NBA Roundup : Price, Harper Lead Cavaliers’ Win

Laker fans are convinced that, in Magic Johnson and Byron Scott, they have the best pair of guards in the National Basketball Assn.

Cleveland Cavalier fans beg to differ. They just don’t believe any backcourt duo can compare with their pair of Mark Price and Ron Harper.

Price and Harper combined for 56 points and 14 assists Tuesday night at Richfield, Ohio, to lead the Cavaliers to a 110-94 victory over the road-weary Utah Jazz. It was the fourth game in 7 nights on the road for the Jazz and they lost all 4.

Harper, who hit 10 for 13 shots, had 32 points and 8 assists as the Cavaliers improved their record to 16-5, best in the NBA.

It isn’t just on offense that Price and Harper excel. The Cavaliers have the best defense in the league, holding their opponents to 98.1 points per game. Harper and Price trigger the defense with their tight checking.

When Utah moved in front, 58-52, early in the third quarter, Coach Lennie Wilkens gave the signal for the Cavaliers to go into a full-court press.

Harper and Price each had 3 steals and the Cavaliers outscored the Jazz, 32-6, to take an 84-64 lead after 3 quarters.

“We hadn’t used the full-court for 3 or 4 weeks, but Coach said we might find a place for it tonight,” Harper said. We said, ‘What? We haven’t done that for weeks.’ ”

The Cavaliers’ game plan was to try to keep the ball out of playmaker John Stockton’s hands. Although the brilliant Utah guard had 17 assists, the plan worked during the press.

“When they put on the press, our players didn’t get to our spots,” said Karl Malone, who scored 30 points. “It’s no secret we tried to get the ball to John to beat the press. We didn’t give him much help.”

Harper leads the Cavaliers in scoring with 20 points per game, while Price is averaging 18.3 points and 8 assists.

Dallas 108, Philadelphia 102--Teams that win on the road invariably are around the top of their division.

Rolando Blackman scored 20 of his 24 points in the second half at Philadelphia to help the Mavericks overcome a 9-point deficit and win their fifth in a row on the road.

The Mavericks lead the NBA on the road with a 6-1 record and lead the Midwest Division by a game.

“I was just running around in the first half,” Blackman said. “In the second half, I wanted to make sure I got the ball in the right places. We ran some plays for me and I started hitting. I just got into a groove.”

Atlanta 121, Seattle 118--Moses Malone can’t handle back-to-back games anymore, but when he’s had a couple of days rest, he’s still a dominant factor.

In his 13th season as a pro, although he’s only 33, Malone still has some big games.

This one at Atlanta was one of them. Malone scored 9 of his 30 points in the last 5:17, enabling the Hawks to withstand a furious rally by the SuperSonics, who trailed by 15 after 3 quarters.

In 26 minutes, Malone had 9 rebounds and more than a point per minute.

Although he missed 17 of his 28 field goal attempts, Dale Ellis also had 30 for the Sonics, getting 16 of them in the fourth quarter.

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New York 141, Indiana 113--Pity the poor Pacers. They haven’t won a game on the road this season. Then they had to go up against the Knicks in New York’s first game after losing again at Boston to the Larry Bird-less Celtics.

It was no contest. A 10-0 spurt in the middle of the first period to take the lead for good. Early in the second period Gerald Wilkins scored 9 points in a 23-4 run that made it a rout.

The Knicks, stretching their lead in the Atlantic Division to 3 1/2 games, won their eighth in a row at Madison Square Garden. The Pacers, the only NBA team that hasn’t won on the road, have lost 11.

Houston 105, Sacramento 104--The lowly Kings came close to a major upset at Houston before losing for the 10th time in 11 road games.

With just 84 seconds left and Akeem Olajuwon ejected after picking up 2 technicals, Harold Pressley sank an 18-foot jumper to give the Kings (5-16) a 104-99 lead.

The Kings didn’t score again, but the Rockets made 6 free throws to win it. Former King Otis Thorpe, Mike Woodson and Buck Johnson each went 2 for 2. Johnson’s, with 23 seconds left, put Houston ahead.

Milwaukee 125, Charlotte 115--The Hornets threw a scare into the Bucks at Milwaukee, outplaying them for 3 quarters.

But Terry Cummings and Ricky Pierce led a 22-7 run in the fourth quarter that broke the game open. Cummings had a season-high 37 points, while Pierce had 28, 17 of them in the last quarter.

The Hornets led at halftime and after 3 quarters.

Detroit 116, Miami 100--The Heat seldom scare anybody. Adrian Dantley scored 9 of his 19 points in the first quarter at Auburn Hills, Mich. and the Pistons went out in front early and stayed there.

The Pistons, getting many easy shots, shot 60% from the field. After building a 20-point lead they coasted through the second half.

Portland 127, Denver 124--Clyde Drexler scored a career-high 43 points at Denver, but it was a driving layup by Terry Porter with 25 seconds left that won it for the Trail Blazers.

It was only the second home loss in 13 games for the Nuggets, who trailed by 12 after 3 quarters, then fought back to tie at 124-124.

Phoenix 128, San Antonio 110--Eddie Johnson came off the bench to score 11 points in a 29-5 third-quarter spurt at Phoenix that assured Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons his 600th victory.

It was the eighth loss in a row for the Spurs.