Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 23, 1993 TAG: 9305230015
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: TERRY ARMOUR CHICAGO TRIBUNE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Ewing is strength.
Ewing is power.
Ewing is quality
The Chicago Bulls counter with quantity.
That could mean trouble for the Bulls when the Eastern Conference Finals open today at New York's Madison Square Garden.
No one man has been able to stop the 7-foot, 240-pound Ewing this season but, then again, you don't really stop Ewing. You try to contain Ewing.
Nobody has been able to contain him in the playoffs - until now when Bill Cartwright, Scott Williams, Will Perdue and Stacey King are confronted with the task.
Ewing carries the title hopes of the New York Knicks squarely on his ample shoulders. New York coach Pat Riley has drilled this into Ewing's head: If the Knicks are to win their first NBA title since 1973, he is the man to take them there.
"Since Pat Riley has been there," said former teammate and current Bull Trent Tucker, "he has worked on [Patrick's] mental psyche - that as Patrick Ewing goes, so go the Knicks."
Ewing comes into the conference finals averaging 25.2 points and 10.8 rebounds in this postseason. He also has added 20 blocks in nine games, 21 assists and seven steals.
Alonzo Mourning of the Charlotte Hornets had the best shot at controlling Ewing in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
It didn't happen.
Now here are the Bulls, with the aging Cartwright anchoring center. But they have a plan - similar to the one used in the conference semifinals against Daugherty.
The Bulls have their "Gang of Four," their "Center by Committee" or, as defensive coach John Bach calls them, "The Four-Headed Dragon."
Mr. Ewing - meet Mr. Cartwright and Mr. Perdue and Mr. King and Mr. Williams.
"We have strength in numbers," reserve Perdue said. "We can keep throwing numbers at him and we have a lot of fouls to waste. Now, we don't want to just go out there and get fouls, but you want to wear him down."
That is what the Bulls did to the 7-foot Daugherty, the focal point of the Cavaliers' offense.
The Bulls banged him. The Bulls bumped him. The Bulls double-teamed him. The Bulls slapped at the ball.
And, in the end, the Bulls simply frustrated Daugherty.
"You have to just double-team Patrick and keep the ball out of his hands and not let him get position," forward Horace Grant said. "Just like we did with Daugherty."
Of course, that's easier said than done. Ewing is not Daugherty. And the Bulls - though Cartwright has been successful containing Ewing in the past - had a hard time handling Ewing during the regular season.
In four games, three of which were won by New York, Ewing averaged 24.5 points and 14.2 rebounds against the Bulls, including 36 points and 15 rebounds in a 104-96 victory over Chicago at the Stadium when Michael Jordan was serving a one-game suspension.
The Bulls did manage to hold Ewing to just 14 points in an 89-77 Christmas Day victory over the Knicks, but that's about as successful as they have been.
Bach wouldn't be specific about how the Bulls plan on stopping Ewing ("If I had that information, I wouldn't give it out."). However, you can bet the defense will be similar to that played in the Bulls-Cavs series.
That's where the "Gang of Four" comes in.
"We will try and approach it the same way we did against Daugherty," center-forward Scott Williams said. "We'll rotate guys for the double-team, not let him get a good look at the basket and then try and stay high enough where we can disrupt their offense."
Said Cartwright: "Nothing special; Nothing we haven't done. We're just going to work on him and try and keep him away from the bucket as much as we can and limit his shots."
Perdue has had some success defending Ewing. For some reason, Perdue just has a knack for getting under Ewing's skin. He even has blocked a couple of Ewing's shots over the years.
Yet even Perdue contends that this season, Ewing has been tougher.
"You want to give him the outside shot," Perdue says. "But a lot of times, you'd try to push him off the blocks and give him that shot. But now, he's increased his range to 18 or 19 feet. And he has had great success."
Perdue thinks he has found one weakness in Ewing's game, however.
"If he does drive, it's usually a one-dribble drive and he tries to take it as far as he can," Perdue said. "If he's not in that one-dribble range, that's where his weakness is."
Perdue said he, King and Williams relish a chance to stop a prime-time center, especially after the success they had against Daugherty.
It's almost like being in a no-lose situation, Perdue said.
"I'm not saying you can make a name for yourself," Perdue said. "But if you play well or Ewing has a bad game, gets into foul trouble, everything is concentrated on him.
"So if you play a halfway-decent game, it's going to be considered that you played well against one of the better centers in the league."
by CNB