If the Seattle SuperSonics are going to erase the playoff memory of Dikembe Mutombo celebrating on the floor, they must beat the Los Angeles Lakers in their first-round series.
They took a big step in that direction with a 96-71 victory Thursday night as the Lakers shot only 35 percent from the floor (28 for 79) and scored their lowest point total ever in a playoff game.Denver beat the Sonics 3-2 in the first round last season after Seattle grabbed a 2-0 lead at home. The Sonics remember the bad taste of swallowing last season's defeat against the Nuggets.
"Last year, we celebrated after our first win," Nate McMillan of the Sonics said. "This year, there's no celebrating."
Game 2 of the best-of-5 series will be played in the Tacoma Dome on Saturday. Then the Sonics and Lakers move to the Forum on Monday night for Game 3.
Seattle coach George Karl's job may be in jeopardy if the Sonics are upset in the first round for the second straight season. He's confident his team isn't going to lose to the Lakers because of their defense.
"We played solid playoff basketball and controlled a lot of the game defensively. But I think we can do it better," Karl said.
Nick Van Exel kept the Lakers close for 21/2 quarters and finished with 29 points in his first playoff game. He didn't get much help.
Vlade Divac, bothered by the flu, was the only other Los Angeles player in double figures with 11. Cedric Ceballos, who led the Lakers during the regular season with a 21.7 scoring average, was held to two points.
Ceballos was 1-for-10 in 25 minutes. He didn't have the flu, but he played like it.
"Somedays you shoot great, others medium," he said. "Tonight was terrible."
New York 103, Cleveland 79
At New York, the Cleveland Cavaliers turned defense into an art form this season, nearly breaking an NBA record that has stood for 40 years.
In Game 1 of their Eastern Conference playoff series Thursday night, the New York Knicks turned that art form into a stick figure.
The Knicks shot 63 percent from the field in their rout of the Cavs, including 13-for-16 (81.3 percent) in the third quarter when an 18-2 run turned a 6-point advantage into a 69-47 lead.
"The Knicks were excellent in so many aspects of the game," Cavs coach Mike Fratello said. "They were very prepared for the game, and their intensity level was very high. They shot the ball extremely well. You can consider it making shots or a lack of defense, whichever way you look at it. Something out there enabled them to shoot at a 63-percent rate."
"It as a great win for us, a great start," said Pat Riley, who coached the Knicks to the seventh game of the NBA Finals last year. "But we want to keep it in perspective and get as ready as we can for Saturday. I know for a fact that they're going to come back real strong."
Patrick Ewing, who scored 21 points on 10-for-16 shooting, seemed to have just the attitude Riley wants going into Game 2.
"We fell short last year in the finals, so we want to get back and get the prize," said "We played tremendous defense, and we played big on the boards. It was a team effort."
Charles Oakley had 19 points on 9-for-12 shooting, Derek Harper 16 on 7-for-8 shooting and Charles Smith 14 points for the Knicks, whose 95.1 points allowed per game in the regular season was a distant second to Cleveland.
Indiana 90, Atlanta 82
At Indianapolis, it took the Indiana Pacers 19 years to open an NBA playoff series on their home court. They nearly lost that advantage in one game.
The Pacers rallied from a 10-point deficit in the second half to beat Atlanta 90-82 on Thursday night in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series.
Game 2 in the best-of-5 series is Saturday in Market Square Arena, where the Pacers went 33-8 during the regular season while capturing the Central Division title. The third game is Tuesday night in Atlanta and Game 4 would be played there Friday, if necessary.
The Pacers aren't looking past Atlanta despite taking the season series 4-1.
"It's not going to be an easy series. It's going to take even more effort and more hustle," said Reggie Miller, who led the Pacers with 24 points despite a 2-for-10 effort from behind the 3-point line.
"By no means are we going to walk on the court on Atlanta is going to lay down. They've got too many good players on that team."
Indiana trailed 60-50 with 8:30 remaining in the third quarter, but the Hawks went more than six minutes without a field goal in the period to fall behind for good during Indiana's 16-2 run.
"We went a little too much one-on-one," Atlanta coach Lenny Wilkens said of the dry spell. "We didn't execute offensively. ... When you don't execute offensively, it puts the pressure on your defense."