NBA Roundup : McHale Comes Back, but Bird Rallies the Celtics to 91-74 Win

The way Larry Bird and his mates have been playing, there was no reason for the Boston Celtics to rush Kevin McHale back into action.

The 6-10 forward saw his first action in more than a month Tuesday night at New York, but he played only briefly in the Celtics’ 91-74 victory over the injury-plagued Knicks.

Bird took charge in the second half as the Celtics wiped out a five-point deficit and won going away. Bird, after taking only three shots and scoring four points in the first half, finished with his fifth triple-double in the last eight games.

Playing the way one would expect a player on his way to a third Most Valuable Player award should play, Bird had 24 points, 18 rebounds, 13 assists and keyed a devastating defense with 2 steals. The Celtics held the Knicks to 24 points in the last 20 minutes.

McHale, who has an Achilles’ tendon injury, played just seven minutes and missed his only field-goal attempt. The Celtics were 12-3 without McHale, so they will not rush him back too quickly.

On the other hand, the Knicks don’t have the same luxury. They welcomed back their rookie center, Patrick Ewing. He had missed the previous seven games because he needed to rest a couple of bruised and battered knees.

The Knicks, barely holding on in a bid to make the playoffs, lost six of the seven games Ewing missed. Upon his return, Ewing played 39 minutes against the Celtics. Although he led the Knicks with 16 points, he was only 8 of 20 from the field and had only 6 rebounds.

Although they shot only 36.7% from the field in the first half, the Knicks, with only three turnovers to 17 for the Celtics, led, 40-39, at intermission. They led, 50-45, four minutes into the second half.

At this point Bird assumed control. He made a three-point play, then a three-point field goal to spark a 12-0 spurt that put the Celtics in front to stay.

Bill Walton, who has come through with some powerful performances in the absence of McHale, scored the last two points in the 12-point run and finished with 15 points (7 of 8 from the field) and 14 rebounds in 27 minutes.

“We are not going to take any chances with Kevin,” Celtic Coach K. C. Jones said. “If we had wanted to gamble, we would have played him against the Lakers 10 days ago. We just want him ready by playoff time.”

The Celtics took only 73 shots, but made 40 of them, with only Dennis Johnson (1-9) shooting poorly. The Knicks had 92 shots, but only 32 of them went through the hoop.

Golden State 116, New Jersey 109--The Nets may have to go through a period of adjustment now that the Micheal Ray Richardson situation has finally been settled.

In their first game without their leader in points, assists and steals, the Nets were beaten by the team with the worst record in the NBA. Richardson, who tested positive for cocaine, has been banned.

The Nets, who have lost three in a row, trailed only 87-85 with almost nine minutes left in the game. But Joe Barry Carroll led a 12-4 Golden State spurt, and the Nets never threatened again.

Carroll scored five of his 25 points in the rally that broke open the game and gave the Warriors 19 wins in 60 games. They are 4-27 on the road.

Philadelphia 122, Chicago 108--Although he no longer dominates every game the way he did a few years ago, Moses Malone, can still be a force.

In this game at Chicago, the 76er veteran scored a season-high 42 points and pulled down 15 rebounds. Malone was 13 of 25 from the field and made all 16 attempts from the foul line.

He had considerable help from his front-line mate, Charles Barkley. Barkley had 30 points (11 of 16), 15 rebounds and 5 assists. However, he was only 8 of 15 from the line.

The Bulls actually scored more field goals (42-41), but the 76ers were 40 of 49 from the line, while the Bulls were 24 of 30.

Denver 112, Phoenix 99--Alex English, the NBA’s leading scorer, had 41 points at Denver, but it was the defensive work of reserve guards Elston Turner and Mike Evans that turned a close game into a rout.

Turner and Evans each had two steals to key a 23-10 Denver rally in the last eight minutes of the third quarter.

Utah 100, Houston 97--Adrian Dantley, the NBA’s No. 2 scorer, lost ground in the scoring race, but his 31 points at Salt Lake City helped the Jazz hold off the Rockets.

Ralph Sampson, trying to carry the load in the absence of injured Akeem Olajuwon, had 19 points and 19 rebounds for the Rockets.

Indiana 100, Washington 87--Although 7-7 Manute Bol blocked 10 shots at Indianapolis, the rookie center failed to score a point in the Bullets’ loss.

Herb Williams had 24 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Pacers.

Sacramento 102, Seattle 100--LaSalle Thompson sank a 12-foot jumper with 20 seconds left at Seattle to extend the Kings’ winning streak to five. Reggie Theus set up the winning basket with his career-high 18th assist.