|
New York Nixes Sonic Playoff Clinch
Seattle Again Fails to Execute Down Stretch, Losing Third Straight
By SonicsKevin
The 19 points scored by Peja Drobnjak, left, represented a new career high.
|
|
The sellout crowd which headed to the KeyArena Friday night for the Seattle Supersonics' game
against the New York Knicks came for a comedy with a happy ending. Instead, they got a tragedy.
Given the chance to clinch a playoff spot against the lowly New York Knicks -- themselves
eliminated from playoff contention with a loss last night in Portland -- the Sonics instead responded
with a flat performance that saw them unable to find a groove after the third quarter, with the Knicks
lulling the team and its fans to sleep by forcing a slow tempo.
Despite the fact that the Sonics, the league's best shooting team, were held to just under 43% from the field for the game, they managed to find themselves in their fifth consecutive game decided inside the final two minutes. After Brent Barry put Seattle ahead 76-75 with a pair of free throws, Knicks guard Allan Houston -- not usually known for his ability to create his own offense -- went on a 6-2 run all by himself that gave New York a three-point lead with 1:20 left. The Sonics answered with a short jumper in the lane by Peja Drobnjak, who set a new career-high by scoring 19 points, and cut the lead back to one. On the other end, they forced the Knicks into a shot they wanted -- a 20-foot baseline jumper for Clarence Weatherspoon that found nothing but net, upping the lead back to three with 46 seconds left. The Knicks nearly iced the game when Seattle forward Vin Baker was unable to convert a contested layup, but the Sonics blocked the shot of Howard Eisley to regain possession. Following a Sonic timeout, the Knicks used their foul to give, forcing Seattle to run a new play, with Barry getting the ball and driving the lane. He was fouled while putting up a runner which nearly went. Instead getting two shots, Barry missed the first, keeping the Sonics down two. They got a break when Houston -- who scored 14 points in the fourth quarter but made just 4 of 6 from the free throw line -- split his attempts. With 10 seconds left, the Sonics found themselves in a similar situation to the teams' game in New York earlier this season, when a Seattle team down two without a timeout could only get a forced attempt by Gary Payton that missed everything. This time, the Knicks didn't even give them that chance, grabbing Payton as he crossed halfcourt and sending him to the line. The teams traded two free throws apiece, running the clock down to five seconds when Payton was again intentionally fouled. This time, his first attempt was off, leaving the only avenue to overtime a missed free throw, offensive rebound, and three -- all in the span of three seconds. Coach Nate McMillan inserted his best offensive rebounders, Jerome James and Baker, but it was for naught as the ball was juggled before New York's Kurt Thomas recovered with two seconds left to preserve the 86-83 victory, finishing off the Sonics' third straight loss by a score or less, totaling seven points. Of course, the expectation as a 43-33 team at home met up with a 28-46 one playing the second of a back-to-back was that there would be no last-second rally necessary. In the first quarter, the game seemed to be headed in that direction. The Sonics broke open a tight game in the very first minutes with a 17-7 run to close the quarter with a nine-point lead. Seattle's offense came primarily from Drobnjak, who made all five of his shots and scored 11 first-quarter points. Led by reserves Eisley -- who shoots a more-than-mortal 32% against most NBA teams, but seems to torture the Sonics -- and Othella Harrington, the Knicks vaporized the deficit before the second quarter was five minutes old, starting it on a 16-4 run. New York also put the clamps down defensively, holding Seattle to 7 of 21 shooting and five turnovers in the quarter, as they outscored them 26-15 to take a lead to halftime. While the crowd was still settling into its seats for the second half, the Knicks again came out smoking to start the second quarter, precipitating a McMillan timeout just 68 seconds in. An 8-0 run gave New York a double-digit lead, as suddenly it looked that the game might be a blowout, just not in the expected direction. The Sonics, sensing the game slipping away, tuned up their defensive intensity, holding the Knicks to just six points in the final seven minutes of the third quarter, allowing their offense -- still frigid -- to get them within two by quarter's end in a 62-60 slugfest. Seattle seemed poised to run away with the game by maintaining the defense into the start of the fourth quarter, holding the Knicks to two points in the first three and a half minutes while running up a four-point lead and drawing the crowd, which had been silent, back in the game. But Houston had the answer, scoring seven points on three consecutive possessions to put his team back in the lead. It wasn't for good, but it was for the good point in the game.
|