The AP reports: Tony Parker keeps finding ways to hurt the Minnesota Timberwolves. Manu Ginobili just keeps getting hurt. Parker scored 36 points on 13-of-17 shooting to lead the Spurs to a 99-93 victory over Minnesota on Tuesday night, handing the Timberwolves their 13th consecutive loss. Ginobili, who missed the first 12 games of the season because of left ankle surgery, limped slightly to the sideline with about four minutes left. He returned two minutes later and played until 15 seconds remained in the game… Tim Duncan added 19 points and 12 rebounds for the Spurs (18-10), who have won nine of 11 and head into a Christmas day matchup against the Suns in Phoenix… Al Jefferson led the Timberwolves with 28 points. Randy Foye added 26 points and a career-high 16 rebounds.
Day: December 24, 2008
Dec 23: Lakers 100, Hornets 87
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 26 points, Pau Gasol added 20, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Orleans Hornets 100-87 on Tuesday night. The performance was more dominant than the final score indicated and precisely what the Lakers needed after stumbling through much of a four-game road trip… Chris Paul finished with 17 points and 10 assists for the Hornets, who had won 11 of their previous 13 games and were looking to move closer to the Lakers in the Western Conference… Andrew Bynum scored 13 points for Los Angeles, which also got 11 points from Derek Fisher and 10 from Trevor Ariza. Butler scored 17 points for New Orleans. Morris Peterson added 16 and David West 13 on 5-of-15 shooting.
Dec 23: Bucks 94, Jazz 86
The AP reports: The Milwaukee Bucks shot 1-of-16 from 3-point range and 39 percent from the field. That probably would have meant a blowout loss not long ago. Not anymore. Michael Redd scored 27 points Tuesday night to lead the surging Bucks to their third win in a row and fifth in six games, 94-86 over the Utah Jazz. “It’s huge for us,” said Luke Ridnour, who had 11 points, 11 assists and six steals… Reserve Andrei Kirilenko scored a season-high 22 for Utah. Deron Williams added 17 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, but had seven of Utah’s 24 turnovers… The Jazz were playing without center Mehmet Okur, who sat out with back spasms, and forward Carlos Boozer, who missed his 18th straight with a strained left quad tendon.
Dec 23: Pistons 104, Bulls 98
The AP reports: The Detroit Pistons traded Chauncey Billups because they believed Rodney Stuckey was ready to become a big contributor. On this night, he showed they were right. Stuckey scored a career-high 40 points Tuesday to help the Pistons overcome an injury to Allen Iverson in a 104-98 victory over the Chicago Bulls… The Pistons are 11-11 since Iverson joined the team, but they didn’t need much from him against Chicago… Tayshaun Prince had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Detroit. Richard Hamilton scored 14, while Antonio McDyess added 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench… Larry Hughes led the Bulls with 19 points, while Andres Nocioni and Ben Gordon had 18 each before fouling out. Derrick Rose also fouled out, with 10 points.
Dec 23: Heat 96, Warriors 88
The AP reports: Dwyane Wade had 32 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, Daequan Cook scored 15 of his 20 points to spark a second-quarter comeback, and the Heat matched last season’s win total by beating the injury-depleted Golden State Warriors 96-88 on Tuesday night. Udonis Haslem scored 16 points and Shawn Marion finished with a Heat season-high 16 rebounds as Miami reached the 15-win mark in 27 games—55 fewer than it needed to get there last season as the NBA’s worst team… C.J. Watson scored 18 points for Golden State, which has lost 16 of 19. Kelenna Azubuike scored 16, Brandan Wright added 12 and Anthony Randolph finished with 10 for the Warriors, who got within four points in the final minutes but simply couldn’t stop Wade, who delivered four points and a big assist to Marion with the game on the line.
Dec 23: Celtics 110, Sixers 91
The AP reports: Winning streaks are nice and all, but Kevin Garnett prefers something more tangible—like a championship ring. “Unless you win it all, it’s pretty much steam in the air: You see it, and then it evaporates,” Garnett said after scoring 18 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a franchise-record 19th consecutive victory, 110-91 over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night. The Celtics will go for 20 in a row against the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day in a rematch of last spring’s NBA finals, which Boston won in six games for its unprecedented 17th league title. The crowd couldn’t wait, chanting “Beat L.A!” with 5:27 left to play against the Sixers… Rajon Rondo also scored 18, Kendrick Perkins had eight points and 11 rebounds, and Ray Allen had 16 points as the Celtics starters watched from the bench while reserves Leon Powe and Eddie House helped expand the lead in the fourth quarter. Boston improved to 27-2—the best start for a two-loss team in NBA history.
Dec 23: Bobcats 80, Wizards 72
The AP reports: The Washington Wizards have had many identities. They started in Chicago as the Packers, then were called the Zephyrs. They moved to Baltimore as the Bullets, kept the name when they went to Washington, then started calling themselves the Wizards a decade ago. But until Tuesday night they had never been this bad, not by any name. Emeka Okafor had 29 points and 18 rebounds, and the Charlotte Bobcats pulled away in the fourth quarter for an 80-72 victory, sending a team that had reached the playoffs the past four seasons to depths never seen in its 48-year history: 4-22. Caron Butler’s 31 points weren’t enough for woeful, injury-plaged and poor-shooting Washington, which fell to its worst record after 26 games in franchise history.
Dec 23: Nets 108, Pacers 107
The AP reports: Devin Harris’ jumper from the top of the key as time expired gave the Nets a 108-107 victory over the Pacers on Tuesday night. The point guard finished with 29 points and 11 assists as New Jersey snapped a two-game losing streak… Danny Granger led the Pacers with 26 points in his first game back after missing two with a viral infection. Brandon Rush scored a career-high 22 points, and Jeff Foster added 12 points and 14 rebounds… The game was close throughout the second half before Jarvis Hayes hit a baseline jumper, Josh Boone made a putback and Harris connected on a pair of free throws to give the Nets a 96-88 lead, their largest advantage of the game.
Dec 23: Cavs 99, Rockets 90
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 27 points—18 in the second half— and made one of the defining defensive plays of his career by pinning Yao Ming’s shot against the backboard in the fourth quarter as the Cavaliers remained the NBA’s only undefeated team at home with a down-and-dirty 99-90 win Tuesday night. Mo Williams scored 23 and Daniel Gibson made two big 3-pointers in the fourth quarter for the Cavaliers, who improved to 23-2 in their last 25 games and 14-0 at home… Rafer Alston scored 20 points in his first game back after missing four with a strained hamstring and Yao, who spent most of the night in foul trouble, had 19—he was 13-of-13 on free throws—for the Rockets, who had their four-game winning streak stopped. Tracy McGrady scored just four points for Houston, which was playing its fourth game in five nights.
Dec 23: Hawks 99, Thunder 88
The AP reports: If only Joe Johnson had hit a few more jump shots. Maybe a higher percentage from the field would’ve left him satisfied after his second career triple-double. Johnson had 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his first triple-double in nearly three full seasons, and Marvin Williams scored 21 points in the Atlanta Hawks’ 99-88 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night… Kevin Durant scored 28 points for the Thunder, who have lost 10 of 11. Oklahoma City fell to 1-13 on the road and 3-26 overall despite a combined 26 rebounds by Jeff Green and Chris Wilcox… Jeff Green tied a career high with 14 rebounds and finished with 18 points. Wilcox, in 24 minutes, had 19 points and a season-high 12 boards.