NBA ROUNDUP : Bulls Extend Streak to 11 in Two Overtimes

As befitting a meeting of the teams expected to play in the championship round next spring, the Chicago Bulls and the Trail Blazers played not one, but two overtimes Friday night at Portland.

The Bulls, after coming from behind to tie in both regulation and the first overtime, finally outlasted the Trail Blazers, 116-114, in the second overtime.

It was Chicago’s 11th victory in a row.

Jordan scored five of his 40 points in the second overtime after sinking a fadeaway 14-foot jumper with one second left to tie the first overtime, 105-105.

Although they led most of the game, the Bulls had to rally at the end of regulation on a three-pointer by B.J. Armstrong with 35 seconds remaining to tie it, 99-99.

Then, after Jordan’s fadeaway sent the game into the second overtime, the Bulls took a 115-109 lead, then almost blew it.

The Trail Blazers scored five points in a row, but missed a chance to tie when Drexler made only one of two free throws.

Jordan gave the Trail Blazers one more chance. He was fouled with 4.2 seconds left and missed one of his shots.

But Terry Porter failed to get a shot off before the final buzzer.

It was the fifth victory in a row on a trip West that concludes tonight at Sacramento. Jordan has averaged 33 points in the five games.

While the defending champion Bulls improved to 12-2, the Trail Blazers fell to 9-6. It was the third loss at home for Portland, which lost only five of 41 home games last season.

San Antonio 88, Atlanta 85--The Spurs may have reached the point where they don’t care whether holdout point guard Rod Strickland ends his holdout. They appear to have found a replacement.

Tom Garrick, a Clipper discard, has been giving the Spurs their best playmaking since center David Robinson joined them.

Garrick, in his first start for the Spurs, had another strong game at Atlanta as the Spurs improved to 9-3 and moved into first place in the Midwest Division.

In the absence of Strickland, Coach Larry Brown tried Avery Johnson and Greg Sutton at point guard. When Garrick, coming off the bench, sparked several rallies, he finally won the job.

Playing 33 minutes Friday night, Garrick had eight assists and was four for six from the field.

As usual, Robinson was the dominant figure. He had 20 points and 13 rebounds. He also had four blocks and forced several Hawks to take hurried shots.

Antoine Carr replaced injured Terry Cummings (broken leg) at forward for the Spurs. Although he didn’t shoot well (six for 17), Carr made two free throws with five seconds left to seal the victory.

Cleveland 115, Orlando 104--Brad Daugherty seems ready to join the elite centers.

Daugherty had 29 points and 14 rebounds as the Cavaliers remained perfect in seven home games. It was the fifth victory in a row for the Cavaliers.

Daugherty, who has 91 points in the last three games, was eight for 11. Hot Rod Williams came off the bench to block seven Magic shots in 28 minutes.

Utah 135, Golden State 108--The Jazz spotted the Warriors an early 12-point lead at Salt Lake City, then stormed back behind the Malones and John Stockton.

Karl Malone had 31 points and Jeff Malone had 24. Stockton had 21 points and 23 assists to lead the high-powered offense. The Jazz scored 73 points in the second half.

Phoenix 131, Charlotte 111--Dan Majerle came off the bench to score 37 points at Phoenix. The Suns’ Jeff Hornacek had his second triple-double: 31 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds.

Miami 95, Philadelphia 92--Already without injured Charles Barkley (ribs), the 76ers, in the process of losing their fifth in a row, suffered another injury in the opening minutes at Miami.

Center Charles Shackleford, accidentally hit in the mouth, had to be hospitalized so that five teeth could be wired back into position.

The Heat blew a 17-point third-quarter lead. A three-point shot by Hersey Hawkins tied the score, 92-92, with 2:02 to play.

Both teams missed chances, but Willie Burton made one of two free throws with 1:31 to play and rookie Steve Smith sealed the victory with a layup 50 seconds later.

Heat center Rony Seikaly had 20 points and 14 rebounds.

Indiana 141, Houston 121--Reggie Miller was perfect on five three-point shots and finished with 31 points at Indianapolis to help the Pacers knock the Rockets out of first in the Midwest Division.

The Rockets, without centers Hakeem Olajuwon and Larry Smith because of injuries, opened with veteran Tree Rollins. He couldn’t handle the younger, more agile Rik Smits, who had 24 points and 13 rebounds.

New Jersey 97, Dallas 91--Drazen Petrovic scored nine of his 24 points during the fourth quarter at Dallas and the Nets avoided losing all three games on their trip to Texas. The Mavericks, with Derek Harper scoring 26 points, wiped out a 14-point deficit, but couldn’t hold off the Nets.

Denver 101, Seattle 90--The steady play of rookie center Dikembe Mutombo continued at Denver. Mutombo had 18 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks in this victory.