Bulls’ Victory Gives Team Its Best Start
NBA
In Atlanta, Scottie Pippen had 30 points, eight rebounds and eight assists Thursday night to lead Chicago to a 127-108 victory over the Atlanta Hawks and give the Bulls their eighth consecutive victory. At 18-2, it’s the best start in the history of the Chicago franchise.
Michael Jordan added 22 points for the Bulls, who never trailed after Pippen broke a 15-15 tie on a dunk from Ron Harper’s pass midway through the opening period.
The Hawks got 17 points each from Steve Smith and Stacey Augmon.
The loss was the seventh in eight games for Atlanta, including five in a row at home and five in a row to the Bulls.
Bulls 127, Hawks 108 CHICAGO (127)
Pippen 12-19 1-2 30, Rodman 2-3 0-0 4, Longley 4-7 2-2 10, Harper 4-8 3-3 11, Jordan 8-16 5-5 22, Kukoc 5-6 4-6 14, Edwards 1-2 1-2 3, Kerr 5-8 0-0 13, Buechler 3-5 0-0 6, Brown 2-4 0-2 4, Simpkins 4-6 2-2 10. Totals 50-84 18-24 127.
ATLANTA (108)
Norman 6-10 0-0 13, Long 6-14 2-3 14, Lang 3-8 1-2 7, Smith 6-10 3-4 17, Blaylock 4-12 0-0 10, Augmon 6-12 5-7 17, Ehlo 4-7 0-0 10, Henderson 4-8 0-0 8, Webb 1-8 0-0 2, Mundt 3-3 2-2 8, Bullard 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 44-94 13-18 108.
Chicago 35 30 28 34 - 127
Atlanta 27 28 20 33 - 108
3-Point goals-Chicago 9-17 (Pippen 5-7, Kerr 3-4, Jordan 1-4, Rodman 0-1, Harper 0-1), Atlanta 7-23 (Ehlo 2-3, Smith 2-4, Blaylock 2-8, Norman 1-4, Bullard 0-1, Webb 0-3). Fouled out- None. Rebounds-Chicago 46 (Rodman 10), Atlanta 49 (Long 10). Assists-Chicago 29 (Pippen, Kukoc 8), Atlanta 22 (Webb 10). Total fouls-Chicago 21, Atlanta 24. Technical-Chicago illegal defense. A-16,378 (16,365).
Nuggets 103, Knicks 94
New York
Don MacLean’s 19 points off the bench sparked Denver’s second-half rally and the Nuggets bounced back from their worst loss of the season to defeat New York.
The victory was Denver’s first at Madison Square Garden since March 31, 1990, and snapped the Knicks’ three-game winning streak.
Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf led Denver with 25 points while Bryant Stith added 17 and Dikembe Mutombo had 16 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks.
Patrick Ewing had 30 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Knicks.
Nuggets-Knicks, Box DENVER (103)
D.Ellis 4-8 2-2 11, Hammonds 3-6 0-0 6, Mutombo 7-15 2-4 16, Abdul-Rauf 10-24 2-2 25, Stith 6-12 5-6 17, MacLean 9-18 1-2 19, Rose 3-7 3-3 9. Totals 42-90 15-19 103.
NEW YORK (94)
Davis 3-6 1-2 9, Mason 7-14 7-9 21, Ewing 14-32 2-2 30, Starks 4-9 0-0 8, Harper 6-12 3-4 16, Grant 1-1 4-4 6, Smith 1-4 2-2 4. Totals 36-78 19-23 94.
Denver 34 21 21 27 - 103
New York 30 28 18 18 - 94
3-Point goals-Denver 4-14 (Abdul-Rauf 3-8, D.Ellis 1-4, Stith 0-2), New York 3-9 (Davis 2-4, Harper 1-3, Ewing 0-1, Starks 0-1). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Denver 55 (Mutombo 13), New York 43 (Mason, Ewing 12). Assists- Denver 22 (Stith 6), New York 17 (Mason 7). Total fouls- Denver 18, New York 19. Technicals-Denver illegal defense 2. A-19,763 (19,763).
