NEW YORK -- With Patrick Ewing struggling through his worst game of the year, the New York Knicks fell back on what's got them through time and again this season -- hustle.
'It was about who played the hardest,' said Charles Oakley, who scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds Tuesday night, helping the Knicks eliminate the Charlotte Hornets from the NBA playoffs with a 105- 101 victory that sends New York into an Eastern Conference final showdown with the Chicago Bulls.
The Knicks, who defeated Charlotte 4-1, will now host the two-time defending NBA champion Bulls beginning Sunday in New York.
The Knicks advanced to the conference finals for the first time since 1974 when they lost to the Boston Celtics in five games. This is the first year since their 1973 championship season that New York has won two playoff series.
Ewing, strapped with foul trouble, scored just 9 points before fouling out in the final three minutes. But Oakley and Charles Smith picked up the offensive slack for the Knicks, who posted their 25th straight win at home.
'Oak did an outstanding job, not only on defense but on offense,' Ewing said. 'He got some key offensive rebounds and put-backs. He was just Oak, doing what he's been doing all year....He's been a rock.'
Oakley led New York with 21 points and 11 rebounds while Smith, who struggled through the first three games of the series, had his second straight solid effort with 18 points.
John Starks scored 20 points -- including a key 3-pointer with 1:15 left -- and added nine assists. Doc Rivers added 14 points and inspired the Knicks in the second half with some solid defensive work and hustle.
'Hustle,' Oakley said. 'We're a tough team. We don't play soft.'
The Knicks needed every bit of that toughness against the young Hornets, who weren't content to be a quiet prelude to the much-awaited Bulls-Knicks series. Charlotte, in the playoffs for the first time in its five year history, played with the abandon of 5-foot-3 point guard Muggsy Bogues.
'I'm as proud as punch,' said rookie center Alonzo Mourning, who had 22 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks. 'We have a bunch of men on this team that would do anything they have to do to win the game. We built the foundation for a great number of years to come. From now on, everyone will know Charlottemeans business.'
Kendall Gill scored 26 points and Dell Curry finished with 18 for Charlotte.
'We surprised a lot of people but we didn't surprise ourselves,' Curry said. 'We felt very confident of our ability and we were underestimated by everyone else. I felt that we could have won every game, but the bounces didn't always go our way.'
Larry Johnson, plagued with foul trouble in the first half, scored just 10 points for Charlotte, which battled back from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
'We learned a couple things but we only played all right,' Johnson said. 'We need to keep our composure and it will come to us in time.'
New York led 84-72 after Starks nailed a jumper with 8:24 left, but the Hornets scored 7 straight points. Curry fueled the run with a jumper and a layin, and Mourning drew a fifth foul on Ewing during the surge.
Mourning fouled Ewing out with 3:14 left on an inside move and made two free throws that brought the Hornets to within 92-87.
With Ewing gone, the Hornets went right at the basket and when Curry was fouled on a drive and hit a free throw with 1:04 left, Charlotte was within 99-96.
Oakley scored and was fouled on a drive by Johnson that gave the Knicks a 101-96 lead with 55 seconds left. Oakley missed the free throw, giving the Hornets new life and Johnson scored inside to trim it to 101- 98.
On New York's next trip Smith missed a jumper, but Johnson stepped out of bounds trying to run down the long rebound. David Wingate fouled Starks on the inbounds play and Starks hit both free throws to give New York a 103-98 advantage with 20 seconds left.
But the Hornets were not about to let their season end without a fight. Gill gave Charlotte new life by draining a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 103-100. The Hornets fouled Starks again, and the Knicks guard responded by making the pair with 10 seconds left.
On Charlotte's last possession, Curry missed a 3-pointer and Mason blocked Gill's attempt as the clock ran out.
'The difference was definitely New York's experience and our lack of focus,' Mourning said. 'We also lacked defense down the stretch in a couple of games. However, our competitiveness made up for our mental mistakes.'
With Ewing on the bench in the third, Mason and Rivers fueled a 14-4 run to close the quarter that gave the Knicks a 75-65 lead.
Rivers drilled a 3-pointer during the burst and played some inspirational defense for the Knicks, who struggled to get untracked offensively with Ewing out of the lineup.
Despite playing without Johnson for nearly all of the first half, and with Mourning making only 2 of 9 shots from the floor, the Hornets only trailed 45-42 at halftime.
Johnson picked up three quick personal fouls and a technical in the game's first seven minutes and sat out the remainder of the half.
