Basketball is simple sometimes. A set shot with no defense swiping at your every move, no teammates to pass to, no plays to run. It's just you and the basket: a couple of hard dribbles, a quick spin of the ball in your hands, an exhalation of deep breath and staring down at your unmoving target.

Make them both and the lead is four. Barring a LJ- esque miracle four-point play, the Knick win was all but guaranteed.

Miss even one and security is taken away. Danger looms like an ominous cloud as sharp three-point shooting Celtics stare back with eager eyes.

Miss two and panic seeps into the air. The chance to seal the win has turned into a chance for lose.

Latrell Sprewell stands at the line. He wasn't simply just the best Knick that night; his performance had bested any player in a Knick uniform in years.

He was having one of his best games as a pro, displaying his full repertoire of slashing to the basket and hitting uncharacteristic long bombs, again and again until your eyes blinked in disbelief. He was simply unstoppable. The Celtics ran double and triple teams at him once it got ridiculous in the second half, still he found a way to score.

He had 12 points in the first quarter, 14 in the second, 16 in the third and 7 in the fourth. He worked just as hard on the defensive end, never letting Paul Pierce to be a major factor in the game and holding him to just 8 - 23 shooting.

Sprewell was magnificent, pure and simple. He hit on 18 of 32 shots and even grabbed 7 rebounds. He eluded every defender Boston threw at him. He pulled the Knicks out of their disarray at the start of the game to erase an early 9-point Boston lead. He led the offensive charge again when the Knicks again stumbled into an 8-point hole in the second quarter. He gave the Knicks the competitive force in the third and gave them the slight edge over the Celtics in the fourth.

Of the 88 points Knicks scored in the game up to that point, Sprewell was responsible for 48 of them. There was just one last challenge left for him: Two free throws.

Making both would give him 50 points, a milestone reached only by the elite few. The fans were on their feet. This was for the team, and also for Sprewell.

But unfortunately, life doesn't follow scripts, at least not ones Knick fans like to write. The first shot from the charity line missed its target. Sprewell made good on the second one, as if in conciliation. But it wasn't good enough. Antoine Walker hit the open three at the other end of the court and the game was sent into overtime.

In overtime, the Knicks completely disintegrated, scoring only 4 points in the extra 5-minute session behind 3 Knick turnovers, including two ghastly ones by Allan Houston, to throw the game away.

Please give feedback to our writers by rating this article: