NBA ROUNDUP : With Bird Out, McHale and Shaw Carry Celtics Over the Bucks

The Boston Celtics are playing so well, they are winning without Larry Bird.

In a matchup of the two surprise teams in the East, the Celtics beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 110-102, Wednesday night at Boston.

It was the Celtics’ 17th consecutive victory at home and gave them a 2-0 record without their star forward.

Kevin McHale, who had been coming off the bench until Bird missed Tuesday night’s game, had 30 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.

“We missed Larry, especially in the second half,” McHale said. “He can single-handedly win a game.”

Bird, who is wearing a “flexion brace,” is suffering from an inflamed nerve root and a swollen disk in the back that will sideline him indefinitely.

Dave Gavitt, the Celtics’ senior executive vice president, said that Bird would not be rushed back into action. “He will not play until everybody is certain he is ready,” he said.

A year ago when the Celtics were 20-13 after 33 games, they could not win when Bird was out of the lineup. The return of Brian Shaw after a season in Italy is one of the big reasons for the resurgence of the Celtics.

Shaw scored seven of his 17 points in the last quarter after the Bucks, leaders of the Central Division despite poor play on the road, cut Boston’s lead to 84-82 after three quarters.

The Celtics had built a 28-point lead in the first half, when McHale scored 23 of his points.

Chicago 107, Philadelphia 99--It seems that Michael Jordan is always reaching a milestone in Philadelphia. He scored his 5,000th NBA point at the Spectrum and also his 10,000th.

His 15,000th came in this game in which he scored 40 points and the Bulls, who have won nine of their last 11, moved to within 1 1/2 games of first place in the Central Division.

Jordan reached 15,000 in his 460th game. Only Wilt Chamberlain, who did it in No. 358, reached the mark quicker.

“This meant more,” Jordan said, “because at the other milestones, we lost.”

Dallas 109, Portland 99--Alex English and Rolando Blackman each had 24 points to lead the Mavericks, who led almost the entire game at Dallas.

The Trail Blazers’ shot 41.2% from the field.

It was only the fourth loss in 17 road games for Portland, and its first defeat after 11 victories against Midwest Division opponents.

Phoenix 113, Cleveland 105--The injury-riddled Cavaliers made it a game for more than three quarters at Phoenix but lost for the ninth time in a row.

The Cavaliers led by six points at halftime, but Phoenix moved ahead in the third quarter.

With six minutes left, the Suns had a one-point lead.

But Kevin Johnson took over, getting 10 points in the final 6:42.

Minnesota 111, Orlando 103--Former UCLA guard Pooh Richardson had 30 points and 14 assists at Orlando, Fla., to lead the Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves, the lowest-scoring team in the NBA, set a club record by scoring more than 100 points for the sixth consecutive game.