Pacers 102, Raptors 100
Toronto
Rik Smits’ 20-foot jumper with 0.5 seconds left boosted Indiana over Toronto.
The winning shot by Smits, who finished with 28 points, came after Toronto had rallied to knot the score at 100 on Damon Stoudamire’s two free throws.
Trailing 85-77 after three quarters, the Pacers began the fourth period with a 16-0 run, led by six consecutive points by Rickey Pierce, who scored all of his 17 points after intermission.
Oliver Miller led the Raptors with 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Tracy Murray had 21 points. INDIANA (102)
McKey 3-6 1-3 8, D.Davis 2-5 3-4 7, Smits 12-20 4-5 28, R.Miller 2-9 7-9 12, Jackson 0-5 3-4 3, Johnson 1-4 0-0 3, A.Davis 6-7 6-8 18, Workman 2-4 0-0 4, Ferrell 1-1 0-0 2, Best 0-1 0-0 0, Pierce 8-12 0-0 17. Totals 37-74 24-33 102.
TORONTO (100)
Anderson 6-9 5-6 20, Pinckney 4-9 4-6 12, O.Miller 8-13 6-6 22, Robertson 3-8 4-4 10, Stoudamire 4-11 4-6 13, Murray 8-17 1-2 21, Tabak 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 34-68 24-30 100.
Indiana 26 27 24 25 - 102
Toronto 32 30 23 15 - 100
3-Point goals-Indiana 4-13 (McKey 1-2, Johnson 1-2, Pierce 1-3, R.Miller 1-4, Jackson 0-1, Best 0-1), Toronto 8-21 (Murray 4-9, Anderson 3-4, Stoudamire 1-5, Pinckney 0-1, Robertson 0-2). Fouled out-Anderson. Rebounds-Indiana 43 (D.Davis 9), Toronto 43 (O.Miller 12). Assists-Indiana 26 (Jackson 10), Toronto 26 (Stoudamire 13). Total fouls-Indiana 22, Toronto 23. Technicals-Robertson. A-NA. (34,215).
Spurs 126, Mavericks 111
Dallas
David Robinson scored 21 first-half points, then Avery Johnson and Sean Elliott balanced San Antonio’s offense in the second half, carrying the Spurs past the Mavericks.
Robinson remained the overwhelming force with 33 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, but the Spurs didn’t get going until Elliott started scoring his 27 and Johnson his 21.
Will Perdue played a big role with 15 rebounds and J.R. Reid had 12 points.
SAN ANTONIO (126)
Elliot 10-21 4-5 27, Perdue 3-8 0-0 6, Robinson 13-17 7-7 33, Johnson 8-12 5-7 21, Del Negro 2-8 4-5 9, Person 3-4 1-2 8, Reid 5-6 2-2 12, Alexander 1-1 0-0 3, Rivers 1-2 0-0 3, Demps 1-1 2-2 4. Totals 47-80 25-30 126.
DALLAS (111)
McCloud 7-14 2-2 20, Jones 6-16 0-0 12, Williams 2-3 1-2 5, Kidd 7-15 1-1 17, Jackson 6-21 5-7 17, Davis 6-8 1-1 13, Dumas 0-6 2-4 2, Harris 7-9 0-0 19, Meyer 3-3 0-0 6. Totals 44-95 12-17 111.
San Antonio 27 31 36 32 - 126
Dallas 32 29 23 27 - 111
3-Point goals-San Antonio 7-11 (Elliott 3-7, Del Negro 1-1, Person 1-1, Alexander 1-1, Rivers 1-1), Dallas 11-20 (Harris 5-5, McCloud 4-8, Kidd 2-4, Dumas 0-1, Jackson 0-2). Fouled out- None. Rebounds-San Antonio 48 (Perdue 15), Dallas 46 (Davis 10). Assists-San Antonio 26 (Johnson 9), Dallas 33 (Kidd 11). Total fouls-San Antonio 20, Dallas 23. Technical- Dallas assistant coach K.Motta. A-17,027 (17,502).
