The AP reports: With Dwight Howard a power in the middle, Jameer Nelson and his backcourt mates sharpshooting from outside, the Magic showed their multiple talents with a 109-103 victory over Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night. Howard had 25 points and 20 rebounds, and Nelson scored 15 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter to help Orlando win its sixth in a row. Bryant had 28 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists for Los Angeles, but missed two jumpers in the waning moments… All the Orlando starters scored in double figures, with Rashard Lewis getting 15, Hedo Turkoglu 13 and Courtney Lee 12. Lamar Odom had 17 points for Los Angeles, and Vladimir Radmanovic had 15, all coming on his 5-of-8 shooting treys. Andrew Bynum had 14 points and three rebounds, but scored just two points after halftime and again was outplayed by Howard, who also blocked three shots.
Category: Games
Basketball games blog
Redd scores 44 in Bucks victory over Kings
The AP reports: Michael Redd’s scoring binge through three quarters helped the Milwaukee Bucks assume a big lead Friday night, but it was teammate Charlie Villanueva carrying the load in the fourth quarter when the advantage nearly evaporated. Redd scored a season-high 44 points and Villanueva had 15 of his 24 points in the final period for the Bucks, who held off the Kings for a 129-122 victory… Kevin Martin also scored 24 points for the Kings, who have not won consecutive games since early November. Jason Thompson contributed 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Brad Miller had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Beno Udrih scored 14.
Foye’s late basket lifts Timberwolves past Suns
The AP reports: Randy Foye made a 20-foot jumper with 1:58 remaining—and one second left on the shot clock—that propelled Minnesota to a 105-103 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. Foye hit the basket despite being closely guarded by Jason Richardson… Al Jefferson had 22 points and 12 rebounds to lead Minnesota, who bounced back from a loss on Tuesday to win for the sixth time in seven games… Craig Smith had 18 points, Rodney Carney finished with 17 and Foye had 15 for Minnesota. Kevin Love added 17 points and 14 rebounds, seven coming on the offensive end… Shaquille O’Neal and Leandro Barbosa each scored 22 and Amare Stoudemire added 19 for the Suns, who lost for just the third time in their last 11 home games.
LeBron, Cavaliers sting Hornets 92-78
The AP reports: LeBron James shook off one of his worst games this season and a blow to his shooting arm to flirt with a triple-double, and the Cavaliers, using a small lineup that had James playing center for a long stretch, extended their home winning streak to 20 by beating the New Orleans Hornets 92-78 on Friday night. James finished with 29 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists one night after he went 8-of-28 and had eight turnovers in an overtime loss against the Bulls. For most of the second half, James was on the floor with four other guards as Brown went with an undersized lineup that flustered the Hornets and led to the ejections of Chris Paul and James Posey… Sasha Pavlovic, making his first start this season, added 19 points, Mo Williams had 17 and Wally Szczerbiak 15 for the Cavs in their final game before going on a four-game trip out West. David West scored 23 and Paul 18 for New Orleans, which was whistled for five technical fouls. Paul and James Posey were both ejected in the final two minutes.
Thunder down Pistons 89-79 for consecutive wins
The AP reports: The Thunder haven’t looked this good since moving to town last year. The Pistons haven’t looked this bad since long before that. Kevin Durant scored 32 points as Oklahoma City recorded the first consecutive wins in its brief history, delivering a knockout punch with a 13-point run to start the fourth quarter in an 89-79 win over Detroit on Friday night… “We can’t be satisfied with these two wins that we just got. Yes, they were against good teams, but we can’t be satisfied,” said Jeff Green, who had nine points and 14 rebounds. “We’ve got to keep moving forward.” Chris Wilcox had 17 points and 11 rebounds in a rare extended appearance off the bench, and Desmond Mason added 11 points and 11 rebounds as the Thunder mounted a 52-35 rebounding edge. Prince and Richard Hamilton scored 18 each to lead Detroit, but Prince was injured and on the bench when Oklahoma City pulled away.
