NBA Roundup : King, Malone Help Keep Washington’s Playoff Hopes Alive

About a month ago, the Washington Bullets seemed content to miss the playoffs and perhaps get a chance to draft a center.

Now, without a real center, the Bullets are suddenly making a run at the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

What the Bullets do have is a powerful 1-2 punch on offense, Bernard King and Jeff Malone.

They teamed up beautifully Friday night at Landover, Md., in the fourth quarter to lead the Bullets to a 107-96 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was their fifth consecutive win and pulled them to the .500 mark.

When the last quarter started, the Cavaliers, who had trailed by 15 points in the second period, had the momentum and trailed by just two points.

But King scored 10 points in the first six minutes of the last quarter, and when the Cavaliers doubled up on King, Malone, who has recovered from a groin injury, scored 17 in the last six minutes.

The Bullets also have a good sixth man in John Williams, the former Crenshaw High School star. In 31 minutes, Williams was 7 for 10 from the field and had eight rebounds, six assists and 17 points.

“We are in a critical stretch,” Bullet Coach Wes Unseld said. “This is the first of four consecutive home games against the elite teams.”

With the Celtics losing, the Bullets are only one game behind the Celtics.

They will also play New York, Detroit and Milwaukee. A sweep would put them in great shape to overtake Boston for the final playoff spot.

The Cavaliers, who had won four in a row in what now appears to be a futile try to overtake Detroit, shot only 40.2% from the field. They were playing catchup all night.

Detroit 114, Chicago 112--Tell any pro basketball fan there was a fight in the NBA and they’ll ask you who was involved with the Pistons.

The Pistons, of course, were involved in this one at Chicago. It was a sort of mismatch, with Isiah Thomas of the Pistons squaring off against Chicago center Bill Cartwright in the first quarter. Both were ejected.

The loss of their team leader and playmaker did not keep the Pistons from winning their ninth game in a row over the Bulls, despite Michael Jordan’s 40 points.

Vinnie Johnson, the replacement for Thomas, had 30 points, including the basket that put the Pistons ahead for good in overtime.

With five seconds left in regulation and the Bulls leading, 102-101, Jordan fouled out. Johnson made one of two from the line to send it into overtime.

Atlanta 120, Houston 112--Dominique Wilkins is not known for his outside shooting, but in the clutch in this game at Atlanta, he was accurate.

First, he hit a three-pointer with 12 seconds left in regulation. He could have won the game right there, because he was fouled. But he missed the free throw.

Early in overtime, Wilkins made another three-pointer, and the Rockets never caught up again.

Philadelphia 118, Charlotte 108--Charles Barkley is making a late-season drive to take the 76ers into the playoffs and pick up some votes as the most valuable player.

In this game at Charlotte, Barkley had 31 points, including a steal and layup with 84 seconds left that clinched the win, plus 20 rebounds and nine assists.

New Jersey 115, New York 105--Mike McGee scored eight of his 18 points during a 17-0 run in the opening minutes at East Rutherford, N.J., and the Nets went on to end their four-game losing streak.

Chris Morris had 29 points and 15 rebounds for the Nets, who have won only two of their last 16 games and have been over 100 only three times in that span.

The Knicks still lead the East by 5 1/2 games, but they are no longer a dominant team.

Dallas 115, Sacramento 102--The Mavericks, in their desperate bid to save a spot in the playoffs, are beating the weak teams at home. Derek Harper got 34 points, including the last 12 the Mavericks scored.

Portland 113, Boston 100--Kevin Duckworth scored 17 of his 28 points in the first half at Portland to help build a big lead, and the Trail Blazers went on to beat the Celtics.

The Celtics had won three straight times in Portland.

By winning, the Trail Blazers remained a game ahead of Dallas in the battle for the final playoff spot in the West, while the Celtics are in danger of losing the seventh spot in the East.