The Miami Heat may never see the Alonzo Mourning of old, but for at least two games on this road trip he was close.

Mourning was physical (battling the Warriors' front line), emotional and confident. He made 18-of-24 shots against Golden State and the Lakers, and took advantage of Los Angeles' depleted front line early by scoring 13 first-quarter points on a variety of outside jumpers and dunks. He finished with 28 points and 11 rebounds in Los Angeles.

"I think he's stronger inside. I think his moves in traffic are more defined, better based," Heat coach Pat Riley said. "A month ago he was just catching it, falling away and not thinking about leverage and things like that."

Mourning averaged 34 minutes in the two games. Without Shaquille O'Neal in the lineup Wednesday, his biggest challenge would come late Thursday as the Heat concluded the trip against the Trail Blazers on the second night of a back-to-back.

"His conditioning and stamina are better right now for some reason," Riley said. "He seems to be sustaining position play for longer periods of time."

n How times have changed: Portland center Chris Dudley participated in three consecutive Heat-Knicks post-season battles. Now, Dudley can't get used to seeing the two teams at the bottom of the Atlantic Division.

"It seems real strange," he said. "I'm kind of glad I'm not there (in New York) for it because it was nice to enjoy it while we were two of the best teams and battling every year.

"I really feel for the guys in New York. I have a lot of friends on that team and I know they are struggling. Hopefully they can pull through it."

Dudley started two games in the 1998 series in which the Knicks won Game 5 in Miami as Mourning and Larry Johnson sat out after their fight in the final seconds of Game 4.

After playing in Phoenix for one season, Dudley signed with Portland in September to back up center Dale Davis.

Noteworthy: Riley called Portland coach Maurice Cheeks "one of the great point guards ever to play the game. He was very competitive, a floor leader, a general, a tough defensive player." Cheeks played 11 of his 15 seasons in Philadelphia, including twice in the Finals against Riley's Lakers.