An ugly brawl could end up looking pretty good to the Miami Heat heading into Game 6 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the New York Knicks.
The melee in the final minutes of the Heat's 96-81 victory Wednesday night could result in suspensions for Knicks players who came off the bench to join the fight. Miami starting forward P.J. Brown and Knicks backup point guard Charlie Ward also are subject to possible suspensions for getting the melee started."Certainly I'm very concerned," New York coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "You want to play with your full team, but that's up to the NBA office."
Miami, still on the brink of elimination, goes back to Madison Square Garden on Friday night trailing 3-2 in the best-of-7 series. The Heat are 0-4 away from the Miami Arena in the playoffs after posting the NBA's best road record (32-9) during the regular season.
"I definitely felt the momentum turn around," the Heat's Alonzo Mourning said. "To tell you the truth, something was bound to happen."
The fight started when Ward backed into Brown's legs as Tim Hardaway made a free throw, giving Miami a 90-74 lead with 1:53 left in the game. Brown wrapped his arm around the smaller Ward's waist, lifted him and threw him to the floor behind the baseline.
New York's John Wallace jumped on Brown, and players from both teams joined the pile.
Before order was restored, several Knicks - including John Starks, Larry Johnson and Allan Houston - left their bench to join the melee, while the Heat players not in the game stayed on the sideline.
According to NBA policy, leaving the bench to join a fight can result in a suspension.
Brown, Ward and Starks were ejected because of the fight. New York's Charles Oakley was thrown out just two seconds before for throwing a punch at Mourning.
"I expected it after they got frustrated and we were pulling away," said Brown, who had 18 points and 12 rebounds. "He (Ward) went after my knees. If he wants to play football, he can go back to Florida State."
Ward, who won the 1993 Heisman Trophy as the Seminoles' quarterback, denied he tried to hurt Brown.
"I was just trying to protect myself," Ward said. "I'm not going to let anyone treat me like I'm a little kid."
Van Gundy said it is not an automatic suspension to leave the bench, and that only Brown should be kept out of Game 6. "If on every blockout you had the right to body slam, then this league would be the WWF," he said.
Last October, NBA executive Rod Thorn said in a memo that any player who leaves the bench area in connection with an altercation is subject to an automatic one-game suspension and a fine up to $20,000.
Except for the possible suspension of Brown, the fight played right into the Heat's hands. After the game, several players came out of the showers singing "Are you ready to rumble?"