LANDOVER -- For the Washington Bullets, the 1994 portion of their season ended at the USAir Arena ugly -- very ugly.
Going against All-Star center David Robinson and sharp shooting forward Chuck Person, the Bullets collapsed in last night's 115-101 loss before a sellout crowd.
It was the 11th loss in the past 12 games for the Bullets, who fell to 7-19.
Calbert Cheaney's 23 points, and 18 points and 15 rebounds from Juwan Howard led the Bullets.
San Antonio got 30 points from Robinson and 27 from Chuck Person, who stared in place of Sean Elliott (dislocated right index finger). Person hit eight three-pointers -- all but one of his field goals. The seven were the most by an individual against the Bullets.
The Spurs had a 93-76 lead going into the fourth quarter and never looked back. Washington was able to get as close as 107-97 after a three-pointer by Cheaney with 3:12 left.
But Robinson, taking a break at the start of the fourth quarter, checked in, and the game was over as the Spurs cruised for the win.
The Bullets had just 10 assists for the game, not getting an assist in the second half until Larry Stewart fed Anthony Tucker for a layup with 4:55 left in the game. Their assist total was one more than that of Avery Johnson, who had nine assists and no turnovers.
The first half boiled down to two different games -- the 19 minutes that Robinson played and the five minutes that he didn't. In the four minutes that 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.
At the start of the game, it was Bullets center Gheorghe Muresan, starting in place of Kevin Duckworth, who was the dominant center on the court. The Spurs had J. R. Reid on Muresan, who used his height advantage to score six points in the first three minutes, the last two on a a layup that had the Bullets within 10-7.
San Antonio coach Bob Hill made the defensive switch, and the Spurs -- particularly Robinson -- were off and running. Robinson would finish the quarter with 13 points and the Spurs led 30-23 after a layup by Willie Anderson with 1:35 left in the quarter.
Washington, which had hit nine of its first 13 shots before cooling off, scored the last four of the quarter. Doug Overton drove the lane for a layup, and Mitchell Butler hit a short jumper at the buzzer that had the Bullets within 30-27.
Those final four points of the quarter came with Robinson out of the game. With Robinson sitting out the first part of the second quarter, the Bullets made their move. A three-pointer by Overton three minutes into the quarter had Washington ahead 36-33. The lead was 37-36 after Duckworth hit a free throw with 8:19 left.
That's when Robinson checked back in. Immediately the Spurs responded, scoring the next eight points, including two three-pointers by Chuck Person.
That was the start of a 24-8 run, during which Robinson scored only four points. But Person was hot, hitting all four of his three-pointers during the run. After Robinson hit a short jumper, the Spurs had a 60-45 lead, with 2:40 left.
San Antonio would lead by as many as 16 points and, behind 19 first-half points by Robinson and 15 by Person (who hit five three-pointers), the Spurs had a 65-51 halftime lead.
The Bullets hardly made a dent in the third, trailing by as many as 20 points in the quarter. Scott Skiles wasn't around to see it all, having been ejected by official Hugh Evans with 7:07 left. Skiles appeared to be hit by Person on a layup attempt, but a call wasn't made. He protested loudly and was immediately ejected.
That appeared momentarily to ignite the Bullets, who scored the next 10 points. And after two free throws by Juwan Howard with 5:58 left, the Bullets were within 77-66.
But an opportunity to get that lead into single digits was thwarted when Overton turned the ball over on Washington's next possession. Avery Johnson converted that turnover into a layup, and the Spurs took control. Person's three-pointer with 4.5 seconds left -- his seventh of the game, setting an individual record for a game -- gave San Antonio a 93-76 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Robinson was unstoppable in the first half, scoring 19 points and blocking four shots.