NBA ROUNDUP : Riley Thrown Out, Then Knicks Rally

John Starks made two free throws with 2.6 seconds to play as the New York Knicks overcame a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit and the ejection of Coach Pat Riley to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, 91-90, Wednesday night at Milwaukee.

Starks scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter as the Knicks won for the 11th time in 12 games. Charles Oakley had 15 points and 17 rebounds and Patrick Ewing 15 points for New York.

Riley was ejected with 9:27 remaining when he went onto the floor to argue a foul call and was called for two technical fouls. Then, with the Bucks leading, 76-63, with 6:35 to play, Starks and Doc Rivers made three-pointers to lead a Knick rally.

“Whenever the coach gets thrown out of the game, you’re supposed to pick up your play,” Starks said. “It was a good move by Pat Riley to do that. I think it got us fired up. Sometimes a coach does things for a reason, and I think he did that for a reason.”

The Knicks were called for five technicals, including the two on Riley.

“I was pretty upset with three or four calls in a row going the other way. I don’t do this very much,” Riley said. “As a matter of fact, this is the first time this has ever happened in my career, where I got thrown out and we won.”

Seattle 89, Minnesota 77--Dana Barros scored 13 of his 15 points in the second quarter as the SuperSonics won their fifth consecutive game by beating the Timberwolves at Minneapolis.

The SuperSonics won despite shooting 42%.

The game had three technical fouls, a flagrant foul, and the Seattle’s Gary Payton telling Minnesota Coach Sidney Lowe: “Shut up, you little Smurf.”

“I should have knocked his butt up and down the court,” said Lowe, who also criticized the officiating.

Said Payton: “He kept on yapping. He was taking shots at us. We had to let him know we weren’t going to take it.”

Ricky Pierce scored 24 points and Shawn Kemp 18 for Seattle. Sam Perkins still has not reported since his trade from the Lakers on Monday.

Christian Laettner returned from his one-game suspension and led Minnesota with 28 points. Micheal Williams added 23.

Miami 102, Portland 91--Rony Seikaly, playing his second game since losing his starting job, scored 24 points and had 10 rebounds as the Heat defeated Portland for the first time ever at Miami.

“Tonight was a case where I was really playing on emotion,” said Seikaly, who has been replaced by John Salley in the starting lineup. “I was disappointed in some things that were said. When I read the paper this morning, I was definitely in a state of shock.”

Seikaly was referring to a story in Wednesday’s Miami Herald that appeared to indicate that Glenn Rice felt Miami played better with Salley in the starting lineup.

Rice also scored 24 for Miami. The Trail Blazers, who have lost seven of their last 10 games, were led by Clyde Drexler’s 20 points.

Boston 103, New Jersey 88--Reggie Lewis scored 31 points as the Celtics broke a four-game losing streak with a victory over the Nets at Boston.

Xavier McDaniel added 20 points for Boston. Robert Parish had 13 points and 16 rebounds.

“We were in a funk at both ends of the court for a few games,” said Parish, playing his first home game since being charged with marijuana possession. “Getting your butts kicked the way we did creates a lot of doubt. This is a good win, but we are not out of the woods yet.”

Atlanta 132, Philadelphia 107--Dominique Wilkins scored 26 points and the Hawks made a team-record 13 three-pointers as they defeated the 76ers at Philadelphia.

The Hawks were 13 of 25 on three-point attempts as they broke the club record of nine set Feb. 16, 1991, against Seattle. Wilkins and Mookie Blaylock, who finished with 21 points, had five each.

Philadelphia, which has lost four in a row and 10 of its last 11 games, was led by Clarence Weatherspoon’s 20 points.

Washington 105, Indiana 101--Pervis Ellison and Michael Adams scored 24 points each and the Bullets held off several rallies to end a six-game losing streak with a victory over the Pacers at Landover, Md.

Washington led the entire game, but Indiana pulled within 103-101 on Detlef Schempf’s follow shot with 3.3 seconds left. Adams answered with two foul shots to seal the victory.

Rookie Tom Gugliotta had 22 points for the Bullets.

Schrempf led Indiana with 25 points and Rik Smits added 23.

Golden State 120, Utah 108--Tim Hardaway scored 16 of his 29 points in the second half as the Warriors defeated the Jazz at Oakland.

It was Utah’s second consecutive lackluster effort since the All-Star break. The Jazz played the last two minutes without Coach Jerry Sloan, who was ejected for arguing a foul call.

Jeff Malone led the Jazz with 31 points.

Denver 113, Dallas 92--Chris Jackson and LaPhonso Ellis scored 23 points each and the Nuggets ended a three-game losing streak with a victory over the Mavericks at Dallas.

The Mavericks fell to 4-46.