Rodman Ejected From Dallas Loss

Dennis Rodman was ejected again Thursday night--and lingered again.

The former Laker was tossed for the second time in his five games with the Dallas Mavericks, this time following another go-round with longtime sparring partner Karl Malone as the Utah Jazz cruised to a 92-85 victory at Dallas.

Rodman was ejected with 4:02 to play. The Jazz had to wait a bit, though, because Rodman once again took his time leaving the court after his second technical.

Rodman had a slow exit from his previous ejection and it led to a one-game suspension. He considers the league out to get him, so he probably wouldn’t be surprised if it happened again.

“David Stern and Rod Thorn, they need to get their . . . kicked. It’s ridiculous. Just let Dennis Rodman play,” he said. “I’m not throwing cheap blows. I’m not out there trying to kill anybody.”

Rodman and Malone got a double foul for tripping each other early in the third quarter. Soon after, Rodman got a technical for arguing an illegal defense.

Malone was running up the court away from the ball when he and Rodman got tangled again in the fourth quarter. Rodman was called for a foul and whatever he said to the official who called it earned him his second technical.

“The referees have got to understand, people are not here to see them,” Rodman said. “I do my thing. I don’t take any cheap blows. I try to help the team win. I can’t do that if I’m getting kicked out.

“It’s unfair to me.”

Portland 111, Orlando 92--Damon Stoudamire scored a season-high 30 points at Portland as the Trail Blazers pushed their winning streak to 10 games.

Stoudamire made 13 of 18 shots, and his point total was an individual season high for the balanced Trail Blazers. Steve Smith had the previous high of 27 against the Lakers on Jan. 22.

San Antonio 72, Charlotte 70--Terry Porter’s 22-foot shot with three-tenths of a second to play gave the Spurs a victory at Charlotte, N.C., in a game in which Tim Duncan struggled.

Duncan, listed as questionable because of a lower abdominal strain, started his 186th consecutive game and played 39 minutes, but he was far from his usual dominating inside presence.

He missed nine consecutive shots in the first half on the way to a six-for-23 outing. Duncan still wound up with 15 points and 12 rebounds, and David Robinson had 16 points and 10 rebounds as the Spurs won for the first time in six road games this season against Central Division teams.

Charlotte’s Derrick Coleman had 19 points and a season-high 20 rebounds.

Phoenix 92, Washington 83--Tom Gugliotta scored 20 points and Jason Kidd had nine points, nine assists and seven rebounds at Washington as the Suns won their eighth in a row.

Gugliotta, who played for the then-Washington Bullets for two-plus seasons before being traded to the Golden State Warriors midway through the 1994-95 season, scored 10 points in the first quarter as the Suns made 64% of their shots.

Indiana 100, Chicago 83--Jalen Rose scored 22 points and the Pacers overcame a season-high 38 points from rookie Elton Brand at Indianapolis.

Six players scored in double figures for the Pacers, who have won 21 consecutive home games and are a league-best 24-2 at Indianapolis.

Reserves Austin Croshere and Derrick McKey made crucial contributions, Croshere with 17 points and eight rebounds. McKey scored a season-high 14 points and matched his season high of 10 rebounds.

Denver 106, Houston 97--Nick Van Exel scored 21 of his 23 points in the first half as the Nuggets built a big early lead and coasted at Houston.

Van Exel made nine of 17 shots in the first half as the Nuggets opened a 61-37 lead. The Rockets never got closer than nine points in the second half.

Boston 101, Vancouver 77--Paul Pierce scored 25 points as the Celtics never trailed at Vancouver.

The Celtics, who play the Lakers tonight in Staples Center, made 60% of their shots in the first half, opening a 52-34 lead.

Antoine Walker scored 24 points for the Celtics and Kenny Anderson scored 22.