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 Wizards drop Knicks in OT Brovelli gets win No. 2 as Washington's head coach
Posted: Wednesday April 14, 1999 11:49 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Given the way he's struggled all season, it didn't seem fair that Tracy Murray's first apparent game-winning shot didn't win the game. He had to come back and do it a second time in overtime. Murray's 3-pointer with 30 seconds remaining in regulation was matched by Charlie Ward, but there was no answer for his 22-footer from almost the same spot with 1:04 left in the extra period. The shot gave the Washington Wizards the lead for good as they snapped the New York Knicks' three-game winning streak with a 95-89 victory Wednesday night. "If you have a shooter on the team, you have to tell him to shoot it," interim coach Jim Brovelli said of Murray, who scored 13 points on 6-for-11 shooting. "I don't care if it's 0-for-5, 0-for-10 or 0-for-15. You can never take confidence away from a shooter, because once you do, you've shattered him." The victory was just the second in eight games for the Wizards, who are 2-4 under Brovelli. It also marked the second consecutive home game in which they have come from behind in the fourth quarter and won. And it was the first time this season that Murray has been the hero. The 3-point specialist has the lowest shooting percentage on the team, and his slump led to the end of a 272 consecutive-games streak last month as his playing time varied greatly under coach Bernie Bickerstaff. Murray also missed six games with a sprained toe, yet another downer to overshadow his accomplishment of becoming the franchise's all-time 3-point shooter. "It's been rough," Murray said. "But I've seen too many baskets go in my whole career that I know it's there. Just got to keep shooting it." Otis Thorpe and Rod Strickland scored 18 points each for the Wizards, who dressed 10 players because of injuries to Juwan Howard and Terry Davis and a virus that sidelined Tim Legler. In addition, Mitch Richmond left the game with 2:01 to play in the fourth quarter suffering from a pinched nerve in his neck and shoulder. He is listed as day-to-day. The Knicks played without Patrick Ewing, whose sore Achilles' tendon flared up the night before in a game against Philadelphia. His replacements, Chris Dudley and Marcus Camby, had solid games. Dudley started and had 10 points and eight rebounds, while Camby led the team off the bench with 18 points and 13 rebounds. But the Knicks, who remained in seventh place in the Eastern Conference, failed to score in the final 2:29 of the extra period, missing their last eight shots as the Wizards ended the game with a 9-0 run. Thorpe scored over Johnson with 25 seconds left to make the lead 93-89, and two free throws sealed the victory in the waning seconds. "I'm beyond frustrated," said Latrell Sprewell, who scored 10 points off the bench. "I'm disappointed that we lost. We've just got to find a way to win these games while there's still time." Larry Johnson added 12 points and 12 rebounds for New York. Neither team led by more than five in the second half, and Ward set the game to overtime after chasing down the rebound off Sprewell's miss to hit a 3-pointer from the left baseline with 18.1 seconds to go. Outside shooting was at a premium most of the game, and 74 total points were scored in the paint. There were ugly runs from both teams in the first three quarters, and the Wizards erased a 62-59 lead at the end of the third quarter with a 10-0 run. "We didn't get stops. It's the story of our season," New York coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "I think they're good. I don't know why their record is the way it is." Notes: Brovelli, thought to have virtually no chance of keeping the Wizards job beyond the end of the season, continues to work out of the assistant coaches' office. The head coach's office still has Bernie Bickerstaff's name plate next to the closet locker, and Brovelli's repeatedly referred to the room as "Bernie's office" during pregame remarks. ... Howard missed his second game with a sprained ankle, while Davis bruised his right shin in Tuesday night's loss at Cleveland. Ben Wallace started for Davis and tied a career-high with 14 rebounds. ... Thorpe became the 55th player in NBA history to score 17,000 career points.
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