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Crying foul Unhappy Heat blame officials for Game 7 loss
Posted: Monday May 22, 2000 09:50 PM
MIAMI (AP) -- There were plenty of reasons for the Miami Heat's latest meltdown against the New York Knicks. Jamal Mashburn shot 3-for-15. The Heat missed their first five free throws in the fourth quarter and finished 11-for-21 at the line. Miami blew a six-point lead with less than five minutes to go. And when the season hung in the balance in the final seconds, reserve forward Clarence Weatherspoon took the last shot. So why did New York win the series? The Heat blamed the referees -- for a controversial call at the end, a disparity in free throws and even the disputed foul that helped the Knicks pull out Game 6. "They had three officials in their pocket," Mashburn said. "You can print that. I don't care if I get fined or not." New York's 83-82 victory Sunday in Game 7 eliminated Miami from the playoffs in a winner-take-all game for the third year in a row. In 1999 the Heat's season ended when Allan Houston's last-second shot bounced the Knicks' way. This season ended with Mashburn chasing after referees Dick Bavetta, Dan Crawford and Bennett Salvatore and shouting insults as they left the court. "They gave me the little smirk that they always do," Mashburn said. "They said something about a good game. Yeah, it's a great game if you're watching and officiating and doing what you've got to do. "No blame to them. We had chances to win the thing. But they were terrible." The Heat were most upset about a ruling with 2.1 seconds left. When Weatherspoon missed a 14-footer, the Knicks' Latrell Sprewell grabbed the rebound, then stumbled out of bounds. After discussing the play with his colleagues, Salvatore ruled the Knicks had called a timeout when Sprewell had the ball. "I had Sprewell calling time out, but I wasn't sure where his foot was," Salvatore said. "I didn't believe he was out of bounds, but I wanted to check with my partner to make sure he was not out of bounds when my whistle blew. He confirmed that there was no question that the timeout came before he went out of bounds." Only one problem: Sprewell said he didn't call a timeout. "I don't know who called time out," Sprewell said. "I thought they gave me the foul. [The Heat] were pushing me out of bounds." Heat center Alonzo Mourning said Bennett initially signaled possession to Miami. "Then he huddled up with his colleagues and changed his call," Mourning said. "[Sprewell] didn't call time out. He stepped out of bounds.' The Knicks took possession at midcourt and ran out the clock for the victory. Miami was still stewing about a ticky-tack reach-in foul against Dan Majerle with 17 seconds left in Game 6 that allowed Allan Houston to make the winning free throws. And the Heat were unhappy about being whistled for 24 fouls Sunday to 19 for New York. The Knicks shot 10 more free throws, making 28 of 31. "You have the disparity as much as we were attacking and going to the basket," Heat coach Pat Riley said. "It's hard to lose that way." Added Miami guard Tim Hardaway: "I see why they call Dick Bavetta 'Knick' Bavetta -- because he called seven straight calls down on their end." Even so, the Heat had several chances to take the lead after Patrick Ewing scored the game's final points on a dunk with 1:20 left. Mashburn was short on a 12-footer with 1:01 to go, but he stripped Chris Childs to get the ball back. Hardaway missed the rim on an eight-footer, but the scramble for the rebound ended with a jump ball, and the Heat kept possession with 12.4 seconds to go. Then came the final play of Miami's season. Mashburn caught a pass at the top of the key and quickly tossed the ball to Weatherspoon, a poor outside shooter. "I expected Spoon to swing it back," Mashburn said. "I knew there was a lot of time left." But Weatherspoon instead started to drive, pulled up and shot a 12-footer over Marcus Camby. The ball bounced off the bracket to Sprewell. "I had a good look," Weatherspoon said. "What can I say?" Unlike his teammates, Weatherspoon declined to comment on the officiating.
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