NBA Roundup : Helping Beat Knicks Satisfying to Bernard King

Bernard King admitted it wasn’t just another game even though he didn’t want to make too much of it.

King scored 15 of his season-high 33 points in the fourth quarter against his former teammates Thursday night, leading the Washington Bullets to a 104-90 victory over the New York Knicks at Landover, Md.

“There’s no vendetta but there is some excitement,” King said. “As I’ve always said, I enjoy playing against New York because I’m from New York.

“There is some extra satisfaction because I know my family and friends were watching in New York,” added King, a native of Brooklyn who spent five years with the Knicks but signed with Washington as a free agent before the season when New York declined to match an offer sheet.

King scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter, sparking a 12-0 burst that snapped a 72-72 tie and powered the resurgent Bullets to their eighth consecutive home victory under Coach Wes Unseld.

Washington is 9-3 since Unseld replaced Kevin Loughery Jan. 3.

Moses Malone scored 30 points for Washington, and his layup in the first period moved him past Bob Pettit into 10th place on the all-time NBA scoring list. Malone has 20,904 points in 12 NBA seasons. Pettit scored 20,881 in 11.

Cleveland 109, Houston 85--Brad Daugherty scored 18 points, and the Cavaliers held the Rockets without a basket during an 11:41 stretch of the second half while coasting to victory at Cleveland.

The Cavaliers, who ended a seven-game losing streak by defeating San Antonio Wednesday night, outscored Houston, 23-3, during the Rockets’ cold spell, which started with 5:58 left in the third period.

Akeem Olajuwon led the Rockets with 23 points and 12 rebounds.

Denver 122, Milwaukee 113--Blair Rasmussen, making only his third start of the season, scored 23 points as the Nuggets defeated the Bucks at Denver and moved into second place in the Midwest Division.

The Nuggets trail division-leading Dallas by five games but are a half-game ahead of Houston.