NEW YORK -- One night after posting one of their most impressive wins of the season, the Washington Bullets were looking to see if they could duplicate their success on the road.
One night after suffering their most embarrassing loss of the season, the New York Knicks were looking for someone to unleash their frustrations against.
So the Bullets found themselves wandering into Madison Square Garden at an inopportune time and the Knicks -- despite a sub-par effort from all-star center Patrick Ewing -- still managed a 111-95 win before a sellout crowd.
Ewing scored three points, hitting one of four shots from the field. He did manage 10 rebounds in his brief appearance, spending much of his evening watching his team bounce back from Friday's 125-100 loss to the Eastern Division-leading Orlando Magic.
The Knicks didn't need Ewing last night, not with the effort they got out of their small forward position. Charles Smith, the starter, scored 23 points. Anthony Mason came off the bench to hit 22. And it was enough to give New York its 11th straight win over the Bullets.
For the Bullets, Scott Skiles led the way with 20 points. Calbert Cheaney had 19 and Chris Webber 18. But the chemistry and balance that existed in the 115-104 win over the Pistons on Friday never developed.
New York's lead was 15 going into the final quarter, all the more reason to allow Ewing to rest his aching knees. A team that had problems scoring last season, the Knicks shot 60.0 percent from the field last night.
For the second night in a row, the Bullets found themselves in a 15-point hole in the first half. Against the Knicks, it was the inability to defend Smith and Mason that hurt the most.
Each wound up with 14 first-half points. Smith scored 10 of his in the first quarter. Mason had 10 of his in the second.
And their contribution -- combined they hit 10 of 11 field goals -- was enough to give the Knicks a 53-45 halftime lead.
Smith set the tone early, scoring the first four points of New York's game-opening 10-2 run. The Bullets recovered, with a Webber dunk starting Washington on a 13-3 run. A layup by Kevin Duckworth ended the run, giving the Bullets a 17-13 lead with 5:40 left.
But Smith, who had a size advantage against Don MacLean, scored on a jumper. Then he took MacLean inside, and scored on a layup. The Knicks' run would reach eight straight, giving them a 21-17 lead after a dunk by Mason with 3:17 left.
Mason would score seven of New York's last eight points, but by quarter's end the Bullets had closed to 27-26.
The same Washington reserves who played nearly flawlessly against the Pistons had their difficulty at the start of the second quarter. That's when the Knicks scored the first 11 points -- six points coming off turnovers -- to take a 38-26 lead after a Herb Williams jumper.
By the time Mason scored on a layup with 4:33 left, New York's lead was 49-34. The Bullets would end the half with a 9-2 run, but the Knicks, after shooting 55.3 percent, had a 53-45 halftime lead.
There would be no letdown in the second half by the Knicks, who got just four first-half points by their all-star trio of Ewing, Charles Oakley and John Starks. Ewing, scoreless in 16 first-half minutes, scored New York's first three of the third quarter.
By the time Derek Harper converted a three-point play with 3:14 left, New York again had a 15-point lead, 78-63. Starks, who had two first-half points, scored five of New York's last seven of the third, which ended with the Knicks holding an 85-70 lead.