Lewis Is Mr. Clutch for Celtics

When the Boston Celtics needed help down the stretch they got the ball to the right man. No, not Larry Bird.

With Bird shooting poorly, the Celtics turned to Reggie Lewis, who responded with a career-high 34 points Sunday in Boston’s 101-94 victory over the New York Knicks.

“The guy who hurt us is the guy we wanted to hurt us,” said New York coach Stu Jackson, more concerned about Boston’s inside trio of Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish.

Lewis got six of his points after the score was tied at 91 as the Celtics stretched their winning streak to six games, their longest of the season. New York lost its 24th straight game in Boston since its last victory Feb. 29, 1984.

Bird made just 5-of-22 shots but finished with 17 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists.

“I know when the ball goes low to Kevin or Robert there is going to be a double-team so I just move to find the open spot and look for the pass,” Lewis said. “I saw that the other guys were not hitting their shots but I didn’t try to take control of the offense. I just took my shots.”

Lewis made 12-of-18 shots, including his only 3-pointer, and all nine free throws. He had five rebounds, two assists and no turnovers in 40 minutes. The other Celtics made only 34 percent of their shots.

“We didn’t overlook him,” New York’s Gerald Wilkins said, “but we didn’t expect him to score 34 points.”

The Celtics (49-29) moved within 1 1/2 games of Atlantic Division leader Philadelphia (51-28). They meet next Sunday in Philadelphia on the final day of the regular season.

“This win enables us to keep the pressure on Philly so that the final game will mean something,” McHale said.

Boston would win the division crown with victories in its four remaining games, two against Chicago and one each against Orlando and the 76ers.

The 76ers would be division champs with victories in two of its last three games against Indiana, Detroit and Boston. The division runnerup probably will play the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs.

New York was led by Patrick Ewing’s 25 points and six blocks and Maurice Cheeks’ 20 points. Parish had 25 points and 14 rebounds for Boston.

Ewing tied the game at 91 on a free throw with 2:28 left. Lewis sank a 15-foot jumper with 2:07 left, making the score 93-91 and giving Boston the lead for good.

Ewing missed the next shot, and Lewis followed with two free throws with 1:41 to go. Cheeks’ long jumper and Lewis’ two foul shots kept the lead at four with 1:06 to play.

Ewing again made a free throw with 54 seconds left, cutting the lead to 97-94. After Trent Tucker slapped the ball out of bounds off Bird’s knee with 34 seconds left, Cheeks missed a jumper from the foul line, his only miss in 11 shots.

Kiki Vandeweghe then fouled Dennis Johnson with 18 seconds to go, and Johnson made two free throws for his only points. Four seconds later, Bird stole the ball and, with seven seconds to go, he hit two free throws.

“Down the stretch, I was impressed with our solid team defense,” Celtics coach Jimmy Rodgers said.

Boston outrebounded New York 54-37. The absence of injured Knicks forward Charles Oakley was evident in New York’s total of five offensive rebounds. Parish had five himself.

“Offensive rebounding often is an effort category,” Jackson said, “but even though we tried, we couldn’t come away with them.”

Boston outscored New York 20-12 in the second quarter and took a 51-40 halftime lead.

But New York, led by nine points each from Ewing and Johnny Newman, held a 33-18 third-quarter advantage and led 73-69 going into the fourth period. Bird missed all five of his shots in that period, bringing his shooting for the game to 3-of-17.

Boston’s biggest lead was 53-40. Newman’s layup with 2:38 left in the third quarter gave New York its first lead, 64-62.

With the Celtics trailing 83-80, Bird tied the game with a 3-pointer with 6:15 left. Kenny Walker’s foul shot put New York ahead 84-83, and the lead changed hands on each of the next seven scoring plays. The last points of that stretch were two free throws by Parish that gave Boston a 91-90 lead.