NBA ROUNDUP : Celtics, 76ers Make It Just Like Old Times

The Atlantic Division, which not so long ago seemed to be a domain ruled by the New York Knicks, is back on familiar ground.

As it has been most of the years there have been four divisions, the Atlantic is once again a battle between the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers.

The Knicks, who won it last season and dominated it most of this one, are still in contention. But on top of their other problems, they learned Charles Oakley, their power forward, is out for the rest of the season. The slumping Knicks are in trouble.

With Larry Bird playing as well as he did before Achilles’ tendon problems all but wiped out his 1988-89 season, the Celtics seem ready to challenge the 76ers.

Bird had his second consecutive triple-double Wednesday night at Boston and the Celtics romped to their third victory in a row, beating Cleveland, 123-114.

The 76ers also won, as expected at home against Miami, and lead the Celtics by 1 1/2 games. But this is not the same Boston team that struggled through the first couple months.

Bird had been playing well but shooting poorly. His shooting touch came back recently and it has given the whole team a lift.

The 6-9 forward was 11 for 16, had 25 points, 16 assists and 10 rebounds to make sure the Cavaliers’ winning streak ended at five games. Bird made his first seven shots and the Cavaliers fell behind in a hurry.

Since Bird’s touch returned, the Celtics have won five of six. At the same time, the Celtics put veteran Kevin McHale back into the starting lineup and he has reached back for something extra, too.

The Celtics are playing the way they did throughout the ‘80s when they won all but one Atlantic title. One problem: They have two games left with the 76ers and both are at Philadelphia.

“Larry initiates 85 to 90% of our offense. He opens up everything,” McHale said. “When he was shooting poorly, we struggled. Now, he has given us all confidence. They have to double up on him, so someone’s always open. It’s fun again.”

Philadelphia 118, Miami 97--It was a night for Charles Barkley to take it easy at Philadelphia.

The Heat was without center Rony Seikaly, who has a virus, and Miami never presented a real threat.

Barkley played only 34 minutes and mostly watched as Hersey Hawkins and others did the work.

Hawkins scored 12 of his 25 points in the third quarter, which ended with the 76ers coasting, 84-73. The Heat is only 6-28 on the road this season.

Indiana 112, Milwaukee 96--A few days ago, the Pacers were in a terrible slump and were in danger of dropping out of playoff contention. They couldn’t even win at home.

But Tuesday night at Miami, the Pacers played their best game in a month. They followed that up with an even better performance against the Bucks at Indianapolis and ended their three-game home losing streak.

The Pacers made their first 13 shots and the Bucks were never in the game. The front line of Detlef Schrempf, Chuck Person and Rik Smits accounted for 78 points, making 35 of 48 shots from the field.

The Pacers (33-34) are seventh in the East. To make the playoffs, they must finish ahead of either Atlanta (31-35) or Cleveland (30-35).

Chicago 99, Atlanta 89--This loss at home was a blow to the Hawks’ playoff hopes.

The Hawks led, 78-73, entering the fourth quarter, and were still even with five minutes to play. But Michael Jordan (27 points), still hampered by a jammed thumb, made two free throws and a jumper to give the Bulls the lead for good.

Charlotte 115, Phoenix 114--Dell Curry scored five of his 28 points in overtime and the Hornets shocked the Suns. It was only the third win in 33 road games for the Hornets, but their second in the last three on this trip.

The Suns had won 19 consecutive home games before losing to San Antonio Monday night. They now have a 27-7 record at home.

Obviously, they miss guard Jeff Hornacek and swingman Dan Majerle, both lost for the rest of the season because of injuries.

Tom Chambers, playing despite a hamstring injury, had 36 points for the Suns.

Washington 136, New Jersey 106--Ledell Eackles, filling in for injured Jeff Malone, scored a career-high 40 points at Landover, Md., and the Bullets handed the Nets their 21st defeat in a row on the road. The Bullets ended a four-game losing streak.

Sacramento 90, Minnesota 84--Rodney McCray was eight for eight from the field and the Kings handed the Timberwolves their 21st consecutive loss on the road.

Rookie Pervis Ellison had his best game for the Kings, scoring 18 points.