Williams has 27 in Jazz’s 101-91 win in Memphis
The AP reports: After an ankle injury sidelined him for the first 12 games of the season, Deron Williams is starting to like the one of the NBA’s best again. The Utah guard scored 27 points and Ronnie Brewer added 21, leading the Jazz to a 101-91 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night… Grizzlies forward Darius Miles, who signed a 10-day contract Saturday, made his 10th appearance of the season Friday, placing the remaining $18 million of his salary back on Portland’s payroll… He finished with 10 points and seven rebounds in 14 minutes… Rookie guard O.J. Mayo led the Grizzlies with 23 points and Hakim Warrick and Mike Conley came off the bench to score 15 apiece. Marc Gasol added 12 points and 10 rebounds. Memphis forward Rudy Gay, averaging 18.8 points per game, continued his recent slump. He was held to five points and has scored only 15 points in the past two games.
Wizards use 15-0 run late in game to beat Knicks
The AP reports: Trailing 87-81 with 4:35 to play, the Wizards ran off 15 straight points to break a six-game losing streak and beat the New York Knicks 96-89. Washington has suffered 12 defeats after leading in the fourth quarter, and just two nights ago, they allowed New York to score 128 points against them. Things didn’t look promising until Antawn Jamison, who led the Wizards with 28 points, hit a layup to start the big run. Mike James added a 3-pointer and Nick Young a jumper, and suddenly the Wizards had their first lead since early in the third quarter… Mike James finished with 19 points for the Wizards, while Nick Young—who set career highs in three of his past four games, including 33 points against New York on Wednesday—finished with 13… The Knicks were led by Al Harrington’s 18 points. Wilson Chandler had 16 and David Lee had 15 points while matching a career high with 21 rebounds.
Dunleavy and Pacers sink Raptors, 111-104
The AP reports: Mike Dunleavy’s legs may not be completely healthy. Fortunately for Indiana, his wit is all there. The poised veteran goaded Toronto’s Chris Bosh into fouling him on a 3-pointer with less than a minute to go Friday night, then made all three free throws to help the Pacers avoid another monumental late-game collapse with a 111-104 victory… Dunleavy, who has missed all but six of the Pacers’ 40 games, made only his second start of the season Friday. Not surprisingly, the Pacers have pulled out wins in both games, and he matched his season-high with 22 points against Toronto. Only Granger scored more points. He led the Pacers with 23 and had five rebounds, four assists and two steals despite spending the equivalent of a full quarter on the bench because of foul trouble and making only one of eight shots in the final 12 minutes. Chris Bosh’s big night was tainted by that ill-advised foul. The two-time All-Star had 25 points and 16 rebounds, and Andrea Bargnani added 20 points for Toronto, which has lost four straight.
76ers beat Spurs to win sixth straight
The AP reports: Thaddeus Young scored a career-high 27 points, Andre Iguodala had 21 and the surging 76ers won their sixth straight game, 109-87 over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night… Iguodala hit a 28-footer to end the first quarter, a 44-footer to end the first half and Lou Williams buried a 28-footer to end the third… Louis Williams finished with 14 and rookie Marreese Speights had 13. Young made eight straight shots in one stretch from the floor, with the final bucket making it 64-53. Young was 11 of 15 from the floor. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 20 points and Matt Bonner had 13.
Nuggets beat Suns in overtime, 119-113
The AP reports: Chauncey Billups scored five of his game-high 26 points in overtime and the Denver Nuggets beat the Phoenix Suns 119-113 on Thursday night. Nene had 17 points and 14 rebounds and Kenyon Martin had 24 points, including a clinching 3-pointer with 29.6 seconds left in overtime. Martin also had eight rebounds and a career-high seven steals for Denver, which has won seven of eight. Billups, who said he’s been sick since the end of December, also had eight assists… Grant Hill scored a season-high 25 points and Steve Nash had 20 points and 14 assists for the Suns, who played without center Shaquille O’Neal, who was inactive for the game. Phoenix coach Terry Porter said it was a “routine” night off for O’Neal.