NBA Roundup : Jordan Scores 41 as Chicago Defeats Indiana

Scoring 40 points is getting to be a habit for Michael Jordan.

Jordan surpassed that total for the 10th time in 11 games Thursday night, scoring 14 of his 41 points in the final period as Chicago beat Indiana, 97-88, at Indianapolis.

The Bulls outscored the Pacers, 34-18, in the final period after trailing for most of the game.

Jordan also had a game-high 6 assists, matching his season-high.

“He doesn’t dominate the basketball floor, he dominates the play,” Chicago Coach Doug Collins said. “If our guys move, he’ll find them. He’s very unselfish. We try to get it (the ball) to him every play. He gets the job done, whether it’s passing, shooting or finding the open man.”

Said Jordan: “In the fourth quarter, Doug switched me to the small forward, which gave me the advantage on the offensive end. I was looking for my shot a little more and looking for the drive.”

The Bulls, trailing, 70-63, after three quarters, made 9 of 15 shots and all 16 of their free throws in the fourth quarter. Indiana finished with its lowest point total of the season while making 8 of 22 field goal attempts in the last period.

New Jersey 94, New York 93--Leon Wood sank an 18-foot jumper with six seconds remaining, and Tony Brown scored a career-high 29 points to help the Nets win at New York and hand the Knicks their seventh straight loss.

The Nets improved to 5-19 and moved ahead of the Knicks (5-20), who have lost 10 of their last 11 games.

With 2:23 remaining, the Nets went on an 8-1 spurt and took a 92-91 lead on Buck Williams’ turnaround jumper with 21 seconds left. Rory Sparrow responded with an 18-footer to regain the lead for the Knicks, but Wood, the former Cal State Fullerton star, drilled the game-winner over Sparrow.

The Knicks had another chance to go in front, but a layup by Rory Sparrow, who had given them their last lead with 12 seconds left, was blocked out of bounds by Buck Williams. The inbounds pass then was tipped away by Kevin McKenna.

Patrick Ewing scored 25 points and Bill Cartwright had 23 for the Knicks.

Milwaukee 104, Atlanta 95--Jack Sikma scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter and made a three-point play that gave Milwaukee a 98-95 lead as the Bucks went on to win their third straight game.

The victory at Milwaukee moved the second-place Bucks within 1 1/2 games of the Hawks in the Central Division.

Terry Cummings led Milwaukee with 32 points. Ricky Pierce and Paul Pressey had 15 apiece. Atlanta got 22 points from Glenn Rivers. Randy Wittman added 18 and Dominique Wilkins 17.

Seattle 114, Houston 100--Dale Ellis scored 22 of his game-high 33 points in the second half to lead the SuperSonics at Seattle.

With 11:37 left to play, Clemon Johnson, Seattle’s reserve center, and Houston’s Akeem Olajuwon traded elbows as Johnson attempted to establish offensive position. Then they exchanged wild swings without either landing a solid blow. Both were ejected.

Tom Chambers scored 26 points and Xavier McDaniel had 21 for the Sonics. Lewis Lloyd topped the Rockets with 22 points.

Washington 128, Golden State 110--Moses Malone scored 37 points and Terry Catledge contributed a season-high 29 as the Bullets won at Oakland. The loss ended Golden State’s three-game winning streak.

The Warriors got a 20-point effort from flu-ridden center Joe Barry Carroll.