The AP reports: LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 26 points, while Steve Blake had 10 points and 10 assists. Travis Outlaw finished with 14 points. “Travis has made many, may big shots for us, and I’m sure he’ll make many more,” Aldridge said. Tayshaun Prince finished with 26 points for Detroit, and Iverson had 14. Rodney Stuckey added 13 points, but had a season-high six turnovers… The Blazers were without All-Star guard Brandon Roy for the fourth straight game. Roy, averaging 23 points, has a sprained right hamstring.
Month: January 2009
Millsap, Jazz beat tired Hornets 116-90
The AP reports: Paul Millsap extended his NBA-leading streak of double-doubles to 19 games with 27 points and 14 rebounds as the Jazz easily won the first of three meetings against the Hornets, who were exhausted from a win over the Lakers in Los Angeles the night before… Chris Paul had 26 points and seven assists for the Hornets, but got little help from his teammates as Utah controlled everything inside and outrebounded New Orleans 55-26… Mehmet Okur added 20 points for Utah, and Andrei Kirilenko had 13 points and eight rebounds. Kyle Korver had 15 points, Matt Harpring 10, and Deron Williams, who has been fighting a cold, added eight assists.
Team effort as Nuggets beat Heat 108-97
The AP reports: Nothing, not injuries and trades, can slow down the Denver Nuggets. Chauncey Billups, Linas Kleiza and J.R. Smith scored 21 points apiece to help the Nuggets win their fifth straight game, 108-97 over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night. Kenyon Martin and Nene scored 14 points each for Denver in the Nuggets’ seventh victory in eight games. Denver played without scoring leader Carmelo Anthony, out at least three weeks after fracturing a finger on his right hand Monday… Dwyane Wade had 31 points, and Shawn Marion added 25 for the Heat, 1-3 in their last four games.
Granger’s 3 at buzzer gives Pacers 113-110 win over Suns
The AP reports: The Indiana Pacers are making a habit of beating the NBA’s elite teams, and Danny Granger is making a habit of scoring big. Granger hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer and matched his career high with 37 points in Indiana’s 113-110 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night… Mike Dunleavy scored 14 points for the Pacers in his first game this season. Stephen Graham had 13, Troy Murphy 12, Jarret Jack 11 and Rasho Nesterovic 10. Amare Stoudemire led Phoenix with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Grant Hill and Barbosa had 18 apiece, Steve Nash and Jason Richardson added 16 each, and Louis Amundson had a career-high 14 rebounds and nine points. Nash also had 12 assists.
Foye, Wolves keep rolling over Thunder, win 129-87
The AP reports: Randy Foye matched his career high with 32 points in just three quarters and the Wolves won their fourth straight game, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 129-87 on Wednesday night. “It’s just great to be talking about these wins,” said Foye, who also had six assists in the second most lopsided victory in franchise history… Al Jefferson added 21 points and 13 rebounds for Minnesota, which has won six of its last eight after that demoralizing 13-game skid dropped them to 4-23 on Dec. 23… Russell Westbrook had 16 points and a career-high 12 assists for Oklahoma City, which was overwhelmed in every phase of the game… Kevin Durant, who entered the night leading the Thunder in scoring at 23.9 points per game, scored a season-low nine points on just 3-of-13 shooting, the first time all season he’s been held under 12 points.
Miller scores 28 to lift 76ers over Bucks 110-105
The AP reports: Michael Redd had no idea what Andre Miller was about to do. Miller wasn’t sure, either. Miller opted for a 3-pointer over Redd with 28 seconds left to finish with 28 points, and the Philadelphia 76ers held on for a rare road win Wednesday night, 110-105 over the Milwaukee Bucks… After Milwaukee’s Richard Jefferson, who finished with 27 points, added a layup, Andre Iguodala made one of two free throws with 17 seconds to play and Charlie Bell missed an off-balance 3 with seconds to play that would’ve tied it… The Bucks again played without center Andrew Bogut, who missed his third straight game because of back spasms.
Nets easily top Memphis 100-89 for 3rd straight home win
The AP reports: It’s rarely this easy for the New Jersey Nets, especially in their own building. Vince Carter had 25 points and a season-high 12 assists, and the Nets beat the Memphis Grizzlies 100-89 on Wednesday night for their third straight home victory. Playing without leading scorer Devin Harris (sore right hamstring), the Nets enjoyed one of the most relaxing nights a team could have… Yi Jianlian added 20 points, and rookie Brook Lopez had 17 for the Nets, who are just 8-12 at the Meadowlands even after their longest home winning streak of the season. They are 10-6 on the road and returned to .500 overall at 18-18. Rookie O.J. Mayo scored 26 points, and Rudy Gay had 23 for the Grizzlies, who lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell to 0-9 this season when playing on the second night of back-to-back games.
Celtics fall at home, 89-85 to Rockets
The AP reports: The defending NBA champions dropped their sixth game in eight tries Wednesday night, falling to the Houston Rockets 89-85 on Von Wafer’s go-ahead 3-pointer with 44 seconds left. It was the Celtics’ first loss in Boston since a Nov. 14 defeat to Denver sent them on a 19-game winning streak… Yao Ming had 26 points and eight rebounds, clinching it on a putback with 12.9 seconds left to help the Rockets snap a three-game losing streak and a five-game road skid. “Yao is unstoppable,” said Rockets forward Ron Artest, who scored 17 points playing most of the game in foul trouble… Paul Pierce scored 26 points, and Kevin Garnett had 18 and eight rebounds for the Celtics, who opened the defense of their 17th NBA title with victories in 27 of their first 29 games… Glen Davis scored a season-high 12 for the Celtics.
Bargnani leads 9-man Raptors past Wizards 99-93
The AP reports: Down to nine players, the Raptors still easily beat worst-in-the-East Washington 99-93 on Wednesday night by making 54 percent of their field-goal attempts. Andrea Bargnani had 25 points on 8-for-9 shooting… Bargnani went 4-for-5 on 3s, and 4-for-4 on other field-goal attempts. Chris Bosh scored half his 18 points in the fourth quarter and added eight rebounds and six assists… Antawn Jamison scored a season-high 32 points for Washington, which hasn’t had Gilbert Arenas (left knee) or Brendan Haywood (right wrist) all season, and is without starting shooting guard DeShawn Stevenson, who has missed a week and is expected to be out at least another 1 1/2 weeks with a bad back.
Orlando builds big lead, holds on to beat Hawks 106-102
The AP reports: Putting on a show for the home folks, Dwight Howard had 23 points and 19 rebounds as Orlando preserved a 106-102 victory Wednesday night in a matchup of the top two teams in the Southeast Division. Orlando nearly squandered a 21-point advantage, catching a huge break when Mike Bibby missed a breakaway layup that should have made it a two-point game with just under 1 1/2 minutes remaining… Josh Smith led Atlanta with 21 points, but he missed all four of his free-throw attempts—the worst culprit in a 14-of-25 performance at the line that came back to haunt the Hawks at the end… Mike Bibby scored 17 points but was only 6-of-17 from the field. Joe Johnson, the Hawks’ leading scorer, was just 5-of-17 for 13 points—matching his second-lowest output of the season.