Ewing: ‘I Need To Be Go-To Guy’

Patrick Ewing enjoys games like the one he had Saturday night, when the ball comes to him early and often. For the first time this season, he reached the 40-point mark as the Knicks overcame the Toronto Raptors 103-91.

It was a vintage performance for Ewing - 40 points, 9 rebounds, and 15-for-19 shooting. And it was almost expected, coming off a subpar performance Friday night, when Ewing was outplayed by Shaquille O’Neal in New York’s dreadful 111-90 loss.

“Great players seldom have two poor games in a row,” Don Nelson said of Ewing.

But in Nelson’s system, Ewing does not get the ball as regularly as he did playing for Pat Riley. It has been an adjustment for Ewing, one which he has accepted, but with caution. “I want the ball in pressure situations,” Ewing said. “I think I need to be the go-to guy for this team to be successful.”

It will be interesting to see how New York’s offense evolves as the season continues. All five starters are averaging in double figures, which is the kind of balance that the Knicks want. But when the game is on the line, Ewing hopes he is not forgotten.

“Patrick came back with vengeance,” said Derek Harper of Saturday night’s performance. “You’re going to have nights in this league when you’re outplayed. That’s just part of this league. But it can motivate you.”

Praise for Stoudamire

The Knicks got their first look at the Toronto rookie point guard Damon Stoudamire on Saturday. They were impressed.

“He’s a big-time player,” said John Starks of Stoudamire, after he finished with 25 points and 8 assists on 10-for-16 shooting. “He’s a good leader for them out there and he makes things happen. He’s going to be great.”

As a rookie playing for an expansion team, Stoudamire is third in the National Basketball Association in assists (9.0 a game), and fourth in the league in minutes played.

“He always plays hard, and with heart,” said Brendan Malone, Toronto’s coach. “I wish we had 12 others like them.”

By the second half, the Knicks were double-teaming Stoudamire at midcourt to take the ball out of his hands. Stoudamire has drawn that kind of defensive attention often this season. He has been too quick for most point guards to handle one on one, and the Raptors (8-20) do not have many other consistent offensive threats.

Bradley confronts Sixers

It was a good game for both Shawn Bradley and his New Jersey teammates on Saturday night as he made his first start as a Net in a game against his old team, Philadelphia.

Bradley hit all six of his shots and delivered 13 points and 7 blocks in 21 minutes and the Nets broke a five-game losing streak with a 98-85 victory. P.J. Brown led New Jersey with 18 points, while Kenny Anderson added 15, along with 8 assists.

This was the first time Bradley had faced the 76ers since he was sent to New Jersey on Nov. 30 in a trade that brought Derrick Coleman to Philadelphia.

While Bradley played encouragingly Saturday night, Coleman was a no-show. He has not played since severely spraining his right ankle in his third game with Philadelphia.