But just like before, not a single New York fan was foolish enough to celebrate victory prematurely.
There had been enough tragedies created by Roger at Madison Square Garden, and until the time completely ran out, you never knew what he would do in New York.
Brian Hill didn't call a timeout because he only had one left, and he wanted to save it for a more critical moment.
So, the decision for this play was entirely left to the players.
Or to be more direct, it was completely left to Roger and Shaq.
Ron Harper nervously took it over half-court, as Roger kept moving actively. But O'Neal quickly secured his position, so Harper lobbed the ball in.
After O'Neal caught the ball, the swift double team from The Big Ape and Oakley was in place.
But Shaq didn't recklessly go for a one-on-one play and instead bounced the ball low to Roger who had run to mid-range.
O'Neal's pass was very pretty, and after one dribble, Roger jumped up to take the shot.
