Pistol Shows Some of his Old Magic

Part 3 of 5 in the Pete Maravich Series

February 1980

Wait till they see this box score in Philadelphia.

No Cedric Maxwell (sprained ankle). Only three field goals for Larry Bird ("He was dealt," said Bill Fitch, "a pair of deuces and he still made the most of them"). Only three field goals for Dave Cowens. A four-point deficit after three quarters. All this, and still the fifth Celtic victory in large measure because of another fascinating entry in the box: Pete Maravich , 12-7-31.

These are the games coaches remember far more than players. They make decisions on personnel and they train people. Coaches know very well that good teams must survive adversity, and Bill Fitch, therefore, had to feel good about the Celtics' 114-102 triumph over the Indiana Pacers last night.

It was a grinder against a team that gives the Celtics an inordinate amount of trouble. "They match up very well against us," said M.L. Carr, a major contributor with 23 points and 9 rebounds in 44 minutes of floor time.

But the Pacers went home losers for the fourth time in six tries against the Celtics this season, and they did so for a variety of reasons, ranging from a bad start to an inability to deal with Mr. Bird (14 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists) down the stretch. But there might have been no game at all were it not for the sensational shooting of Maravich, who shot 12 for 18 and who scored 31 of the first 88 Celtic points.

Pete had dropped a hint that he was ready to break loose offensively on Monday night by hitting five straight shots in the third quarter of the Nets' rout. Last night he found himself starting as Maxwell was forced to six out with a sprained left ankle and Carr was shifted back to his more familiar forward spot ("It was like going back home," quoth Michael Leon). And The Pistol was ready, scoring 10 points in the first quarter (29-19, Boston) and 11 in the second as the Celtics moved into a 60-49 halftime lead.

Included in his second-period performance was a one-minute burst that would have been very recognizable to the folks in Raleigh, Baton Rouge and New Orleans. With the Celtics leading by a 42-31 score, and with the fascinating quintet of Rick Robey, Carr, Jeff Judkins (as a forward), Gerald Henderson and Maravich on the floor, The Pistol went to work. A stutter step followed by a long turnaround for two. A high banked runner for a three-point play. A 4-on-2 pull-up fast-break jumper.

He had scored seven straight Boston points in 1:05 to give the team a 49-33 lead, and the capacity crowd of 15,622 was grooving on it.

The only problem was that he had little offensive help, especially since the gruesome officiating of the inept Bob Rakel and the confused Ralph Lembo had Bird and Cowens out of the game early with personals. Though each had only a pair, Fitch had them yanked pronto. "I just felt," he explained, "that it was one of those nights when I didn't want them with three at the half. I wanted them ready for the entire second half."

This offensive impotence was underlined when the Pacers erased a 69-55 third-period Boston lead with a 15-1 blast. That gave them a 71-70 lead with 3:57 left in the period. Mike Bantom scored 12 points and the Pacers were sitting on an 83-79 three-period advantage.

The turning point in the fourth quarter was - can't you guess? - the re- entry of Bird into the fray with 10:16 to play and the Pacers leading by an 87-83 score.

Bird broke an 88-88 deadlock with a spectacular lefthanded running hook, the first of several clutch baskets the team would score. A layup by Robey gave the team a nonrefundable lead at 96-94, but the key sequence came shortly afterward when, with Boston leading by a 99-96 score, Bird somehow found Carr sneaking in along the baseline for a layup; Robey rebounded a Billy Knight miss and Maravich fed Carr for another layup that gave the Celtics a seven- point (103-96) lead that not even the Rakel-Lembo combine or their own penchant for last-minute turnovers could overcome.

Fittingly, Carr, Mr. Showman himself, capped a nice evening for the fans with a 30-foot three-pointer at the buzzer. He, as well as Maravich and Bird, had earned the applause.