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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
NEW YORK (AP) -- Hard to say that the Knicks are in a slump,
because slumps only happen to good teams.
Right now, the Knicks aren't a good team.
|  | | Boston's Paul Pierce drives around Latrell Sprewell on Thursday night. |
In another disheartening loss to one of the poorer teams in the
East, Paul Pierce scored 31 points and Antoine Walker added 23
points, 15 rebounds and five assists as Boston beat the Knicks
92-86 Thursday night to snap a 15-game losing streak in New York.
Not since Jan. 10, 1993, had the Celtics won at Madison Square
Garden.
"It's bad, trust me, but it's hard to say how bad," Latrell
Sprewell said of the Knicks, who have lost four of five games.
"It's not good, but it's not time to push the panic button just
yet. We don't want to see that."
The loss was a humiliating one for the floundering Knicks, who
were outplayed in every facet of the game and were booed off the
court. It was the 16th time this season they have been held below
90 points, the fourth time in the last five games.
Allan Houston shot just 2-for-12 and scored four points,
Sprewell committed six of New York's 17 turnovers and Marcus Camby
left after just 10 minutes with a strained groin.
Glen Rice was the only bright spot for the Knicks, scoring 32
points.
"We're not playing with a lot of passion," Houston said.
"It's like we're not determined to go out and make the game what
it was when we were winning and playing well a few days ago. Now,
we're trying to figure it out when we're out there. It's like our
minds are a little cloudy right now."
Boston improved its road record to 2-8 and won for the first
time in six tries on the second night of back-to-back games.
The victory was the second straight for the Celtics after four
consecutive losses. Only an unlikely overtime victory over
Milwaukee has kept New York from being in the midst of a five-game
slide.
"It seems like we're out there trying too hard to figure out
what's wrong instead of just playing and having fun," Sprewell
said.
With Pierce and Walker dominating offensively, Boston opened a
14-point lead early in the fourth quarter. The Celtics let the
Knicks creep within seven but Walker scored twice in a row on
layups and was fouled both times to give them a 77-65 lead.
A jumper by Pierce and a layup by Randy Brown with 5:31 left got
the lead back up to 14, and Pierce reached 30 points on a tough
leaner from the lane that made it 85-71 with 3:17 left.
Sprewell and Rice hit consecutive 3-pointers with just under a
minute left to get the deficit down to 87-81, but Eric Williams
grabbed an offensive rebound after Randy Brown missed the second of
two free throws, and the Knicks then committed a turnover on an
offensive foul by Houston after Pierce missed a pair from the line
with 25 seconds left.
"They're putting a lot of pressure on themselves as a team,"
Walker said. "We knew if we could stay with them early their
confidence would go because of the way things have been going with
them for the last few games."
The Knicks took an early 19-9 lead as the Celtics came out
lethargic, but the roles soon were reversed. Pierce scored 10
straight Celtics points midway through the second quarter as Boston
took a 42-40 lead, and Boston had a 17-0 run bridging the second
and third quarters to take a 54-40 lead.
Pierce scored 11 more in the third as the Celtics maintained a
comfortable advantage, and it was 72-58 less than two minutes into
the fourth quarter after Adrian Griffin hit a 3-pointer.
Game
notes
Larry Johnson returned for New York after missing four
games with a strained knee ligament. He had four points and five
rebounds in 30 minutes. ... Camby pulled a groin muscle late in the
second quarter and did not return. ... No Knicks opponent has
reached 100 points for 21 straight games. ... Milt Palacio started
at point guard for Boston with Brown backing him up. Kenny Anderson
saw eight minutes of action as the third-stringer.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Boston Clubhouse
New York Clubhouse
RECAPS
Orlando 99
Chicago 88
Milwaukee 80
New Jersey 78
Boston 92
New York 86
LA Lakers 99
Houston 94
FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Antoine Walker Official Site
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