Ralph Sampson, the Houston Rockets’ center who...

Ralph Sampson, the Houston Rockets’ center who was injured in a fall at the Boston Garden Monday night, suffered a severe back bruise and is not expected to play tonight in Indianapolis against the Pacers or against Detroit Friday, ending his streak of 236 consecutive games played during his three-year NBA career.

The bruise is in the thoracic area of Sampson’s back--the cavity that contains the heart and lungs.

News that Sampson would be lost for only two games drew sighs of relief because the early reports Monday night were more ominous. He initially had no feeling and no movement in his right leg, raising fears that he may have suffered a broken back.

Five hours after he was carried off the floor on a stretcher, Sampson walked out of Massachusetts General Hospital. X-rays of his head, neck and back showed no broken bones. He is resting at his home in Harrisonburg, Va.