LANDOVER -- As the final minutes wound down in last night's game against the San Antonio Spurs, the Washington Bullets were covering Chuck Person like a glove.
If only they had done that for the rest of the game.
Person, making his first start for injured Sean Elliott, hit eight three-pointers -- two shy of the NBA record -- and scored 27 points as the Spurs defeated the Washington Bullets, 115-101, before a sellout crowd of 18,756 at USAir Arena.
Playing their last game of 1994, the Bullets lost for the 11th time in their past 12 and dropped to 7-19.
"Bring on '95," Bullets coach Jim Lynam said afterward.
San Antonio, coming off Thursday's overtime loss in Atlanta, improved to 15-10 as David Robinson scored 30 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked seven shots.
"What he didn't block, he intimidated," Lynam said of Robinson, who has scored more than 30 points in six of his past seven games.
The only thing the Bullets can be thankful for after last night's game is that they don't have to play the Spurs again this season. San Antonio had beaten the Bullets by 21 points on Dec. 12, and last night's game was nowhere as close as the final score indicated.
Person had seven three-pointers through three quarters. His three-pointer with 4.5 seconds left in the third set a record for the most ever against the Bullets (twice, players had hit six, most recently Michael Jordan on Dec. 23, 1992). His first eight field goals of the game were three-pointers. His ninth was a layup, only after Bullets forward Larry Stewart overplayed him when Person was ready to launch another three.
"Chuck Person just couldn't miss. He was the difference in the ballgame," Calbert Cheaney said. "It's not like we were playing bad defense. You get up on him and -- his release is so quick -- the next thing, the ball's gone. He shoots it when you think he's not going to shoot it."
Person, in his first season with the Spurs, said he was simply doing his job.
"I'm a shooter. My job is to shoot," said Person, who had six three-pointers against Atlanta on Thursday. "The offense is run through David, so you have to pick your spots when you get the chance. I'm feeling loose and starting to play well."
It's the second time this season Person has burned the Bullets. In the first meeting, Person had four three-pointers in the third quarter -- tying the record for most three-pointers made in a quarter against Washington.
"David Robinson puts enormous pressure on you, and they did a good job finding [Person]," Lynam said.
The Bullets didn't do a good job of finding each other, as Washington had a season-low 10 assists (the previous low was 11 against Sacramento on Dec. 20). Washington had five assists each half and didn't get its first assist of the second half until Stewart fed Anthony Tucker for a layup with 4:55 left in the game.
The lack of assists may have been a result of Lynam's challenge to the team to get to the basket more in an attempt to draw fouls. The Bullets -- who entered the game shooting fewer free throws than any team in the league -- went to the line 30 times (hitting 21). But the times they didn't draw fouls, the Bullets were being turned away by Robinson.
Scott Skiles took it strong to the basket with 7:07 left in the third quarter, and the move cost him the last part of the game. Skiles appeared to be hammered by Person, but the officials did not call a foul. Skiles argued loudly, but not long -- he was quickly ejected by official Hugh Evans.
"I think he got fouled. He had a legitimate argument," Cheaney said. "You go to the basket that hard and get hit that hard, you should get the call."
Cheaney's 23 points led the way, and Juwan Howard had 18 points and 15 rebounds. Other than that, there wasn't a lot to cheer about, and many in the crowd opted to leave early.
"We definitely have to find some consistency," Mitchell Butler said. "We're young. We'll take our knocks."
Second-year center Gheorghe Muresan took his knocks against
the swifter Robinson. Starting in place of Kevin Duckworth, Muresan had 10 points and six rebounds in 22 minutes. When the Spurs secured a defensive rebound, Robinson sprinted up the floor and was often rewarded with easy layups or dunks. He hit nine of his 14 shots, scoring his 30 points in 32 minutes.
"He's big, no doubt," Robinson said of Muresan. "If you don't beat him down the floor, you have to get around him or shoot the jump shot."
Because of Robinson, the first half boiled down to two games -- the 19 minutes that Robinson played and the five minutes that he didn't. When Robinson sat, the Bullets outscored the Spurs 14-6 and took a one-point lead.
However, in the 19 minutes that Robinson played, the Spurs had a 59-37 advantage, which was a big reason why San Antonio had a 65-51 halftime lead.
San Antonio led by as many as 20 points in the game, and Robinson got a break, as he played just 13 minutes in the second half.
That was enough to make an impact on the Bullets, who are glad to say goodbye to the 1994 portion of the season.
"It's a test of my patience, I can tell you that," Howard said. "But I will stick with it and think positive. I have faith in this team."
NOTES: Chris Webber (injured list, separated shoulder) had an MRI test yesterday, and the results were negative, keeping the estimated time he'll be out at six weeks. . . . Dennis Rodman, sporting a new orange hairdo, had a typical game -- 10 rebounds and one point in 32 minutes off the bench.