NBA ROUNDUP : Golden State Road Warriors Win, 127-119

Coach Don Nelson of the Golden State Warriors drew considerable criticism for breaking up his hot scoring trio when he traded Mitch Richmond to Sacramento.

Last season, the threesome of Richmond, Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin posted the highest average for any three players on any NBA team in history, 72.5 points per game.

They made the Warriors one of the most improved teams in the West.

Nelson must have known what he was doing. The Warriors, whose major drawback last season was an inability to win on the road, are off to their best start in years.

Mullin scored 38 points Saturday night at Landover, Md., and brought the Warriors from behind to a 127-119 victory over the Washington Bullets.

The Warriors are 5-1 and have won four of the five games on the road. Last season they were 14-27 away from home.

With the departure of Richmond, Sarunas Marciulionis, the 6-foot-5, third-year guard from Lithuania, has a chance to play more. He led the late rally against the Bullets.

Marciulionis scored 11 of his 29 points in the last quarter when the speedy Warriors wore down the Bullets. Washington built an 11-point margin by the middle of the third quarter.

After the Warriors lost their first game Friday night at Philadelphia, Nelson made a change in his lineup. He started 6-foot-8 Billy Owens at shooting guard and brought Marciulionis off the bench.

Owens (one for eight) didn’t fill his role, and the Warriors fell behind early. But Marciulionis did his job.

“Sarunas gives me all sorts of flexibility coming off the bench,” Nelson said. “He really provides us with a spark. I can put him in there confident that not only will we stay even, but go ahead. I think I’ll keep him our sixth man.”

Owens, who grabbed eight rebounds in 19 minutes, wasn’t too concerned about his shooting.

“Right now I’m a bit heavy,” he said. “Once I get down to the right weight, hopefully, my production will increase.”

Detroit 110, New Jersey 100--Kenny Anderson’s professional debut at East Rutherford, N.J., wasn’t too bad for a player after only one practice session.

In 24 minutes, the 6-2 guard, who signed a five-year contract for $14.5 million Thursday, had seven points and three assists. He helped the Nets stay close for most of three quarters.

But he also brought out the best in Isiah Thomas, who started the season quietly.

Thomas gave Anderson a lesson in playing the backcourt. Thomas had 24 points and eight assists and teamed with Joe Dumars to knock the Nets out.

Anderson, who left Georgia Tech after his sophomore season, recently turned 21. He impressed his coach.

“I’m satisfied,” Bill Fitch said. “That’s a difficult thing for a coach to say. But I am sure I am going to be more impressed the longer he is here.”

Derrick Coleman, who had 25 points and 12 rebounds, gave the Nets a 71-70 lead. But Dumars, who had 25 points, and Thomas led a 15-7 spurt that put Detroit (3-1) in command.

New York 118, Charlotte 113--Patrick Ewing gladdened the heart of Coach Pat Riley when he took charge in the closing minutes at New York.

The Hornets, who trailed most of the game, took a 112-108 lead with four minutes to play. But Ewing scored six points and the Knicks outscored the visitors, 10-1, to pull out their third victory in a row.

Gerald Wilkins had 28 points for the Knicks and John Starks was again a factor off the bench. Starks scored 30 points Thursday night and came right back with 20 more.

Chicago 107, Orlando 76--The Magic did a good job of holding Michael Jordan in check and stayed close to the Bulls for a half at Chicago.

The Bulls led, 54-50, early in the third quarter before putting heavy defensive pressure on the young Magic. While the Magic was throwing the ball away and taking poor shots, Chicago went on a 22-6 run that broke the game open.

Jordan had 27 points, nine assists, four steals and five rebounds.

Orlando shot only 32.9% from the field, its starting lineup going 22 for 61.

The Bulls held the Magic to 32 points in the second half.

Atlanta 97, Miami 93--The Hawks built a 54-33 halftime lead at Atlanta, then started coasting. It almost cost them.

The Heat rallied and forged ahead, 93-92, on a 10-foot jump shot by Glen Rice with 47 seconds to play.

Dominique Wilkins, who had 34 points, scored with 35 seconds left, and Rumeal Robinson added two free throws for the Hawks.

Houston 96, Phoenix 95--Negele Knight missed a 15-footer at the buzzer at Houston and the Suns’ furious rally fell short.

The Rockets won, even though they failed to score in the final two minutes and guard Kenny Smith lost the ball with 15 seconds left.

With 2:14 to play, Hakeem Olajuwon scored to give the Rockets a 96-91 lead. Dan Majerle scored the next four points to rally the Suns.

Olajuwon had 20 points and 15 rebounds and Otis Thorpe added 24 points and 11 rebounds. Majerle scored 28 points for the Suns.

Milwaukee 111, Dallas 95--Most people thought Moses Malone, 36, was washed up after 17 seasons as a pro.

But he fits right in with the Bucks’ slowdown offense.

Malone helped the Bucks to a 30-19 lead and the Mavericks never recovered. Malone had 11 of his 23 points and six of his 11 rebounds in the first quarter.

Seattle 118, Indiana 111--Ricky Pierce scored 13 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter at Seattle and the SuperSonics held off the Pacers.

Seattle had a 110-109 lead before Pierce hit a jump shot with 78 seconds left for the key basket in the stretch.

Minnesota 84, Sacramento 80--A tough defense held the Kings to 35 points in the second half at Sacramento and the Timberwolves became the last NBA team to get a victory.

The Kings (1-3) are tied with the Lakers for last place in the Pacific Division.