Blazers 116, Hornets 109
Portland
Clifford Robinson scored 16 of his 28 points in a third-quarter Portland comeback, including making 3 of 4 3-pointers, and the Trail Blazers went on to a victory over Charlotte.
Portland’s Chris Dudley had a seasonhigh 19 rebounds, two short of his career best, as the Blazers dominated the boards 54-37.
Rod Strickland had 21 points and a season-high 14 assists, even though he sat out all but 2 minutes of the fourth quarter.
The Blazers have won eight of their last 11. Charlotte fell to 3-11 on the road and 1-2 on their five-game Western road trip.
CHARLOTTE (109)
Burrell 2-9 2-2 7, Johnson 5-16 3-4 13, Zidek 0-2 0-0 0, Rice 10-18 7-9 33, Gill 9-16 5-6 23, Geiger 2-5 0-0 4, Curry 10-18 0-0 27, Sutton 0-1 2-2 2, Parish 0-0 0-0 0, Hancock 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-85 19-23 109.
PORTLAND (116)
Grant 6-15 1-2 13, C.Robinson 9-20 6-8 28, Dudley 3-5 0-2 6, McKie 5-13 3-3 14, Strickland 6-13 9-14 21, Trent 6-8 1-2 13, J.Robinson 0-1 0-0 0, Childress 3-6 0-0 8, Williams 6-9 1-3 13. Totals 44-91 21-34 116.
Charlotte 24 38 20 27 - 109
Portland 25 28 34 29 - 116
3-Point goals-Charlotte 14-27 (Curry 7-11, Rice 6-8, Burrell 1-5, Johnson 0-1, Gill 0-1, Geiger 0-1), Portland 7-13 (C.Robinson 4-5, Childress 2-4, McKie 1-2, Strickland 0-2). Fouled out-Burrell. Rebounds-Charlotte 44 (Geiger 10), Portland 66 (Dudley 19). Assists-Charlotte 18 (Gill 5), Portland 26 (Strickland 14). Total fouls-Charlotte 29, Portland 19. Technical-Trent. A-20,374 (21,401).
Clippers 89, Heat 84
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, trailing an injury-ravaged Miami lineup by 14 points late in the first half, rallied behind Loy Vaught’s 20 points and ended a nine-game losing streak.
Kevin Gamble scored 24 points and rookie Kurt Thomas added 19 in his third start for the Heat, who were down to nine healthy players and missing four starters. The loss was their third in a row and fifth in six games.
MIAMI (84)
Askins 2-6 3-4 9, Thomas 7-16 5-6 19, Ellis 1-3 1-2 3, Coles 7-12 2-2 17, Gamble 8-14 7-7 24, Grandison 0-2 0-0 0, Schayes 0-4 2-2 2, Myers 4-11 2-4 10, Rencher 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-69 22-27 84.
L.A. CLIPPERS (89)
Murray 3-10 1-2 7, Vaught 7-10 6-8 20, Williams 5-9 4-6 14, Richardson 2-5 0-0 5, Sealy 8-12 2-3 19, Dehere 2-3 6-9 10, Piatkowski 1-3 1-2 3, Tower 1-3 1-4 3, Barry 0-1 0-0 0, Outlaw 2-4 4-6 8. Totals 31-60 25-40 89.
Miami 25 21 16 22 - 84
L.A. Clippers 18 20 32 19 - 89
3-Point goals-Miami 4-16 (Askins 2-5, Gamble 1-3, Coles 1-4, Thomas 0-1, Grandison 0-1, Myers 0-2), Los Angeles 2-9 (Richardson 1-2, Sealy 1-2, Piatkowski 0-2, Murray 0-3). Fouled out-Coles, Gamble, Vaught, Williams. Rebounds-Miami 38 (Askins 8), Los Angeles 52 (Vaught, Williams 7). Assists- Miami 12 (Gamble 4), Los Angeles 19 (Richardson 6). Total fouls-Miami 32, Los Angeles 32. Flagrant foul-Coles. A-7,382 (16,021).