For 47 minutes and 51 seconds this evening, Gary Payton served as a bit of a goat as his Seattle SuperSonics struggled to put away the Cleveland Cavaliers at KeyArena. Despite Payton's excellent looking line of 22 points and 15 assists, he had failed in an attempt to take over the game in the third quarter as the Cavs rallied, instead grinding the Sonic offense to a halt in a flurry of missed jumpers. He was also as guilty as any other Sonic defender of the poor perimeter defense which had allowed Cleveland to shoot its way back into the game.

But the spotlight has a funny way of casting a different light on players, and its bright glare came upon Payton with nine seconds left and the game tied at 100 apiece. Interim coach Dwane Casey, taking the place of Nate McMillan, who returned to North Carolina to be with his ill mother, put the ball in Payton's hands. To the surprise of few amongst the surprising -- and loud, when given reason to cheer -- sellout crowd of 17,072, Payton came through like he has countless times throughout his stellar career. After getting the ball, Payton worked around a pseudo-screen and got free for a 19-foot jumper which found nothing but the bottom of the net.

As the crowd erupted in a cacophony of noise, Cleveland coach John Lucas called time. Though Payton was successful, he left time on the clock. The Cavaliers had nine-tenths of a second left for their collective prayers to be answered with an end to their four game-losing streak. Lucas designed a lob towards the rim, but it fell short and the Sonics left the court with a collective sigh of relief and a 102-100 victory.

Early on, it seemed improbable that the game would reach such a tense and exciting conclusion. Cleveland came in on the second of a back-to-back set, having lost 96-91 in Denver last night, and showed the fatigue in the early going.

Or, perhaps, it was merely sharp offensive play from the Sonics, who picked up right where they left off with 51% shooting on Wednesday in a loss at Minnesota. Four and a half minutes into the game, as Lucas called time out, the Sonics already led 18 to 6, confounding Cleveland's early 3-2 zone defense. After the Cavaliers answered with an 8-0 run, the Sonics heated up again, with a 12-0 run that produced a 13-point lead after one quarter.

After the Seattle lead hit its peak of 17 points shortly into the quarter, Cleveland began to chip away as both teams' second units took over the game. Despite a 19 point outburst from Rashard Lewis, carrying over his sharp shooting in a 30 point effort Wednesday, the Cavaliers trailed by only 8 at the half.

And then, suddenly and without warning, Cleveland's outside shooters -- Wesley Person and Jumaine Jones -- went nuts from beyond the arc. Perhapas not entirely without warning, after the Sonics allowed 7 three pointers to Minnesota's Anthony Peeler, and given Person's prodigious 45% mark from beyond the arc this season, but a surprise nonetheless. As Cavalier point guard Andre Miller, the league's leader in assists, and big man Zyrdunas Ilgauskas forced the Seattle d to collapse, these outside gunners were left uncovered by a Sonic defense which was uncharacteristically slow to rotate. Person finished with six three pointers, Lamond Murray four, and Jones three as Cleveland made 14 threes as a team, two shy of their club record, set in 1996 against the Sonics.

A Jones jumper four minutes into the third quarter gave the Cavs their first lead of the ballgame and alerted the quieted hometown crowd that, quite possibly, their team was giving this game away. That trouble somewhat dissipated as the Sonics responded with an 11-2 run. At the end of the quarter, Cleveland had whittled the Sonic lead down to a managable six. They were able to do this largely because of Payton's domination of the ball. His attempt to take control of the game failed miserably, instead stifling the Sonics' ball movement and the success in the post that Vin Baker had been having.

Jones and Person opened the final period with back-to-back threeballs, and an exciting, back and forth struggle was officially underway. It soon became Baker's ballgame on the Sonic end. Over a four minute stretch, the erstwhile all-star managed 10 straight Seattle points while the game remained knotted up. Some of these buckets, most notably a turnaround 15 footer from the left baseline, seemed guided by some outside force from above. Certainly that couldn't be the same Vin Baker who last year shot who shot 42% from the field last season, could it? Baker finished with a season-high 32 points on 12 of 17 shooting.

As the game headed under the two minute mark with a Rashard Lewis floater from the right baseline giving the Sonics a slim 99-97 advantage, both teams tightened their defensive intensity, helped significantly by remarkably loose refereeing.

The Sonics made a nice living with offensive rebounds, but after their second such board of their possession, the lead appeared to be extinct when Baker attempted to save a loose ball at the midcourt line and instead threw it right to Person. As he raced down the court for a sure layup, Baker displayed remarkable intelligence and hustle, recovering for a spectacular block of Person's layup attempt that preserved the lead.

However, Cleveland recovered the ball and another chance at evening the score. Murray headed down the left baseline with a drive that seemed sure to result in either a bucket or a foul. Several Sonics converged on him, hammering Murray to the ground when he attempted a shot. No foul was called, as an enraged Cavalier bench protested loudly. In the ensuing pandemonium, accompanied by loud cheers from the crowd, Miller retained the presence of mind to foul Brent Barry and prevent a Seattle fast break. With 49 seconds left, the Sonics needed only a bucket on a lengthy possession to all but seal the game.

After a Seattle timeout, Barry was unable to get the ball inbounds, necessitating the use of another timeout. The ball eventually worked its way to Desmond Mason, the last offensive option on the court, and he was unable to convert in the lane. Lewis missed on a tip-in, but the ball bounced Seattle's way again, and Mason worked the ball to Payton beyond the three-point line. With less than 24 seconds left in the game, the Sonics needed only run out the clock to win. Payton dribbled into the corner, away from traffic, and then sent it to Barry at the top of the key as Cleveland attempted to foul. Barry sent it along to Baker, who nearly ruined an excellent outing with a poorly timed case of brainlock.

Despite being the worst free throw shooter the Sonics had on the floor by 18 percentage points, Baker made no attempt to pass the ball again, which would also have allowed the Sonics to run more time off the clock. Instead, Baker allowed himself to be fouled by Cleveland's Chris Mihm with 15 seconds left on the clock.

Baker swished his first attempt, ensuring that Cleveland could do no better than tie in one possession. His second, however, was off, and the Cavaliers rebounded and called timeout. With his team's success from beyond the arc, it was unsurprising that Lucas eschewed the common effort to get a quick two and foul again in favor of a three attempt. Murray took the inbounds pass and dribbled to the top of the arc where, despite tough defense, he launched a three point dagger which found nothing but the very bottom of the net to tie the game at 100 all with nine seconds left.

But, alas, it was not enough for Cleveland, as Payton rescued the Sonics from an embarrassing second straight home loss to start 2002.