Heat ready to go against 'desperate' Knicks

By DARRELL FRY,

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 9, 2000

MIAMI -- Don't bother reminding the Heat it is up a game on New York in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series. In an effort to maintain its intensity, the Heat is trying to pretend things are different going into tonight's Game 2 at AmericanAirlines Arena.

"We've got to come in like we're down a game, not with a one-game cushion," center Alonzo Mourning said.

The reason is simple: The Heat figures it will see a slightly different Knicks team tonight than in Game 1, an 87-83 Miami win. This New York team, Miami believes, will be more fierce, focused and desperate.

"They are going to come at us extremely hard. They are going to up the degree of difficulty," Mourning said. "They don't want to go back to New York down 0-2."

Added coach Pat Riley: "The team that's been most desperate in this series has always found a way to win."

AW, SHUCKS, IT WAS NOTHING: Riley came off looking like a genius in Game 1 when he called the play that got Mourning the ball inside for an easy layup that proved to be the winner with 41.8 seconds left.

But Riley isn't taking much of the credit.

"Any time the game is going down to that situation, you can do things to get guys open, but guys have got to make plays," Riley said. "And what happened at the end there was Zo made some plays."

Riley said the play, in which Mourning seals off Patrick Ewing and gets the pass from the wing, is one the Heat has had all season but hasn't used much.

FOUL TIME: The Heat made about 10 layups, many of them uncontested, and had almost as many dunks Sunday.

"We never fouled them once," Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy.

So the Knicks plan to put a stop to their soft play.

"It has to change around -- no layups," Chris Childs said. "You have to put guys down. Not to hurt them, but to make them earn it at the free throw line."

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