NEW YORK -- The New York Knicks, whose character had been questioned the last month of the season, Saturday showed their mettle when it was needed most.
Trent Tucker sank his only basket, a 3-point shot with 10 seconds left, to cap an 11-0 New York run that gave the Knicks a 107-106 triumph over the Philadelphia 76ers and a 2-0 lead in their opening-round playoff series.
New York can clinch the best-of-five series with a triumph in Game 3 at Philadelphia Tuesday.
The Knicks went 5-5 the final month of the season but won the Atlantic Division for the first time since 1971. Their spotty play left them open to questions concerning their readiness for the postseason.
The Knicks, however, have responded with a pair of memorbale victories in their first two playoff games. The 76ers lost Game 1 when Mark Jackson hit a 30-foot 3-pointer with 16 seconds left.
'I couldn't sleep last night,' New York Coach Rick Pitino said. 'I had this bad nightmare around 2 a.m. that Charles Barkley hit a winning shot at the end to give Philly the win. But before the game, and this is true, I told Trent that I had a dream that he would hit a game-winning shot today. I might have lied, but it came out true.'
Tucker took a pass from Jackson, who had scored 6 points in the Knicks' final surge, and hit his 3-point bomb from the top-right of the circle.
'Mark Jackson got double-teamed and just kicked it out to me,' said Tucker, who had missed his first 7 shots. 'I had to take the shot, my rotation felt so good, and fortunately we won the game.'
New York held the Sixers scoreless over the final 2:12, rallying from a 106-96 deficit.
Jackson began the comeback with a 3-pointer and followed with a free throw and basket to draw the Knicks within 106-102 with 59 seconds left.
New York then used its press to cause a steal and a jumper by Gerald Wilkins. Patrick Ewing trapped Maurice Cheeks near the center line and the Philadelphia guard was called for a 10-second violation, giving New York the ball with 39 seconds left.
'I thought our halfcourt trap was a key to our win,' Pitino said. 'We disguised it well and that's what won it for us in the end.'
Wilkins missed a jumper, but he rebounded and passed to Jackson, setting up Tucker's 3-pointer.
'We had the game won,' Cheeks said. 'We just have to try to extract something positive out of this game. But I'd be lying to you if I said it wasn't going to be very hard.'
Mike Gminski missed two shots in the final 10 seconds for Philadelphia.
'With two seconds left, you look for Barkley at the line, Cheeks in the corner or Gminski,' said Philadelphia Coach Jim Lynam. 'It is a very difficult loss for us, but we will be ready to play Tuesday.'
Ewing was plagued by foul problems and finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Johnny Newman added 20 points for New York.
Philadelphia received 30 points and 12 rebounds from Barkley and 26 points from reserve Ron Anderson.
New York scored 6 straight points to take an 85-84 lead with 8:50 left in the game. The Sixers countered with a 9-2 run behind 5 points from Anderson to regain the advantage at 93-87. Philadelphia built the lead to 106-96 on a pair of free throws by Barkley with 2:12 left. The free throws capped an 7-2 run but were the final points Philadelphia scored.
'It's a very difficult and tough loss,' Lynam said. 'Just like the other night, the same result.'
Philadelphia outscored the Knicks 18-6 to build a 76-68 lead with 3:30 left in the third quarter. Rod Strickland led the Knicks' surge the rest of the way, scoring 6 points in a 9-3 run that pulled New York within 79-77 entering the final period.
The Knicks turned the ball over 7 times in the third quarter, including three straight possessions.
New York played the final 10:14 of the second period without Ewing after he received his third foul. Even without much help from Ewing, New York outscored Philadelphia 5-4 over the first seven minutes.
Kiki Vandeweghe sank a 3-pointer to begin the surge and ended the run with a layin off a pass from Jackson for New York's 48-35 lead.
Over the next five minutes, Barkley made his presence felt for the first time in the series. Philadelphia outscored New York 19-10 the rest of the quarter to trail 58-54 at intermission.
Barkley scored 10 points, including 4 in a 7-0 run that brought Philadelphia within 48-42 with 4:27 left.
