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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Glen Rice's shot hit nothing but net.
Mookie Blaylock's shot hit iron.
And that allowed the New York Knicks' usual tough defense to
prevent an embarrassing loss.
Rice hit a 3-pointer at the regulation buzzer, and Blaylock
missed a 3-pointer at the end of overtime as the Knicks blew a
20-point lead before rallying to beat the Golden State Warriors
89-87 Monday night.
New York, at the start of a critical five-game West Coast road
trip, narrowly avoided losing to the NBA's second-worst team. They
were saved by Rice, who came off the bench late in regulation to
hit a desperate shot at the end of a wild scramble for the ball.
"You need some miracles in a season, and we certainly caught a
miracle tonight with Glen's 3," Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy said.
After Antawn Jamison put the Warriors up by three with 9.7
seconds left in regulation, Charlie Ward got open but missed a
3-pointer. Rice tipped a loose ball to Allan Houston, who nearly
turned the ball over before passing to Rice in the corner.
Rice's 3-pointer from right in front of the Warriors' bench hit
nothing but net as time expired.
"I never felt like we had it wrapped up or the shot was
definitely going down," Rice said. "I just tried to get open in
the corner. You know what happened after that."
Houston hit a jumper with 1:24 left in overtime that turned out
to be the final basket of the game. The Warriors got the ball back
with 24 seconds left, and after two deflections and a New York
foul, Blaylock's 3-pointer at the buzzer rattled in and out. The
Knicks allowed just two points in overtime.
Rice, who nearly didn't play because of a sore left foot that
was submerged in a bucket of ice after the game, had 18 points.
Houston added 16, while Marcus Camby had 14 points and 17 rebounds.
Latrell Sprewell, who left Golden State three seasons ago after
choking former coach P.J. Carlesimo, scored 13 of his 17 points in
the second half. He also hit two free throws in the final minute of
regulation and made two big defensive plays in overtime.
Jamison scored 41 points while playing 50 minutes for the
Warriors, but Sprewell wouldn't allow him to get open for the final
shot.
"Those are the games that you dream about – playing against the
Knicks and coming down to the last shot and going into overtime,"
Jamison said. "I wasn't drained at all. I still had 89 more rounds
in me."
New York led 43-23 midway through the second quarter, but the
Warriors chipped away at the lead all night. Golden State got the
lead with less than four minutes left in regulation, and Jamison's
12-foot runner with nine seconds left put Golden State up 85-82.
The Knicks won for the sixth time in seven games while moving
into a tie with Miami for the third spot in the Eastern Conference
playoffs.
Rookie Chris Porter had 18 of his career-high 24 points in the
second half as Golden State lost for the 25th time in 28 games.
Blaylock had 16 assists and six steals, but he shot 3-for-20 from
the field.
"Instead of wilting under pressure, I thought we thrived under
it tonight," Warriors coach Dave Cowens said.
In his second return to Golden State, Sprewell received large
measures of both cheers and boos from the Oakland Arena crowd.
Sprewell exchanged a steady stream of trash talk with Porter, but
he didn't have any obvious confrontations with fans like the one
that cost him $10,000 the first time he returned to Oakland last
season.
"(Porter) got me up and going, because I was having an awful
game," Sprewell said. "I understand where he was coming from and
what he was trying to do, but it was all about making him pay for
talking."
Game notes
Erick Dampier and Adonal Foyle are the only players left
from the last Warriors roster Sprewell graced. The Warriors also
have an entirely different coaching staff. ... Blaylock had a
triple-double Saturday night when the Warriors snapped their
11-game losing streak. ... Excitable referee Joe Crawford was in
fine form. He became enraged late in the third quarter after the
officials repeatedly asked Porter to tuck in his jersey. "Tuck
your (expletive) shirt in!" Crawford screamed at Porter before
Sprewell shot two free throws. Fans within earshot laughed. ...
Knicks guard Mark Jackson gave Mullin a pregame hug. They played
together last season in Indiana, helping the Pacers reach the NBA
Finals.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
New York Clubhouse
Golden State Clubhouse
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