumper
by Ewing gave the Knicks an 89-87 lead heading into the final two
minutes.
Game notes
The game was slowed by a number of whistles, frustrating both
coaching staffs, and took 2:22 to complete. There were 51 total
fouls and 35 turnovers, 20 by the Knicks and 15 by the Wolves. ...
Minnesota's Terrell Brandon, playing on consecutive nights after missing six games with a sprained left ankle, played 38 minutes and had 11 points and 10 assists. ... The Knicks played the opener of a
six-game homestand, with five of the opponents likely headed to the
playoffs. New York is 19-5 at home.
| |
ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Minnesota Clubhouse
New York Clubhouse
RECAPS
Indiana 109
Toronto 101
LA Lakers 92
Charlotte 85
New York 93
Minnesota 89
Orlando 129
LA Clippers 96
Portland 99
Golden State 95
Vancouver 92
Washington 87
|
