seconds left and the ball at half-court. Terry Cummings received an inbounds pass and shot a short leaner on the baseline that hit the rim and bounced away. Several tips ensued from players on both teams positioned by the basket. The sequence ended when Allan Houston tipped the ball in at the buzzer for an apparent game-winner, however the referees ruled it to be after the buzzer and awarded the game to Miami. Replays later ruled that Houston last touched the ball with 0.2 seconds left and the basket should have counted. Jeff Van Gundy and the Knicks protested the game's outcome, but were denied by the league office. In the April 25, 1999 game in Miami, the Heat took a 20-point lead on the Knicks in the first half and maintained it well into the 2nd half. The game entered the 4th quarter with Miami still up by 16, but the Knicks came back, outscoring the Heat 34–16 in the final quarter to win 82–80 and help jump-start the slumping Knicks, who were only 22–21 at this time, to a final surge which would lead to them capturing the #8 seed in the playoffs and eventually defeat top-seeded Miami in the first round that year. In the April 9, 2000 game in Miami, a hotly contested game was sent to overtime due to a sequence in which center Patrick Ewing grabbed three offensive rebounds off missed Knick 3-pointers before finally finding point guard Chris Childs who connected on a 3 with only seconds left, tying the game. Miami was unable to score, hence the overtime. In OT, Childs was in the spotlight again. With the Knicks leading 93–92, Childs was intentionally fouled and sent to the line. He made one to give New York a 94–92 lead. The Heat had 4.5 seconds left to inbound from half-court and score. The ball went to point guard Tim Hardaway, who could not shake free from Childs. He ended up forcing a 3 from an awkward angle with Childs covering him tightly. It improbably went in at the buzzer, giving Miami a bedlam-inducing 95–94 win. This game was seen as the game in which the Heat pulled away for the race for 1st in the Atlantic Division. 2000–2010: Decline of the rivalry In the years following the 2000 playoffs, the rivalry greatly weakened, in the 2000 off season the Knicks traded long