Knicks Fight Off Heat To Stay Alive

The Miami-New York series is going to a Game 5, and this year's deciding game will feature fight-related suspensions, too.

Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson became involved in a nasty altercation with only 1.4 seconds left in the Knicks' 90-85 victory in Game 4.

Mourning threw the first punch, and then he and Johnson threw several more. Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy bolted onto the court and grabbed Mourning's leg, holding on even as he was being dragged along the floor.

NBA rules call for an automatic one-game suspension for throwing a punch, so both Mourning and Johnson will be forced to sit out Game 5 on Sunday.

It was an incredible ending to another hard-fought, physical game between the bitter rivals, whose second-round series last year featured a brawl at the end of Game 5 that led to five Knicks being suspended for one game each.

That incident ultimately ended up costing the Knicks their season, but now they have a chance to avenge it in the very same building where it happened.

The winner will move on to face the Indiana Pacers, who won their first-round series earlier Thursday night by defeating Cleveland 80-74 in Game 4.

"I made a big mistake. I let my teammates down," said Mourning, who complained that Johnson had been hitting him all night.

The fight began as Johnson and Mourning jostled violently for position under Miami's basket. As the ball was rebounded by New York and the players turned upcourt, Mourning swung his right fist at Johnson.

"After a while, you've got to take a stand," Mourning said."L.J. crossed the line at the end. He threw the last cheap shot. Enough was enough."

Knicks assistants formed a human wall to keep the other players from leaving the bench, and Miami's reserves stayed put as well.

The altercation was broken up after about 30 seconds, and suddenly the whole tenor of the series had changed.

Instead of having a Game 5 with both teams at even strength, Miami will be without its franchise center and New York will be without its only low-post scoring threat.

It was an all-around strong effort from everyone that got the Knicks the victory. After being asked to play intelligently, they did exactly that by limiting their turnovers, finding open shots and withstanding Miami's late charge - not to mention staying on the bench during the fight.

Johnson and Houston led New York with 18 points apiece, John Starks had 17 and Charles Oakley and Chris Childs had 10 each.

Tim Hardaway scored 33 for Miami, shooting 12-for-21, and Mourning - playing without the face mask he had been wearing since fracturing his cheekbone late in the season - had 29 on 11-for-14 shooting.

Aside from those two players, Miami got little help from anyone else. Jamal Mashburn shot 1-for-9 and Voshon Lenard was -for-6. P.J. Brown fouled out with almost five minutes left, finishing with six points and nine rebounds.

The Knicks haven't lost in a first round since being swept by the Chicago Bulls in 1991. Pat Riley, now coach of Miami, arrived in New York the next season.

The Knicks were ahead by at least six points during the fourth quarter until Hardaway stole the ball and hit a 3-pointer with 2:31 left to make it 86-81, then hit a 19-footer with 1:33 left to cut the deficit to three.

Miami had a chance to get even closer after Chris Dudley missed a 6-footer, but Mashburn missed inside and Houston converted a fast-break layup after Starks nearly threw the ball away.

The Heat pulled to 88-85 on two free throws by Mourning, but Hardaway then fouled Johnson as the Knicks forward grabbed an offensive rebound with 14.8 seconds left, and Johnson made both shots.

At the start of the second half, Johnson gave the Knicks their first lead since early in the game, by making a layup over Mourning to start a 15-2 run in which he scored eight of New York's points. It ended with a three-point play by Chris Mills that put the Knicks ahead 60-49.

Miami came back with 13-2 run to pull within two, but the Heat couldn't tie the game and fell further behind - 71-64 entering the fourth - after Mourning and Brown each picked up their fourth fouls late in the period.

Hardaway scored 14 points in the first quarter on 5-for-7 shooting, breaking a 13-13 tie with one of his five 3-pointers to give Miami a lead it would not relinquish until Starks hit a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left in the second quarter for a 47-47 tie that stood up until halftime.

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