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Sunday, Apr. 9 5:30pm ET
Heat now own 3-game edge vs. Knicks | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
MIAMI (AP) --Tim Hardaway stood 25 feet from the basket with the ball on his hip, Chris Childs in his face and a single second on the clock. So Hardaway threw up a desperation shot, then watched in surprise as the ball bounced on the rim and fell through the hoop.
"I was like, 'Oh. It went in. Let's go home,' " Hardaway said. Thanks to that desperation 3-pointer as time expired in overtime Sunday, the Miami Heat closed in on their fourth consecutive Atlantic Division title by beating New York 95-94 to win the season series with the Knicks for the first time. The frantic finish was eerily reminiscent of the final game between the arch rivals last year, when New York eliminated Miami from the playoffs on Allan Houston's last-second shot. This time Hardaway's heroics left the Knicks stunned. "A prayer," Patrick Ewing said. "A miracle," coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "I was all over him," Childs said. "I thought I had him stopped. He just stood back, threw it up and it went in. Great players make great plays." With 4.7 seconds left and the Heat trailing by two, Hardaway took an inbounds pass above the key and dribbled to his left. Harried by Childs, Hardaway clutched the ball against his right hip before throwing up a shot which rattled in. "I can't describe the emotion when it went in," Hardaway said. "It was a beautiful experience." Alonzo Mourning, who had a game-high 33 points, was the first to give Hardaway a jubilant hug, and the two quickly disappeared in a swarm of teammates. "That shot was up there a long time," Heat forward P.J. Brown said. "It was like 'Hoosiers.' You hear the music -- I can't hum it, but it's like a harp and a violin. "It was the most unbelievable thing I've ever seen." The Heat were quick to recall that in the deciding fifth game of last year's playoff series, Houston took an inbound pass with 4.5 seconds left and scored in the final second to end Miami's season, 78-77. "You can't say this is payback, because we lost that series," Hardaway said. "You can just say this was a big win for us." Division-leading Miami took a three-game lead over the Knicks in the standings with six remaining, and have the tiebreaker edge thanks to taking the season series 3-1. "This obviously puts them way out in front," Van Gundy said. Miami moved within just one game of Eastern Conference leader Indiana, which lost Sunday to Charlotte 96-80. The Pacers play Monday at New York. The Heat have won a season-best seven games in a row, and they've won 19 of their past 20 at home. But they trailed most of the game Sunday. Each team lost a lead in the final three minutes of regulation, and Childs' 3-pointer with 12 seconds left forced the extra period. In overtime, Ewing converted a three-point play to put New York ahead, then scored off a rebound for a 93-90 lead with 1:40 to go. Childs made one of two free throws with six seconds remaining for a 94-92 lead, setting the stage for Hardaway. Houston led New York with 23 points. Ewing finished with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Miami won despite Jamal Mashburn's worst game of the season. He missed his first 10 shots and was short of the rim on a potential game-winning 20-footer at the end of the fourth quarter. He finished 1-of-14 for two points in 44 minutes. Mourning had 11 rebounds and six blocked shots. Hardaway added 10 assists and 16 points, none bigger than a memorable 3-pointer that was a prayer, a miracle and maybe just plain lucky. "If it's a lucky shot, so be it," Hardaway said. "It went in. Game over. I'll take the lucky shot."
Game notes | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard New York Clubhouse Miami Clubhouse RECAPS Orlando 92 Philadelphia 80
Miami 95
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