Webber, Kings Stun the Jazz

Nine seconds into the game, Chris Webber slammed John Stockton to the floor. Forty-seven minutes later, he was still towering over the Utah Jazz.

Webber scored 20 points and sank consecutive hook shots over Karl Malone in the closing minutes as the Sacramento Kings evened their best-of-five series with a 101-90 win over Utah in Game 2 Monday night at Salt Lake City.

The Kings looked scared and tentative when they were blown out, 117-87, in Saturday’s Game 1, the worst playoff loss in franchise history. Webber dramatically changed all that on Utah’s first possession by lowering his shoulder and dropping Stockton as the guard came through the lane.

The flagrant foul knocked the wind out of Stockton, but it seemed to breathe life into the Kings.

“You have to set a tone. You never want the other team to think they can just run you over,” Webber said. “I told John, ‘I tried to get you, but not that hard.’ We had to let them know we were going to be here.”

Stockton’s three-point basket cut Sacramento’s lead to 91-86 with 2:37 to play, but Sacramento went directly to Webber on their next two possessions. The Jazz declined to double-team him, and with the sellout Delta Center crowd seemingly screaming in his face, Webber knocked down two jump hooks in a row over Malone.

The victory was the first in the playoffs during Webber’s sometimes stormy career. He has been to the postseason three times with three different teams, but was 0-7 before beating the Jazz.

Malone had 33 points and 10 rebounds, but his teammates were 20 for 56 from the field. The Jazz played a nightmarish fourth quarter, going five for 21 from the field.

Miami 83, New York 73--Alonzo Mourning scored 26 points as the Heat rediscovered its shooting touch, making 51% of their shots to even the series at 1-1 at Miami.

The Heat shot a season-low 35% Saturday in a 20-point home loss to New York, but this time they overcame 18 turnovers.

Dan Majerle made two three-pointers, his first baskets of the series, to thwart New York’s comeback hopes in the fourth quarter.

Atlanta 89, Detroit 69--The Pistons had no one to contain Dikembe Mutombo, who set a personal playoff high with 28 points and also had 13 rebounds at Atlanta as the Hawks took a 2-0 lead in their series.

Atlanta trailed, 44-43, at halftime, but scored the first 17 points of the second half.

Portland 110, Phoenix 99--Brian Grant and Damon Stoudamire each scored 22 points and Rasheed Wallace added 21 as the Trail Blazers took a 2-0 lead in the series at Portland.

Isaiah Rider added 17 points for the Blazers, who shot 71% in the first quarter and 57% for the game.

NBA Notes

Orlando Magic point guard Darrell Armstrong easily won the Sixth Man Award as the league’s best player off the bench.

Armstrong, one of the keys to Orlando’s surprising success this season, received 85 out of a possible 118 votes from a panel of sports writers and broadcasters.

Rasheed Wallace of the Portland Trail Blazers finished second with 16 votes, and Indiana’s Antonio Davis and Jalen Rose tied for third with five votes each.

Charlotte Hornet interim Coach Paul Silas has accepted a $6 million deal that will keep him as coach for the next four years, according to media reports.