NBA ROUNDUP : Dallas Wins Fourth Game of Season

With the game on the line and rookie free agent Walter Bond guarding Reggie Miller, the chances for another loss by the Dallas Mavericks seemed good.

But Bond forced Miller to take an off-balance, 12-foot shot that missed with three seconds to play, allowing the Mavericks to end an eight-game losing streak with a 105-104 victory over the Indiana Pacers at Dallas on Friday night.

It was only the fourth victory in 42 games for Dallas, which has the NBA’s worst record.

“Reggie’s an All-Star,” said Maverick guard Derek Harper. “Nine times out of 10, he’s going to get the call. But Walter did a great job denying the ball and forced him into an off-balance shot.”

Bond was aware of the situation. Miller, who entered the game averaging 20.7 points, had already scored 30--including 12 of 13 free throws. Bond knew a foul would probably mean another defeat.

“It was really on my mind, that if there was contact I knew a rookie wasn’t going to get the call,” Bond said. “I denied him the ball as long as I could, but they set some screens for him. But I stayed with him, forced him to his left and luckily, he missed.”

Sean Rooks led Dallas with 26 points, including two key free throws in the final two minutes.

Detlef Schrempf had 22 points and 16 rebounds for the Pacers, who lost their third consecutive game.

Orlando 114, Portland 106--Nick Anderson scored 27 points and Shaquille O’Neal scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Magic scored its first victory ever over the Trail Blazers at Portland.

The Trail Blazers had won their first eight meetings against the Magic, including the first four in Portland. Portland, which trailed most of the way, took the lead early in the fourth quarter, but the Magic regained control with a 12-4 run. Orlando improved to 3-0 on its five-game trip, while the Trail Blazers lost their third consecutive game.

Clyde Drexler led Portland with a game-high 32 points.

New York 108, Miami 105--John Starks made the tying basket and the go-ahead free throw with 23 seconds to play, giving the Knicks a victory over the Heat at Miami.

Patrick Ewing led New York with 26 points as the victory clinched New York Coach Pat Riley’s ninth All-Star coaching berth. Phil Jackson of Chicago, No. 1 in the conference, can’t be the All-Star coach in consecutive years.

Charlotte 118, Milwaukee 111--In his first game since being voted an all-star game starter, Larry Johnson scored 30 points to lead the Hornets at Charlotte.

Charlotte, which won its fourth consecutive game, got 15 points each from Muggsy Bogues and Johnny Newman and 14 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks from rookie center Alonzo Mourning, who played despite a broken left thumb.

The Bucks, who have lost 11 of their last 15 games, were led by rookies Todd Day and Anthony Avent with 22 points apiece.

Washington 138, Golden State 111--Buck Johnson scored 16 of his 20 points as the Bullets opened a 28-point halftime lead and then went on to defeat the Warriors at Washington.

Pervis Ellison scored 20 points and Tom Gugliotta had 17 for the Bullets. Sarunas Marciulionis had 27 points for the Warriors, who had to play the fourth quarter without Chris Mullin, who suffered aggravation of a ligament tear in his right thumb.

Minnesota 112, Houston 105--Doug West scored 33 points, including 10 in a row during a third-quarter surge that carried the Timberwolves at Houston.

The Timberwolves ended the Rockets’ four-game winning streak as West made 14 of 19 shots.

Hakeem Olajuwon scored 28 points to lead the Rockets, but Minnesota held him to one-for-seven shooting during the first half.

Cleveland 109, Detroit 89--Gerald Wilkins scored 22 points and the Cavaliers started the fourth quarter with a 13-2 run to defeat the Pistons at Cleveland.

Brad Daugherty scored 20 points and Larry Nance added 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Cavaliers. Joe Dumars and Terry Mills led Detroit with 24 points each but scored only two points between them during the fourth quarter.

Detroit’s Isiah Thomas had 12 assists and scored nine points, moving past Magic Johnson into 39th place on the NBA’s scoring list with 17,245 points.

Boston 105, Philadelphia 93--Reggie Lewis scored 12 of his 28 points during the fourth quarter and the Celtics capitalized on three 76er turnovers in the last three minutes at Boston.

Hersey Hawkins led Philadelphia with 19 points. Robert Parish, who had 18 points and 14 rebounds for Boston, played his 1,304th game, moving ahead of Elvin Hayes into second place in NBA history behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Denver 116, Sacramento 103--Reggie Williams scored 29 points and Chris Jackson 23 as the Nuggets won their seventh consecutive home game.

The Nuggets, who have won only twice in 22 road games, made 51.7% of their shots. Sacramento was led by Spud Webb with 21 points and Henry James with 20.