NBA ROUNDUP : Suns Defeat Charitable Heat

Yes, that was Charles Barkley throwing away a pass and committing a silly foul for the Phoenix Suns in the final seconds of a close game Saturday.

But once again, it was the Suns’ opponents who looked dumb. The Miami Heat missed three of its four free throws, allowing the Suns to escape with a 122-118 victory and a 5-0 record on their just-completed trip.

“We won on our free throw defense,” said Paul Westphal, Phoenix coach, jokingly. “We work on that a lot.”

Westphal can afford to laugh. Led by Barkley’s 39 points, the Suns won their seventh consecutive game and have an NBA-best 14-4 record.

The Suns led, 120-117, when Barkley threw away an inbounds pass and then fouled Grant Long, who made only the first of two from the free-throw line. Then Miami’s Willie Burton missed two free throws, and Danny Ainge made a pair for Phoenix.

“Everything was so perfect and we missed the free throws,” Burton said. “Maybe it’s a hex.”

New York 95, Detroit 88--Patrick Ewing and Charles Smith scored 21 points apiece as the Knicks overcame a 16-point deficit at New York to end the Pistons’ five-game winning streak.

The Knicks, who trailed by 16 in the first half, took the lead for the first time--and for good--with 7:41 to play on John Starks’ three-pointer.

The Knicks, who have won eight of 11 games, outscored the Pistons, 32-16, in the final quarter.

“Just a great comeback,” Knick Coach Pat Riley said. “We had a great run in the fourth quarter with a lot of great defensive plays, so it was a character win. The guys really dug down and won a game that for all intents and purposes they should have lost.”

Joe Dumars led Detroit with 19 points, while Isiah Thomas, with two steals, tied Magic Johnson for third place on the NBA career steals list. Thomas has 1,699 steals.

Houston 104, Minnesota 87--Hakeem Olajuwon scored 25 points and Scott Brooks came back to haunt his former Timberwolves’ teammates at Minneapolis.

Chuck Person scored 13 of his 28 points in the third quarter for the Timberwolves, helping Minnesota cut the deficit to 74-68. Then Brooks, traded to Houston in the off-season, sparked a game-deciding 18-7 run to start the fourth quarter, leading to the Rockets fourth consecutive victory.

Houston played hard against the Timberwolves despite coming off Friday’s emotional 110-96 victory at Chicago.

“A lot of teams might have let down,” Brooks said. “That’s one of the great things about playing for a great team like this.”

Olajuwon said Brooks, who had five points, has made “a big difference to our team by adding a little spark.”

San Antonio 113, Dallas 91--David Robinson’s 22 points helped the Spurs break open a close game in the third quarter at Dallas, handing the Mavericks their 12th consecutive loss. The Mavericks have lost each of those games by at least 12 points.

The Spurs, winning for only the third time in 10 road games, broke from the Mavericks with a 27-9 run in the first 10 minutes of the second half, after leading, 55-53, at halftime. J.R. Reid, acquired by the Spurs from the Charlotte Hornets last Wednesday, had 15 points and a career-high 15 rebounds in his second game with his new team.

Spur Coach Jerry Tarkanian said he worried about his team’s outlook against the Mavericks, and was even more worried after one half.

“This was a prime game for us to lose,” Tarkanian said. “I worked for two days to get our guys ready and then we just came out lethargic. But in the second half, we tightened it up and played a lot better defensively.

“I’m sure the guys looked at the record and that affected them some. But I think Dallas is a team that will beat someone soon, as long as it’s not us.”

Chicago 95, New Jersey 89--Michael Jordan scored 38 points as the Bulls ended the Nets four-game road winning streak at Chicago.

The loss was only the second in nine games for the Nets, 6-4 on the road. New Jersey has not won at Chicago Stadium since January, 1986. Drazen Petrovic led New Jersey with 25 points and Chris Morris scored 20.

Despite the victory, Jordan said, “We’re struggling. Ain’t like we’re a big secret now. We have to elevate our game, and we haven’t been able to do that.”

Utah 108, Milwaukee 82--Karl Malone had 27 points and 14 rebounds at Salt Lake City as the Jazz won for the sixth time in seven games. Frank Brickowski had 19 points and Blue Edwards 18 for the Bucks, who have lost six consecutive games after winning 10 of their first 13 games to start the season.

John Stockton, questionable for the game because of a virus, had 14 points and nine assists for the Jazz.

Cleveland 97, Seattle 93--Mark Price scored seven of his career-high 39 points in the final 1:11 at Richfield, Ohio, as the Cavaliers ended a four-game losing streak. Consecutive three-pointers by Price and Craig Ehlo extended the Cavaliers’ 87-86 lead to 93-86 with 38 seconds to play. The SuperSonics then were forced to foul, and Price clinched the victory by making four foul shots in the last 11 seconds. Seattle, finishing a 1-3 trip, was led by Shawn Kemp with 22 points and 16 rebounds.

Charlotte 109, Denver 100--Larry Johnson, Kendall Gill and Alonzo Mourning scored 20 points apiece at Charlotte as the Hornets dealt the Nuggets their fourth consecutive loss and ninth road defeat in 10 games.

LaPhonso Ellis’ tap-in midway through the fourth quarter pulled the Nuggets to within 86-83 before the Hornets responded with an 8-0 run, the last two points on Johnson’s dunk for a 94-83 lead with 4:21 to play. Reggie Williams led Denver with 21 points. Ellis had 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Philadelphia 103, Atlanta 96--Clarence Weatherspoon, a rookie, had a career-high 16 rebounds and Hersey Hawkins scored 31 points, leading the 76ers at Atlanta.

The 76ers, outrebounded in nine of their last 10 games, had a 52-47 lead thanks to Weatherspoon and Andrew Lang, who had 12 rebounds.

Dominique Wilkins led Atlanta with 29 points, and Mookie Blaylock had a season-high 26, one short of his career high.

Golden State 124, Sacramento 120--The Warriors overcome a 65-61 halftime deficit by outscoring the Kings, 33-24, in the third quarter and never trailed again at Sacramento. Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin scored 31 points each to lead Golden State, which won its second consecutive game while attempting to rebound from a slow start. Mitch Richmond scored 27 and Lionel Simmons added 24 for the Kings, who have lost four consecutive games after their fast start.