NBA Roundup : Record Crowd of 52,745 Sees Pistons Beat 76ers

Adrian Dantley scored 16 of his 35 points in the first quarter Saturday night to lead the Detroit Pistons to a 125-107 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers before a Silverdome crowd of 52,745--the largest to watch a National Basketball Assn. game.

The record--which was the result of a giveaway by a local gas station chain--shattered the previous NBA record of 44,180, set Feb. 15, 1986, at the Silverdome when the Pistons beat the 76ers in overtime, 134-133.

This time, Vinnie Johnson came off the bench to score 24 points for the Pistons, who took sole possession of first place in the Central Division at 32-16.

Roy Hinson led Philadelphia with 27 points, and Tim McCormick added 23. Hinson twice brought the 76ers within two points in the third quarter, but Johnson scored six points in the final 2:58 to help Detroit mount a 91-84 lead after three quarters.

The Pistons started pulling away in the fourth quarter, opening a 109-94 lead with 6:16 left.

Golden State 103, Atlanta 96--Sleepy Floyd scored 24 of his 28 points in the second half to rally the Warriors, who missed 20 straight shots in the first quarter, past the Hawks at Oakland.

After Chris Mullin made Golden State’s first shot of the game, the Warriors fell behind, 16-3, during their cold streak. Golden State closed the gap to 49-45 by halftime and, with Floyd scoring 15 points in the third period, took a 73-64 lead with 3:36 left in the quarter. But Atlanta scored 11 straight points to take a 75-73 lead into the final period.

The Warriors, who shot 38% from the field in the game, took the lead for good on reserve guard Terry Teagle’s two free throws with 44 seconds left. Four more free throws by Floyd ensured the victory.

Joe Barry Carroll scored 24 points and Teagle 22 for the Warriors. Dominique Wilkins scored 28 points for the Hawks.

Chicago 112, New York 108--Charles Oakley’s three-point play with 21 seconds left lifted the Bulls over the Knicks at New York.

The Knicks’ Gerald Wilkins missed a three-point shot that would have tied the score, and Chicago’s John Paxson made one of two foul shots to complete the scoring.

Michael Jordan kept the Bulls in the game by scoring 25 of his 33 points in the second half. Oakley had 20 points.

Patrick Ewing had 27 points, Wilkins added 25 and Gerald Henderson had 21 for the Knicks, who lost for the 12th time in 15 games.

Ewing had 15 points in the fourth quarter, including a three-point play with 2:46 left that gave New York a 104-100 lead.

Milwaukee 116, Houston 101--John Lucas scored a season-high 29 points as the Bucks beat the Rockets at Milwaukee.

Randy Breuer and Ricky Pierce added 17 points each and Jack Sikma scored 14 for the Bucks, who took a 63-42 halftime lead by outscoring the Rockets, 30-17, in the second quarter. Milwaukee scored the first 10 points of the quarter and a 17-2 run made it 50-27 with 7:25 left in the half.

Akeem Olajuwon scored 21 points to lead the Rockets. Jim Peterson and Robert Reid chipped in 15 points each for Houston, which had 16 first-half turnovers.

Denver, 129, Indians 113--Alex English scored 33 points and Lafayette Lever added 30 as the Nuggets overpowered the Pacers at Denver.

Lever also had 10 rebounds and 8 assists.

Herb Williams led the Pacers with 24 points and 13 rebounds.

Utah 108, San Antonio 95--Karl Malone scored 21 points and Bobby Hansen added 20 to lead the Jazz past the Spurs at Salt Lake City.

Hansen was 8 for 8 from the floor and 4 for 4 from the foul line. Darrell Griffith added 13 points for Utah, Kent Benson had 12 and Thurl Bailey contributed 10.

Walter Berry scored 18 points for the Spurs.

Sacramento 136, Washington 111--Derek Smith had 20 points, and the Kings scored 44 points in the second period while beating the Bullets at Sacramento.

The victory was the second in three games for Sacramento under interim coach Jerry Reynolds, who assumed the position after Phil Johnson was fired Monday.

Eddie Johnson and Reggie Theus added 19 apiece for the Kings.