No Surprise: Knicks Stumble
The Golden State Warriors became the first Western Conference team to win at Madison Square Garden this season, stunning the New York Knicks 87-82 Tuesday night.
It was just the fourth road win and 12th victory overall for the Warriors, who got a good bounce for a key offensive rebound with 15 seconds left after receiving an amazing shot from Muggsy Bogues with 90 seconds left.
Bogues, with the shot clock running out, hit a lunging, off-balance left-handed hook shot from 14 feet away to give Golden State a 83-78 lead.
After the Knicks pulled within three, Donyell Marshall missed a 22-footer as the shot clock wound down. But the ball bounced into the corner and was retrieved by Clarence Weatherspoon, setting up two free throws by Bogues that clinched it with 12.7 seconds left.
Marshall had 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Warriors, who entered the game 0-8 on the road against Eastern Conference teams.
Allan Houston scored 25 for New York, which had won all seven of its previous home games against teams from the West.
The loss for the Knicks, who suffered from poor shot selection and weak interior defense, undid much of the good karma that had emerged as the team won six of seven games since the All-Star break.
After being booed off the court following a 30-point first half, the Knicks came out and hit seven of their first 10 shots in the third quarter. But they weren't able to catch the Warriors until Larry Johnson hit two free throws with 5:10 remaining in the fourth quarter for a 71-71 tie.
Johnson, after grabbing a defensive rebound, sprinted downcourt for a layup that gave the Knicks a 75-73 lead with 4:02 left. But New York then started making mistakes and missing shots, and an 8-0 run by Golden State made it 81-75 with 2:10 left.
A 3-pointer by Houston pulled New York within three before Bogues made his lucky heave.
Erick Dampier added 15 points and Weatherspoon had 13 for the Warriors.
Notes: Patrick Ewing said his injured wrist, which came out of a cast 10 days ago, was feeling better. "It's coming, it's doing good," he said. ... Charlie Ward played 40 minutes as backup Chris Childs sat out with a sprained ankle. Ward had a bad night, getting burned on defense repeatedly while also shooting 0-for-4 with four turnovers. Childs remains day-to-day.
©1998 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed