NBA ROUNDUP : Olajuwon Overwhelms Spurs

All David Robinson could do was congratulate Hakeem Olajuwon on Saturday night.

Olajuwon had 45 points and 14 rebounds, made 13 of 13 free throws and scored 17 points during two 10-0 surges that carried the Houston Rockets to a 98-88 victory over San Antonio at Houston, their fifth victory in a row over the Spurs.

“No center has ever played like that against me when I felt good,” Robinson said. “I can’t say anything but take my hat off to him.”

Robinson congratulated Olajuwon near the end of the game as they lined up for a free throw.

“I told him ‘Man, you were great,’ ” Robinson said. “He said the same thing he always says, ‘Lucky, I guess.’ ”

The victory gave the Rockets a four-game lead over the Spurs in their bid for the Midwest Division title with eight games to play.

“He bothers my shot so much,” Olajuwon said of Robinson. “When you score points against him, it means more. To me, he’s the best defensive player in the league.”

Cleveland 100, New Jersey 99--Danny Ferry’s 18-foot jumper at the buzzer at East Rutherford, N.J., gave the Cavaliers their fourth consecutive victory.

Ferry, who scored a season-high 18 points, took a pass from Mark Price and capped a fourth quarter that had 10 ties and 10 lead changes. The Nets, who have lost a season-high five consecutive games, took a 99-98 lead with 1:39 remaining on two free throws by Derrick Coleman, who led the Nets with 23 points.

Brad Daugherty led the Cavaliers with 23 points, including 11 during the fourth quarter.

Bernard King scored a season-high 22 points and Rumeal Robinson had his first career triple-double with 17 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for the Nets.

Chicago 92, Indianapolis 87--B.J. Armstrong scored 27 points and Michael Jordan had 10 of his 25 during the fourth quarter to lead the Bulls past Indiana at Indianapolis.

The Bulls, who swept the season series with the Pacers, took a 13-point lead during the third quarter and then held off Indiana in the final minutes.

The victory left the Bulls half a game behind first-place New York in the Eastern Conference standings.

Milwaukee 108, Orlando 97--Blue Edwards scored 12 consecutive points during the fourth quarter, leading the Bucks over the Magic at Milwaukee.

Shaquille O’Neal finished with 20 points and 16 rebounds, but was limited because of foul trouble as the Magic fell into 10th place in the Eastern Conference.

The Bucks, with Anthony Avent scoring eight points, used a 16-4 surge in the first 6:33 of the fourth quarter to take a 94-83 lead. Edwards scored the final two baskets of the spurt and then scored the Bucks’ next eight points as they extended the margin to 102-89.

Atlanta 118, Charlotte 105--Dominique Wilkins and Kevin Willis scored 32 points each at Charlotte as the Atlanta Hawks strengthened their hold on sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

The Hawks’ forwards outscored Hornet starting forwards Larry Johnson and Johnny Newman, 64-21.

Willis also had 13 rebounds to help Atlanta outrebound Charlotte, 51-36.

Leading, 104-87, Atlanta failed to score on six consecutive possessions while the Hornets had 12 consecutive points. A dunk by Johnson made the score 104-99 with 1:48 to play.

But Wilkins sealed the victory with a dunk and two free throws, putting Atlanta ahead, 109-99, with 1:00 to go.

Miami 119, Philadelphia 114--Bimbo Coles scored 11 of his 20 points during the fourth quarter and Miami overcame a season-high 40 points by Hersey Hawkins at Miami.

A layup by Coles gave the Heat a 117-114 lead with 48 seconds to play and Grant Long, who scored 22 points, made two free throws at the 21-second mark to conclude the scoring.

Hawkins tied a 76er record with six three-pointers, including four during the third period, and Philadelphia set a franchise mark with 10 three-pointers.

For the first time this season, four Miami players scored at least 20 points. Glen Rice had 24 and Rony Seikaly 23 to join Coles and Long.

Golden State 100, Dallas 94--Latrell Sprewell scored 26 points and Victor Alexander added 16 as the Warriors beat the Mavericks at Oakland.

The Warriors took a 14-point halftime lead, then held on despite scoring only 42 points during the second half.