NBA Roundup : Wilkins Gets 50, Wittman 35 as Hawks Give Pistons the Old 1-2

The Atlanta Hawks had laughingly referred to Dominique Wilkins and Randy Wittman as their one-two punch. Wilkins, of course, was the NBA scoring champion with a 30.3 average. Wittman, the 6-6 third-year guard from Indiana, was the Hawks’ distant No. 2 with a 12.9 average.

The 1-2 punch was no laughing matter to the Detroit Pistons Saturday at Atlanta, and the Hawks soared to a 137-125 victory to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five opening-round playoff series.

It was not too much of a surprise when Wilkins scored 50 points, but Wittman sent the Pistons to the brink of elimination with a 35-point performance. Those were the most points Wittman ever scored, college or pro.

For the second game in a row, the Hawks started slowly and fell 10 points behind in the opening minutes. But Wilkins and Wittman started to find the range, and the Hawks took the lead late in the third quarter and gradually pulled away.

Wilkins, who made only 9 of 26 shots in the opener Thursday night and had 28 points, regained his shooting touch. He was 19 for 28 on his way to tying Bob Pettit’s club playoff record. Pettit did it in 1958, when they were the St. Louis Hawks.

“When the jumpers started to fall, I knew I had my rhythm,” Wilkins said. “I couldn’t miss. I didn’t feel tired at all. Regardless of who was on me, I felt I could go one-on-one.”

Much of the game Kelly Tripucka was on him. The Pistons, Tripucka said, forced Wilkins to take bad shots.

“The only thing, they kept falling in,” Tripucka said. “I was up on him and had my hand in his face. Those are the kinds of shots we wanted him to take, but they went in. Hey, what can you do?”

When the series resumes Tuesday night at Pontiac, Mich., the Pistons will probably try to do something about Wittman.

“It was one of those days when every time I touched the ball I felt I could hit,” said Wittman, who was 16 for 25. “While Dominique is our leader, we have other guys who can step in and do the job. It just happened to be my turn.”

The Detroit Free Press reported Saturday that Piston star Isiah Thomas was suffering from an ulcer on his urinary bladder.

Although the brilliant guard admitted to stomach discomfort that impaired his concentration, he kept the Pistons in the game. He played 38 minutes, scored 36 points and had 9 assists.

“I don’t think I will mess myself up by playing in the playoffs,” Thomas said. “But if I do mess myself up, I want to do it playing basketball. It’s just not the right time to stop (playing) or take more tests.”

Houston 111, Sacramento 103--When the Kings started to make a run at the Rockets in the fourth quarter at Houston, the Twin Towers, Akeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson, were in foul trouble.

So, Robert Reid took it upon himself to make sure the Rockets took a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series that could wind up Tuesday night at Sacramento.

With more than four minutes left, the Kings had cut a 24-point deficit to 100-96. But Reid, who had 18 of his game-high 29 points in the second half, sank two jumpers and three free throws down the stretch to preserve the Rockets’ lead.

The Rockets built the big lead, 72-48, midway through the third quarter before both Olajuwon and Sampson picked up their fifth fouls and had to leave. Larry Drew and Eddie Johnson came off the bench to lead the Kings’ futile rally.

“It was an outstanding comeback, and it makes me feel better, but I’m not into moral victories,” King Coach Phil Johnson said. “We should have been playing the whole series the way we played the fourth quarter.”

Now, the Kings hope to rely on the “Tuesday Night Jinx” to keep them alive. The Kings have not lost a home game on Tuesday night.

“Everybody’s been talking about the Tuesday Night Jinx,” Reid said. “There’s no problem. We’ll take care of it.”

Olajuwon, who had three fouls four minutes into the second quarter and finished with 17 points and 6 rebounds, thought the Kings played with more fire.

“They didn’t like reading in the newspapers that they couldn’t play with us,” Olajuwon said.