V. 10
Page 14 University Daily Kansan, April 23, 1981
KC's 88-79 victory evens series
By PAUL D. BOWKER Sports Writer
Houston center Mosele Malone didn't have much time to score points in the Rockets' National Basketball Association playoff game against the Kansas City Kings last night. He was driving to stop Reggie King of the Kings.
King scored 31 points, 2 in the first half, and the Kings beat the Rockets 88-7 at Kemper Arena, evening their championship series at one game.
Malone, who led all scorers with 20 points in the series' first game Tuesday night at Kemper Arena, was held to 18 last night.
Like the first game, last night's contest was not decided until the third quarter when the Kings outspeared to took a 64-43 lead after three quarters.
King, however, did not do all of the work. It was the offensive support of his teammates in the second half that overcame a one-point halftime deficit and led the Kings to a 14-2 spurt in the game against the San Antonio players who advanced to the series with playoff victories over the Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs.
Scott Weddon scored 18 points, John Lambert 16 and Ernie Grunfeld 14. Unlike the previous night, the Rockets are survivors, compared to the Kings' 14.
Kansas City Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons did not downplay the importance of the victory.
"As I told you, I thought it would be a better game tonight," Fitzimmons said. "I really thought that this was the one we had to overcome adversity tonight and to overcome adversity tonight."
"I can't say enough about a lot of people who contributed. Now we go into Houston one-and-one. It's a new series now."
Fitzsimons was not kidding about adversity. The Kings' bench played an important role in the game because center Sam Lacey and Granfeld both got into early foul trouble, Lacey, who scored six points and had five rebounds, picked up his third foul before the end of the first quarter. Because Lacey was assigned to guard Malone, the Kings had to make changes.
"After Lacey got his second foul," Fitzsimons said, "we moved King in against Malone, and then (Leon) Douglas. King covered him during the game. King just did his super job. Moses (Malone) hard. He's a ballerina."
In the series' first game, Malone scored 10 points in the first half, but broke for 19 in the second half and scored 15. He went around. Last night, that didn't happen.
"We just did some things," Fitzsimmons said. "That's what coaches are supposed to do. We saw the films and discussed it and made our decision.
The assistant coaches do all the work. I just watch it."
Malone scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the second half, but it was not enough as the Rockets shot just one moment from the floor in the third quarter.
The Rockets, sparked by Billy Paulz's 10 first-half points, clung to a 46-47 at halftime despite 21 points by King. Paulz gave the Rockets the halftime advantage when he sank a shot from feet out with 29 seconds in the half.
Turnovers were one of the main causes of the Kings loss Tuesday and the Rockets, looking for more of the same, greeted the Kings with a full-court press at the beginning of the season. The Kings, however, responded by scoring the second half's first four points to build a three-point lead.
The Kings had a one-point lead, 53-82 when King scored four consecutive points and Scott Wedman and Grunfeld each scored baskets to boost the Kings to five, 69-54, with 6:51 left in the third quarter, prompting Harris to call for a time out.
The delay did not effectively halt the Kings' momentum, inspired by a crowd of 14,326. Kansas City grabbed an eight-point advantage, 67-59, after a three-point play by Lambert and led 68-10 after three quarters.
Before Grunfeld retreated to the bench with his fifth foul with 7:41 left in
the game, he gave the Rockets something to remember him by. He booked a shot in from almost underneath the basket, giving the Kings a nine-point lead and prompting another time out.
The Kings quickly finished what Grunfeld started. The Kings scored six of the six eight points on two rebound shots by Lambert and a 20-foot jump shot by Lacey, then scored four consecutive points for a commanding 86-69 lead with less than four minutes remaining.
"The Kings were ready tonight,
obviously, to give everything that they had",
Harris said. "This is why teams like Kansas City and Houston are still in the playoffs. These teams came here to play.
"We're happy to have come here and gotten the split. There's five more games to play. Today, they won the battle. You saw what won the ballgame tonight and that was total effort on the ballplayers' part. The emotion and the effort displayed out there is what wins games."
The third game and fourth games of the best-of-seven series will be played in Houston Friday night and Sunday at the Alamo. You can be in Kemper Arena Wednesday night.
In the other NBA playoff game last night, Larry Bird scored 34 points and had 16 rebounds as the Boston Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, 118-99, to even their Eastern Conference championship series at one game.
BEN BIGLER/Kensan staff
BEN BIDLER/KRANSAH staff
Reggie Smith (51) and Scott Wedman eye the ball as it escapes from a Houston Rocket in last night's 88-79 Kansas City victory. Smith had 31 points for the Kings and Wedman added 18.
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