NBA Roundup : Wilkins Gets 42 and Hawks Get Out of Slump

After two straight defeats, the Atlanta Hawks went back to basics, and to Dominique Wilkins.

Wilkins scored 42 points Monday night, the sixth time he has had gone over 40 this season, to lead the Hawks past the Philadelphia 76ers, 112-103, at Atlanta.

“We played a little bit more of our game, pushing the ball up the floor, hitting the boards hard,� Wilkins said.

“I always like to play against the big teams like that. After those last two games, I wanted to get myself back in rhythm.�

The Hawks led throughout the second half and took control in the fourth period with a 17-7 run that stretched an 81-78 lead to 98-85 with just under four minutes left. Wilkins scored seven points in the spurt, and Mike McGee added six.

Atlanta’s decisive run in the final quarter was helped by Philadelphia’s inability to score from the field. After David Wingate hit a three-point basket with 10:30 left, the 76ers went 6:13 without a field goal before Charles Barkley scored on a rebound.

Andrew Toney scored 23 points for Philadelphia, Barkley had 20 points and 17 rebounds, and Maurice Cheeks had 17 points.

Boston 116, New Jersey 103--Larry Bird scored 35 points and Kevin McHale added 31 to spark the Celtics past the Nets at Hartford, Conn., for their seventh victory in nine games.

Bird scored 21 points in the second half, including 11 in the fourth quarter, to help the Celtics hand New Jersey its 13th consecutive road defeat.

Boston outscored the Nets, 22-9, over the final six minutes to break away from a 94-94 tie. McHale added 11 points in the second half, and Danny Ainge scored 15 of his 21.

McHale’s reverse layup broke a 94-94 tie and started a 10-3 spurt in two minutes as Celtics took control with about four minutes left.

Ainge, Bird and McHale had 29 of Boston’s 35 points in the third quarter to reverse a 60-54 halftime deficit en route to an 89-80 lead after three periods.

Mike Gminski scored 28 points for the Nets, Buck Williams added 19 and Albert King had 18.

Houston 124, Denver 108--Akeem Olajuwon collected 31 points and 14 rebounds, and Jim Petersen added a career-high 22 points at Houston as the Rockets dealt the Nuggets their fourth straight defeat and seventh in eight games.

The Rockets broke the game open midway through the third quarter with a 10-0 surge that pushed their lead to 82-67.

For Denver, Alex English scored 23 points and Lafayette Lever added 21.

Houston’s Cedric Maxwell sank a free throw late in the first quarter for his 10,000th career point.

Dallas 121, Golden State 95--Rolando Blackman scored 25 points and Brad Davis added 24 to lead the Mavericks past the Warriors at Oakland.

The Mavericks scored the first 12 points, and the Warriors never got within 11 points the rest of the way.

Eric (Sleepy) Floyd scored 24 points for the Warriors but was shut out in the first quarter, when Dallas built a 31-12 lead. It was Golden State’s lowest-scoring quarter of the season.

The Warriors played the second half without center Joe Barry Carroll, who left the game after falling and spraining his left thumb late in the second quarter. Backup center Jerome Whitehead was unavailable because of a bruised toe.

Mark Aguirre added 19 points for Dallas.

Cleveland 109, Washington 105--Phil Hubbard scored 21 points, and the Cavaliers survived a second-half rally to turn back the Bullets at Richfield, Ohio.

Ron Harper and John (Hot Rod) Williams added 18 points apiece, and Brad Daugherty had 15 for Cleveland, which was helped by six illegal defense technical fouls against Washington.

Terry Catledge scored 27 points for Washington, 19 in the third quarter. Moses Malone added 18 points and Jeff Malone had 17.