The AP reports: The Denver Nuggets are starting to see the storm clouds closing in on them. Even the brief return of Kenyon Martin from a bad back couldn’t snap them out of their funk as the Nuggets lost for the eighth time in 11 games Monday night, this time 97-95 to the Houston Rockets… Denver had a chance to tie idle Utah atop the Northwest Division after losing their grip on first place 24 hours earlier with a disheartening loss at Sacramento. But they fell behind by 19 points in the third quarter and couldn’t overcome big games by Ron Artest (22 points) and Aaron Brooks (19)… Nene shot 4-for-15, falling behind Shaquille O’Neal for the league lead in shooting percentage.
Category: Games
Basketball games blog
Butler scores 27, Wizards beat Wolves 110-99
The AP reports: Caron Butler had 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists to lead the Wizards to a 110-99 victory over the Timberwolves on Monday night in a matchup of teams that had lost 14 straight combined. Antawn Jamison added 26 points for the Wizards, who had lost five in a row and seven of their last eight… Kevin Love had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Ryan Gomes scored 18 for the Timberwolves, who have lost 10 in a row and 15 of their last 16… Guard Randy Foye had to be carried to the locker room in the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle. He went up to grab a high lob pass from Mike Miller, but crumpled to the court in pain.
Hamilton 29 and 14, Pistons beat Magic 98-94
The AP reports: Kwame Brown, who has struggled since being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 draft, had 10 points and played 26 minutes of tough defense against Dwight Howard as Detroit beat the Orlando Magic 98-94. He stepped up after Rasheed Wallace left with a first-quarter injury… Richard Hamilton led Detroit with 29 points and a career-high 14 assists, while Antonio McDyess had a season-high 18 rebounds… Howard had 27 points and 14 rebounds for Orlando, which has lost 19 of its last 24 regular-season meetings with the Pistons, and been eliminated by Detroit in each of the last two postseasons.
Wade amazing, Heat beat Bulls 130-127 in 2OT
The AP reports: Dwyane Wade’s 3-pointer at the end of the first half was desperation. The one in the final seconds of regulation, dramatic. And the one that finally ended the game, unbelievable. Miami’s MVP candidate stole the ball from John Salmons with 3 seconds left, then made a running 3-pointer as time expired to lift the Heat to a wild 130-127 double-overtime win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday night… Wade—who finished with 48 points and 12 assists in nearly 50 minutes, shooting 15-for-21 from the field—made a 3-pointer at the end of the first half, then another with 11.5 seconds left in regulation… Michael Beasley had 18 points, Mario Chalmers added 17 and Jamario Moon scored 13 for the Heat, who stayed within 1 1/2 games of Atlanta for the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference playoff chase. Ben Gordon scored a season-high 43 points for the Bulls, including eight 3-pointers. Salmons scored 29 and Derrick Rose added 23 for the Bulls, who are 0-3 against Miami this season and used only seven players Monday.
Johnson scores 30, Hawks beat Hornets 89-79
The AP reports: Joe Johnson showed he’s willing to step up if the Atlanta Hawks will be without Marvin Williams for a significant period of time. Johnson scored 30 points and the Hawks beat New Orleans 89-79 on Monday night, ending the Hornets’ season-best seven-game winning streak… Josh Smith had 13 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta, while Flip Murray had 14 points and Bibby added 10… Chris Paul had 24 points and 10 assists and David West also had a double-double with 16 points and 20 rebounds for New Orleans. Rasual Butler added 18 points for the Hornets.
Kings step up, beat Nuggets 114-106
The AP reports: Kevin Martin had 26 points, seven rebounds and eight assists Sunday night for the Sacramento Kings, who never trailed in defeating the slumping Nuggets 114-106. Entering the game tied with Utah and clinging to a half-game lead over Portland in the Northwest Division, the Nuggets were in desperate need of a road win… “You really have to impose your will on the Nuggets before they get out and run on you,” said Spencer Hawes, who had a career-high 20 points and added eight rebounds… Martin connected on five 3-pointers for the Kings, who tied a season high, making 14 3-pointers. Andres Nocioni had 23 points, and Francisco Garcia had 19 points… Carmelo Anthony had 32 points and seven rebounds for Denver. Chauncey Billups had 22 points and eight assists, J.R. Smith scored 19 and Nene added 14 points and nine rebounds.
Yao rocks, Rockets beat Grizzlies 93-83
The AP reports: The Houston Rockets got the easy win they needed before the challenging week to come. Yao Ming had 24 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks and the Rockets extended their home-court winning streak to 12 games with a 93-83 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday. Luis Scola added 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets, who inched ahead of Utah and New Orleans for fourth place in the Western Conference. Now comes the hard part, with games this week against Denver, the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio… Rudy Gay scored 21 points and Marc Gasol added 18 for the Grizzlies, who’ve lost 10 of 11 and seven of their last eight road games. O.J. Mayo, the Grizzlies’ leading scorer, had only 10 points on 4-for-13 shooting after scoring 32 in Memphis’ 104-93 win over Houston on Feb. 4… Kyle Lowry, the Grizzlies’ first-round draft pick in 2006, had nine assists for the Rockets.
Krstic hits 10-of-13, Thunder beat Sixers 89-74
The AP reports: Malik Rose set season highs with 14 points and seven rebounds, and Nenad Krstic added 20 points as the Thunder continued their strong play without their two leading scorers, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 89-74 on Sunday night… Oklahoma City has won four of five without Kevin Durant (ankle) and three of four without Jeff Green (back)… Andre Miller and Thaddeus Young led Philadelphia with 20 points apiece. Miller has scored at least 20 points in five straight games for the first time in his career. Andre Iguodala, who was averaging a team-best 18.1 points, was limited to nine on 3-for-11 shooting and committed six of Philadelphia’s 21 turnovers. The 76ers were held to their second-lowest scoring total of the season.
Harris scores 35, Nets beat Knicks 106-101
The AP reports: No way the New Jersey Nets could lose another close one. Not the way the New York Knicks bungled away the closing minutes. Devin Harris had 35 points and 10 assists, and the Nets ended a frustrating stretch of narrow defeats by edging the Knicks 106-101 on Sunday. Vince Carter added 25 points for the Nets, who had lost three of four, failing to pull out tight games against New Orleans, Boston and Orlando. This time they made the plays down the stretch, while the Knicks melted down amid an ugly combination of missed shots and turnovers in the final 2 1/2 minutes… David Lee had 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Knicks, who opened a five-game trip with their fifth loss in six games. Nate Robinson scored 17 points and fellow reserve Danilo Gallinari added 15.
Parker scores 30, Spurs beat Suns 103-98
The AP reports: Tony Parker scored 12 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and the San Antonio Spurs sent the sliding Phoenix Suns home winless on their four-game road swing with a 103-98 victory Sunday. Parker punctuated his fourth 30-point game in his last seven outings with a win-cinching runner with 26.2 seconds left… Tim Duncan scored 17 points and helped hold Shaquille O’Neal to 14, his lowest total in his past five games. Shaq had averaged nearly 30 in his previous four outings. Roger Mason had 18 points for the Spurs and Michael Finley had 11, eight of which came in the fourth. Steve Nash led the Suns with 23 points and 11 assists. Leandro Barbosa had 20 points off the bench and hit all four of his 3-point attempts.