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D-Wade scores 29, Heat beat Pistons 110-88

Dwyane Wade scored 29 points and sparked a pivotal run to help the Miami Heat earn their fourth victory in a row Friday by beating the Detroit Pistons 110-88.

The Heat got even for a loss at Detroit on Dec. 28. They improved to 18-3 at home, while the Pistons fell to 4-16 on the road.

After falling behind by nine points, the Heat outscored Detroit 26-4 during a seven-minute stretch in the second quarter to take a 60-47 lead. Wade scored 15 points during the spurt.

LeBron James had 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Heat, who shot 56 percent. Over the past two seasons, they’re 34-2 when shooting at least 50 percent.

Miami, last in the NBA in rebounds, also won the battle of the boards, 36-35.

Greg Monroe scored 31 points for the Pistons, who never got close in the second half.

One of the night’s biggest cheers came when a 50-year-old computer technician from McHenry, Ill., made a half-court shot to win $75,000 and a hug from James.

As part of a contest sponsored by James’ foundation, Michael Drysch sank a one-handed hook shot from midcourt between periods. James watched from the bench, and when the shot swished in, he happily sprinted at Drysch and embraced him, and both tumbled to the court.

— Reported by Steven Wine of the Associated Press

Kyrie Irving scores 35, Cavs beat Bucks

Kyrie Irving knows how to celebrate good news.

A little over 24 hours after being selected to the Eastern Conference All-Star team in Houston, the Cavaliers’ dynamic point guard put on a show.

Irving scored 35 points and Cleveland rallied from a 20-point deficit in the third quarter to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks 113-108 on Friday night.

The reigning rookie of the year scored 24 points in the second half, including 16 in the third when the Cavaliers got back in the game. Irving added eight points in the final 4:01 as Cleveland posted back-to-back wins for only the second time this season.

Coming off a 40-point performance against Boston on Tuesday, Irving hit 12 of 17 from the field and made all nine of his free throws. He missed one shot in nine attempts in the second half…

Cleveland, which trailed 79-59 midway through the third quarter, took a 96-95 lead on a 3-pointer by newly acquired Wayne Ellington with 6:31 to play. The basket was his first since joining the Cavaliers from Memphis on Tuesday, and it gave Cleveland the lead for good.

Ersan Ilyasova scored a season-high 30 points and Monta Ellis added 21, but the Bucks’ collapse ended their three-game winning streak. Even hitting a season-high 14 3-pointers in 28 attempts couldn’t save Milwaukee…

Tristan Thompson scored 18 points and Dion Waiters added 16 for the Cavaliers. Livingston scored 12 points. Speights had 10 points and had six rebounds in 18 minutes.

Jennings, who was left off the Eastern Conference All-Star team by coaches picking the reserves, scored 14 points for the Bucks, but was 5 of 19 from the field and was scoreless in the first half. He finished with 12 assists. Sanders had 14 points and 11 rebounds.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Wizards keep improving, beat Timberwolves 114-101

At the midpoint of their season, and with John Wall back in the starting lineup, the Washington Wizards finally lifted themselves off the bottom of the NBA.

Wall had 14 points and five assists in his first start of the season, and Washington finally hit double digits in wins Friday night with a 114-101 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Wizards have won four straight at home and no longer have the league’s worst record, their 10-31 record a half-game better than the Charlotte Bobcats’ 10-32.

”You’re not going to hear any good thing about your team or organization if you’re not winning games, and that’s all we’re trying to do – is just win,” Wall said. ”You don’t want to end up as the last team.”

Wall, who came off the bench for the first seven games after his return from a knee injury, had assists on the Wizards’ first two baskets in a game in which Washington never trailed. He wowed the crowd with a nice spin move for a layup late in the first half and went 6 for 10 from the field in 21 minutes, his playing time still limited after missing 33 games with a stress injury to his left knee cap..

The Wizards are 5-3 since Wall’s return after going 5-28 without him…

Jordan Crawford added 19 points, and Bradley Beal had 16 points and a career-high four blocks for the Wizards, who shot a season-high 58 percent. Beal had the best sequence for anyone not named Wall: The rookie chased down Luke Ridnour to block a fast-break layup, crashed into the front row, got up and hit a jumper at the other end to make the score 70-51 in the third…

Ricky Rubio had four points on 1-for-8 shooting, six assists, five rebounds and five turnovers, another trying day in a difficult week that included an apology to acting coach Terry Porter for getting upset over playing time in the team’s loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday.

— Reported by Joseph White of the Associated Press

Korver scores 27, Hawks beat Celtics in 2OT

Kyle Korver scored 27 points and the Atlanta Hawks overcame a 27-point deficit in the first half to beat Boston 123-111 in double-overtime on Friday night, handing the Celtics their sixth straight loss.

Jeff Teague had 23 points for Atlanta before fouling out in the first overtime. Al Horford had 24 points and 13 rebounds. Josh Smith, who opened the second overtime with a three-point play, had 17 points and 14 rebounds.

Kevin Garnett had 24 points and 10 rebounds but fouled out in the second overtime as the Celtics were left with their longest losing streak in six years. Rajon Rondo had 16 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for his fifth triple-double of the season.

Korver had all of his career-high eight 3-pointers in the second half, setting a franchise record, and five in the fourth quarter…

Paul Pierce, who had 12 points, missed a jumper at the end of the first overtime.

