NBA PLAYOFF ROUNDUP : Ewing’s Late Shot Cuts Down Pacers

Patrick Ewing, determined to give the New York Knicks their first NBA championship since 1973, had an answer Friday night for an Indiana team determined to win its first playoff series.

Ewing’s 14-foot jumper with 10 seconds to play short-circuited the Pacers’ second-half rally and gave the Knicks a 107-104 victory at New York in Game 1 of a playoff series between the No. 1- and No. 8-seeded teams in the Eastern Conference.

“I don’t even remember what play we ran,” Ewing said. “They just gave me the ball and I shot it.”

After Ewing’s basket made it 106-104, he forced Reggie Miller out of bounds with 5.6 seconds to play. Ewing then hit one of two free throws to finish with 25 points.

Miller missed a desperation three-point shot at the buzzer, ending the Pacers’ chance for an upset at Madison Square Garden, where the Knicks have won 21 consecutive games.

Miller scored 14 of his 32 points during the fourth quarter and tied an NBA playoff record by making all 17 of his free throws.

Charles Smith scored 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting and Doc Rivers score 19 on eight-of-12 shooting for the Knicks, whose 60-22 regular-season record was the best in the conference and matched the best in franchise history.

Vern Fleming scored 19 points and Rik Smits 15 for Indiana, which is 0-5 in NBA playoff series in team history.

Chicago 114, Atlanta 90--Michael Jordan scored 35 points and Bill Cartwright and B.J. Armstrong led a 17-4 run at the start of the second half, leading the two-time champions to the victory at Atlanta.

Controlling the tempo and outrebounding the Hawks, the Bulls asserted themselves early as Jordan scored 18 points during the first quarter to put Chicago ahead to stay.

With the Bulls leading, 62-48, at halftime, Cartwright and Armstrong combined for 13 of the Bulls’ points during their the second-half that put Chicago ahead, 79-52. It was 95-65 after three quarters.

Cartwright, who averaged 5.6 points in an injury-plagued season, finished with 14, as did Armstrong.

Dominique Wilkins led Atlanta with 24 points and Mookie Blaylock scored 15.

Seattle 99, Utah 85--Shawn Kemp scored a playoff career-best 29 points and pulled down 17 rebounds to lead the SuperSonics to the victory at Seattle.

The 6-foot-10 Kemp made 10 of 17 shots, all nine of his free throws, took 11 offensive rebounds and blocked three shots. His previous playoff career best was 28 points on April 23, 1992, during a first-round victory over Golden State.

Malone tried to keep Utah in the game, finishing with 24 points and 13 rebounds.