Heat Streak Hits Six as Wizards Tumble

The warmup act, Tim Hardaway vs. Mitch Richmond, was quite a show by itself. The feature finale, the muscle of the Miami Heat’s Alonzo Mourning vs. the Washington Wizards’ center-by-committee, was another knockout.

In typical Miami rough-and-tumble fashion, Mourning took over in the second half against the team he always seems to dominate. He had 29 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots, including two baskets and a block at the end of the third quarter that keyed the decisive 22-4 run, as the Heat extended its winning streak to six games with a 96-80 victory over the Wizards at Washington.

“I feel comfortable here,” said Mourning, a Georgetown graduate who has averaged 26 points in 20 regular-season games against the Wizards. “This is a great place to play. I’m not sure why I seem to do well against the Wizards. It just happens that way.”

Hardaway, who put on a great shooting duel with Richmond as the game seesawed much of the third quarter, added 20 points and six assists. The Heat, starting a four-game trip, has won every game by 10 or more points during its winning streak, and has held all six opponents to fewer than 85 points.

“Defense has been the sole reason for our success,” Miami Coach Pat Riley said. “Alonzo feels [at] home here. I think that motivates him. Plus, he’s just playing very well right now. He gets hammered. If you’re watching the same game I am, you can see that it’s out of hand.”

Mourning agreed, calling it the “WWF out there,” but it helped that he was bumping his way through the paint against a team without a true center. Terry Davis and Ben Wallace gritted it out, but they were no match for the four-time all-star.

Houston 98, Seattle 86--Rookie Cuttino Mobley scored 13 of his career-high 19 points for the Rockets in a tense fourth quarter at Houston.

The SuperSonics, who started the season 5-0, have lost three of their last five games.

The Rockets also got 19 points each from Hakeem Olajuwon and Scottie Pippen.

Milwaukee 90, Chicago 88--Glenn Robinson’s dunk with four seconds to play sealed the victory for the Bucks at Chicago.

Detroit 106, Toronto 80--Joe Dumars, who sat out four games because of a strained hamstring, returned to the Piston lineup and had 16 points and five assists at Auburn Hills, Mich.

New York 82, New Jersey 74--Patrick Ewing had 20 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocked shots for the Knicks at New York.

Dallas 89, Atlanta 85--Michael Finley scored six points in the final 81 seconds for the Mavericks at Dallas.

Around the league

Charlotte Hornet reserve guard B.J. Armstrong will be sidelined for at least two weeks because of a degenerative condition in his right knee.