Knicks 101 - Nets 99

By CHRIS SHERIDAN, AP Basketball Writer
December 18, 2002

NEW YORK (AP) -- There have been very few memorable moments for the New York Knicks this season. Tuesday night was one of the few.

Allan Houston scored 25 of his 29 points in the second half to the delight of a sellout crowd as the New York Knicks beat the New Jersey Nets 101-99.
 
The Knicks snapped a six-game losing streak against a cross-river opponent that had all but mocked them in the two days leading up to the game. New Jersey coach Byron Scott even said there was not a rivalry between the teams because any decent rivalry needs two good teams.

The game was close throughout, going down to the final possession when New Jersey's Jason Kidd missed a 12-footer and Richard Jefferson missed a tip-in.

``That might have been the best feeling that we have had in two years. The Garden really felt like old times,'' Houston said. ``I hate to say that, but that's what it was like. It felt like a playoff atmosphere and it really felt electric.

The loss spoiled Kidd's highest-scoring game of the season, a 39-point performance in which he shot 10-for-19 from the field and 17-for-18 from the foul line with 11 assists and five rebounds.

The victory was somewhat of a statement for the Knicks, who were swept by New Jersey in the season series last season -- three of the victories coming by blowout margins.

``When a team dominates you like that it affects your pride,'' Knicks coach Don Chaney said. ``They have a lot to brag about and they have a lot to be arrogant about. They've done a lot in the last couple of years.''

Houston hit the go-ahead jumper with 36.6 seconds left, Kurt Thomas scored 17, and Othella Harrington and Clarence Weatherspoon each grabbed 13 rebounds.

Thomas gave New York a 97-95 lead by hitting an 18-footer with 1 second left on the shot clock, and Kidd tied it with a layup through heavy traffic with 54 seconds remaining.

Houston made a leaning 14-footer with 36 seconds left, and Kidd followed with a miss. Weatherspoon was fouled on the rebound but made only one of two, and Kidd's two free throws with 18.8 seconds left cut the Knicks' lead to 100-99.

New Jersey let just 0.7 seconds run off the clock before they fouled Thomas, who missed the first before making the second for a two-point lead.

Kidd dribbled the clock down before launching a turnaround from the lane that hit the back rim. Jefferson's tip did not come close to going in.

``I think it's a big win, but I don't know if its the biggest,'' Latrell Sprewell said. ``Knowing that we beat a pretty good team -- they're the Eastern Conference champs, and big rivals as far as who's the best team in the New York area, when you add all those things it makes the win a little more special.

The Nets went ahead by 10 points early in the third quarter, but the Knicks were able to erase the deficit and led 76-75 entering the fourth. The game stayed tight throughout the final 12 minutes with neither lead leading by more than three.

``We still believe we're the better team, they were just better tonight,'' New Jersey's Richard Jefferson said. ``Houston caught fire tonight. He played like the player they think he can be. If they can do that on a more consistentbasis, we'd be talking about each other in the playoffs.''

Notes

New Jersey outscored New York by an average of 104.7-89.2 during its six-game winning streak. The Nets had won three in a row at Madison Square Garden. ... New York improved to 2-7 against teams from the Atlantic Division. ... New Jersey lost its second in a row. Next up for the Nets is an NBA Finalsrematch against the Lakers on Thursday night.

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