The Hawks outscored the Celtics 16-4 in the second overtime.

Jeff Green had 17 points for Boston. Courtney Lee had 16 points and Avery Bradley had 14.

Boston appeared headed for a rout when it led 48-21 in the second quarter. Atlanta trailed 57-38 at halftime following a modest recovery.

Hawks C Zaza Pachulia returned after missing one game with a sore right Achilles.

— Reported by Charles Odum of the Associated Press

Lindsey Hunter 2-0 as coach after Suns beat Clippers

The Phoenix Suns are 2-0 under Lindsey Hunter, and the Los Angeles Clippers dearly miss Chris Paul.

Goran Dragic scored 19 of his 24 points in the first half and the Suns held on to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 93-88 on Thursday night, giving Hunter his second victory in two nights as interim coach after he replaced the fired Alvin Gentry.

Marcin Gortat added 15 points, including two free throws with 23.3 seconds left. Luis Scola and Markieff Morris had 14 apiece for the Suns, who have won consecutive games for the first time since a season-high, four-game winning streak ended on Dec. 19. Dragic also had eight assists.

The Clippers, who lost their third straight, were without Paul for the fifth time in seven games because of a bruised right kneecap. The team is 3-2 without him, and he’s expected to miss two more games.

Jamal Crawford led Los Angeles with 21 points. Eric Bledsoe scored 15 and Blake Griffin had 12. Griffin said he reinjured his left ankle early in the game but still played 36 minutes.

”Our offense was stagnant,” Griffin said. ”Our defense wasn’t great. We did a poor job and it starts with me. I have to do a better job of setting the tone early and being a leader out there, especially with Chris not out there.”

The Clippers shot just under 40 percent for the game, 33 percent (7 for 21) in the fourth quarter.

— Reported by Bob Baum of the Associated Press

Carmelo Anthony scores 28, Knicks beat Celtics

Carmelo Anthony’s ill feelings toward Kevin Garnett didn’t last long. His streak of 20-point games goes on.

In their first meeting since a verbal clash led to Anthony’s one-game suspension, New York’s All-Star forward scored 28 points and the Knicks ended an 11-game losing streak in Boston with an 89-86 victory over the Celtics on Thursday night.

”No grudges between me and KG. Whatever happened, happened,” Anthony said. ”We spoke about it and it’s over.”

Did Garnett agree?

”Yeah,” he said simply, then stood and walked out of the losing locker room.

Anthony scored at least 20 points for the 27th straight game, third most in franchise history behind Richie Guerin’s 29 and Patrick Ewing’s 28…

Rajon Rondo led the Celtics with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, his fourth triple-double of the season. Paul Pierce added 22 points. Garnett had only eight points but finished with a game-high 12 rebounds as Boston lost its fifth straight game…

Anthony was booed frequently but he showed no sign of hostility toward Garnett. At one point, Anthony even extended his hand to a fallen Garnett and helped the Celtic to his feet…

In the first half Thursday, Anthony was booed nearly every time he touched the ball and cheered when he was called for fouls as fans reacted to the last meeting between the star forwards. One of the biggest cheers came when Garnett blocked Anthony’s layup attempt with 3:15 left in the second quarter.

— Reported by Howard Ulman of the Associated Press

DeRozan lifts Raptors over Magic at buzzer

DeMar DeRozan swished a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer as the Toronto Raptors fought off a late-game charge by the Orlando Magic to earn a 97-95 victory on Thursday night.

It was a wild offensive night on both ends, featuring 12 lead changes and 12 players reaching double figures.

DeRozan led Toronto with 22 points, followed by Amir Johnson with 21 points and 10 rebounds. It was Johnson’s sixth double-double of the season.

The victory gave the Raptors a four-game season sweep of Magic, who dropped their fourth game in a row.

Nikola Vucevic led Orlando with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Arron Afflalo added 16 points and Glen Davis had 15.

The Magic have lost 15 of their last 17 overall. They host Detroit on Sunday…

After three of their previous four games went to overtime, the Raptors found themselves in another close game late.

— Reported by Kyle Hightower of the Associated Press

Thunder win-streak ends with OT loss to Nuggets

Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook teamed up on another scoring spree for Oklahoma City. In a tightly contested game, though, Kenneth Faried’s driving layup made the difference for Denver.

Faried scored the go-ahead layup in overtime, and the Nuggets overcame 30-plus point performances from Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to beat the Thunder 121-118 Sunday night, snapping Oklahoma City’s six-game winning streak.

Corey Brewer scored 26 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, to lead the Nuggets, who reversed a 20-point loss to the Thunder last Wednesday. Danilo Gallinari added 18 points and Faried finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds…

The Thunder, who beat Dallas in overtime Friday night behind a career-high 52 points from Durant, lost for the first time in five overtime games this season. They got 37 points from Durant and 36 from Westbrook…

The game was a difficult one emotionally as well for Thunder coach Scott Brooks, whose 79-year-old mother, Lee, died on Saturday. In a statement released by the club earlier, Brooks thanked friends, family and the team for their support and said his mom would have wanted him to coach Sunday night’s game…

A missed free throw by Durant with 1:44 to go in OT ended his streak of 50 consecutive free throws. … The Nuggets improved to 3-0 in overtime games this season. … Oklahoma City is now 1-1 on its season-high six-game road trip that continues Tuesday against the Los Angeles Clippers. … