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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
CLEVELAND (AP) – Andre Miller and the Cleveland Cavaliers had a
score to settle with the New York Knicks.
|  | | Andre Miller of Cleveland gets off a shot, but not before being fouled by Charlie Ward of the Knicks. |
"We got 'em back," Miller said after scoring 19 points,
including the winning free throws with 58 seconds to play in a
80-78 victory Monday night.
New York had handed the Cavaliers their worst home loss in
history, 110-75 on March 20. "That game was embarrassing," Miller
said.
The Knicks, playing without injured Marcus Camby and Larry
Johnson, lost for the fourth time in six games and fell 1½ games
behind Miami for the third playoff seed in the Eastern Conference.
"We are not playing the right kind of basketball going into the
playoffs," Knicks guard Allan Houston said. "I don't think coming
into this game that we were prepared mentally to treat this as a
must-win game."
New York can still gain the No. 3 spot, but must defeat Detroit
in its final game while Miami loses its two remaining games.
Latrell Sprewell scored 21 points for New York, which overcame a
14-point deficit in the second half.
"Guys weren't into the game early, we didn't play the way we
should have and got exactly what we deserved," Sprewell said.
Sprewell missed six of his first seven shots, but his short
jumper in the third quarter started New York on an 8-0 run that got
the Knicks back into the game after trailing 59-45.
New York kept coming back in the fourth quarter, finally taking
the lead with 3:48 to play when Sprewell hit a 3-pointer for a
73-72 advantage.
But Miller, fouled by Charlie Ward with 58 seconds to play, sank
two free throws to win it.
Dogged defense by the Cavaliers deprived New York in the final
seconds. Matt Harpring and Chris Mihm performed a perfect switch on
Sprewell, keeping him from driving to the hoop. Sprewell launched a
3-point attempt that was partially blocked by Mihm with less than
two seconds to play.
"They ran three straight picks for him," Mihm said. "I just
tried to stay close enough to affect his shot."
Cavs coach Randy Wittman said the switch was not planned.
"Matt got knocked off on a screen and Chris was alert enough to
pick him up," Wittman said. "He did a heck of a job."
Sprewell said his own indecision helped Mihm.
"I couldn't make up my mind and took a bad shot," Sprewell
said. "It was a terrible shot. I could have gotten something much
better."
Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy agreed.
"He should go by Mihm," Van Gundy said. "It can't get any
better than a guy like Sprewell in the middle of the floor against
Mihm."
New York inbounded to Kurt Thomas with .7 seconds left, but his
failed shot came after the final buzzer.
Cleveland won its third consecutive game for the first time since
mid-December, when a six-game streak put the Cavaliers at 15-7.
Cleveland has gone 15-44 since.
Houston, who scored 39 points in the previous game against
Cleveland, had 20 and Thomas 19.
Mihm had 15 points and Harpring and Clarence Weatherspoon each
scored 14 for Cleveland.
Game notes
Cleveland activated Jim Jackson and put Bimbo Coles on the
injured list with a sprained right thumb. ... Cleveland had only
one turnover in the first quarter. ... Camby missed his third
consecutive game with a hip contusion. Johnson has missed 13 games
with a sore back. ... Weatherspoon had 14 rebounds as Cleveland
dominated the boards, 47-38. ... New York has lost its last four
road games.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
New York Clubhouse
Cleveland Clubhouse
RECAPS
Charlotte 106
Atlanta 83
Cleveland 80
New York 78
Milwaukee 101
Orlando 89
Dallas 110
Golden State 101
LA Clippers 100
Phoenix 80
Sacramento 110
Vancouver 100
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