Ewing leaves Game 2 with sprained foot
Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS -- Patrick Ewing can only hope this injury isn't as bad as the last one he sustained in Game 2 of the Eastern
Conference finals.
|
Ewing day-to-day;
tendon not torn
|
|
An MRI on Friday revealed that center Patrick Ewing does not have a tear in the tendon in his right foot, the Knicks said.
Ewing's status is day-to-day, the Knicks said, and his availability for Game 3 of the Eastern
Conference finals will be a game-time decision. Ewing's injury has been identified as acute peroneal tendinitis.
Ewing, dressed in practice gear, did not comment Friday as he
walked into the Knicks' gym. He had an MRI in the morning at a New
York hospital.
The Knicks host the Pacers in Game 3 of the best-of-seven conference finals on Saturday afternoon. Indiana leads the series 2-0.
-- ESPN.com news services/AP
|
The New York Knicks center strained a tendon in his right foot
midway through the first quarter Thursday night and didn't play the
rest of the game. He will have tests in New York on Friday, and
hopes to play Saturday.
The Indiana Pacers beat the Knicks 88-84 after Ewing left,
taking a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
"It's ironic because it's Game 2 I got hurt in last year,"
Ewing said. "Hopefully it won't be the case that I'll have to sit
out the rest of the series."
The Knicks lost Ewing to a torn Achilles tendon after Game 2 of
last year's Eastern Conference finals against the Pacers. He missed
the rest of the series, but New York still managed to eliminate
Indiana in six games.
Ewing hurt his foot in Game 1 on Tuesday night, but said the
injuries weren't related. On Tuesday, he had plantar fasciitis, an
inflammation of tissue in the sole of the foot.
On Thursday, he strained the peroneal tendon, located on the top
of the foot.
"I don't really know what happened," Ewing said. "I tried to
make a play, to go to the basket and I just felt something pull."
Ewing pulled himself out of the game with 5:29 left in the first
quarter. He had four points and one rebound in seven minutes.
Kurt Thomas replaced Ewing, scoring 10 points and grabbing eight
rebounds. But he also fouled out, sending Dale Davis to the line
with 5.8 seconds left and the Knicks trailing 86-84.
Davis missed both free throws, but was able to grab his own
rebound and dish to a wide-open Jalen Rose, who dunked with 2.4
seconds left to seal Indiana's victory.
"Without the big fellow, we don't have any serious inside
presence," Thomas said. "Without him in there, it's really
difficult for us."
|  | | Patrick Ewing had four points and a rebound before leaving after seven minutes. |
But Indiana coach Larry Bird said Ewing's absence wasn't really
a factor.
"They played last year without Patrick, and they beat us," he
said.
Watching the playoffs from the sideline has become something of
a ritual for Ewing the last three years. There was his Game 2
injury last year. He felt a "ripping sensation" before that game,
but played anyway, limping throughout most of the game. Tests the
next day showed the tear in his Achilles tendon.
In 1998, he made a surprise return from a broken wrist in Game 2
of the second-round against the Pacers. Indiana won that series
4-1.
He has missed 88 games over the past three seasons with injuries,
including the first 20 of this season because of Achilles tendinitis.
What makes this latest injury even more painful is that Ewing
had been playing some of his best basketball in years. At 37 and in
his 15th season, he averaged 15.4 points and 10.3 rebounds in the
first 11 games of the playoffs.
He averaged 15 points and 9.7 rebounds during the regular
season.
"It's painful," Ewing said. "I thought we had our
opportunities to win this game. We didn't make plays down the
stretch to secure the victory. It's frustrating to have to watch
from the sidelines.
"We needed this game more than they did. We just have to
regroup and come ready to play this Saturday. I'm going to try to
come back on Saturday and help my team win."
|
