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 GAME FLOW
|  | | Sprewell's broken foot couldn't keep him on the bench. |
NEW YORK (AP) -- So well were they playing and so easy were the
points coming, that the New York Knicks got a two-minute standing
ovation at the end of the first half.
The game got closer and a 17-point lead shrank to one, but the
Knicks never stopped playing at a high level as they defeated the
Indiana Pacers 91-89 Monday to even the Eastern Conference finals
at two games apiece.
"I don't know if we made a statement, but we did come out with
an edge to us, a good mental determination, intensity and energy,"
coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "Indiana is so good offensively that
leads are not as safe as they'd be against defensive-oriented
teams, and thankfully the clock ran out on them."
No player came up bigger than Larry Johnson, who was flashing
his "Big L" gesture and spinning gleefully in circles after
hitting a 3-pointer with 4:25 left to swing the momentum back New
York's way after the Pacers had pulled within one.
Charlie Ward added a 3-pointer two minutes later for an
eight-point lead that helped the Knicks wrap it up after they
dropped 33 points on the Pacers in the first quarter for their
highest-scoring quarter of the postseason.
New York played again without center Patrick Ewing, who sat out
his second straight game with acute tendinitis in his right foot,
but their other injured players -- Latrell Sprewell and Marcus Camby
-- suited up.
Sprewell, who broke a bone in his left foot at the end of Game
3, jumped so high for a thunderous dunk in the first quarter that
he nearly hit his forehead on the rim. He finished with 12 points
and held Jalen Rose to 18, while Camby played on a sprained knee
and had eight rebounds, five points and three blocks.
"I'm not surprised," said Kurt Thomas, who filled in admirably
for Ewing. "I know the character of this team.'
Another of the injured Knicks was Johnson, whose chronically
sore back stiffened up Sunday and forced him to miss the second
half of practice. Repeatedly scoring on isolation plays in the low
post against Dale Davis and passing to open teammates when he was
double-teamed, Johnson shot 10-for-16 from the field, making five
3-pointers, with seven rebounds and four assists.
His 3-pointer with 4:25 left led to the longest-lasting "Big
L" gesture of his career, Johnson cocking his right arm into a
right angle and pointing at his elbow with his left fist for almost
10 seconds.
The shot gave New York an 85-76 lead, and the Knicks hung on
from there to ensure that the series will return to Madison Square
Garden for Game 6 Friday night.
"This game was the most I've been open during the series,"
Johnson said. "They went to double-team and I found myself wide
open."
Game 5 is Wednesday night at Indianapolis, where the Pacers
looked so confident just a few days ago after winning the first two
games of the series. But it was the Knicks who had that look over
the weekend, even as the injuries kept piling up.
Allan Houston scored 17 points for the Knicks, Thomas added 16
and Ward had 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds. New York
was 10-for-14 from 3-point range and outrebounded Indiana 41-32.
Reggie Miller had 24 points for the Pacers, who could never come
all the way back after allowing the Knicks to open a 14-point lead
at the end of the first quarter and the 17-point lead at halftime.
"I still feel like we're going to win this series," Rose said.
"I feel like we're the better team. We're disappointed, because
any time you get a 2-0 lead and you're the No. 1 seed in the
conference you expect to find ways to win on the other team's
floor."
After trailing for nearly the entire game, the Pacers got back
into it with a 22-10 run bridging the third and fourth quarters.
Miller made a 3-pointer from in front of Spike Lee's courtside seat
with 6:50 left -- a large portion of the crowd of 19,763 groaned as
the ball was in mid-air -- to make it 77-76.
Johnson answered with a 3-pointer after a scramble for a loose
ball under the basket.
"That was the biggest shot of the game right there," Miller
said.
Miller missed a 3 from the same spot as before and then threw
the ball away on an entry pass, and Thomas converted a 15-foot
jumper to make it 82-76 with 5:12 left. Rose missed a hook shot and
Johnson buried his 3-pointer from the corner.
Indiana pulled within three on a 3-pointer by Travis Best with
10.5 seconds left, but Sprewell iced the victory by making the
second of two foul shots with 4.1 seconds to go. Sprewell actually
missed his second attempt, but Rose was called for a blatant lane
violation to give Sprewell another chance.
Best scored a meaningless tip-in at the buzzer.
The Knicks improved to 5-1 against Indiana in the playoffs when
playing without Ewing.
"Look at the percentage with or without him," Indiana center
Rik Smits said. "I hope he comes back."
Chris Dudley started in Ewing's place and picked up two quick
fouls, bringing Thomas into the game earlier than expected. Thomas
started looking to score right away, hitting a jumper the first
time he touched the ball.
Sprewell wasn't looking hobbled at all by the broken bone in his
foot, soaring through the lane for an emphatic two-handed slam that
started the Knicks on an 8-0 run for a 22-12 lead. The Knicks hit
10 of their first 12 shots and finished 14-for-18 in the first
quarter to take a 33-19 lead into the second.
The Pacers had an 8-0 run early in the second quarter to pull
within six, but it proved to be just a brief flash of cohesion.
Failing to run the same plays that had been working in the first
three games, such as getting the ball to Smits in the low post or
clearing out for isolation plays by Rose, the Pacers repeatedly
jacked up jumpers and rarely drove to the basket.
Thomas, Johnson, Houston and Ward all reached double figures by
the half, and the Knicks received the thunderous ovation as they
walked off the court with a 57-40 lead.
The Pacers kept trying to sustain runs in the third quarter, and
each time the Knicks stole the momentum. Two offensive rebounds by
Dudley led to second-chance 3-pointers by Johnson and Ward, and
another offensive rebound led to Johnson's turnaround jumper for a
67-54 lead.
Indiana was looking to go more to Smits and Rose, but Smits was
rushing shots and missing while Rose was trying to find a rhythm.
Rose scored nine points in the quarter while Johnson scored seven,
and the Knicks took a 73-65 lead into the fourth.
Game notes
This victory ended a trend for the Knicks. After falling
behind 2-0 in the playoffs in 1996, 1998 and 1999, they won Game 3
and then lost Game 4 each time. ... New York's victory means that
the start date for the NBA Finals will be Wed., June 7. ... New
York's Chris Childs committed three fouls in the first half, and
not surprisingly he complained after each one. ... Dudley finished
with five fouls, five rebounds and no points in eight minutes. ...
Derrick McKey played four minutes for Indiana. His only statistics
were two turnovers.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Indiana Clubhouse
New York Clubhouse
Thomas plays the hero role
Pacers come home with lead gone
Injuries can't stop Knicks from big win
New York vs. Indiana
RECAPS
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Latrell Sprewell says the Knicks were able to get it done in Game 4.
wav: 84 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Marcus Camby believes Game 4 was a turning point.
wav: 77 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Larry Bird is happy to be going back to Indiana.
wav: 88 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Reggie Miller says the pressure is now on the Pacers.
wav: 133 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Larry Bird was disappointed with the Pacers' defense Monday.
wav: 76 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Jeff Van Gundy says the Knicks played Game 4 with energy.
wav: 136 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Reggie Miller says Larry Johnson came up big.
wav: 137 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Allan Houston says Johnson helped the Knicks gain momentum.
wav: 84 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Larry Johnson says the Pacers fought hard to come back.
wav: 84 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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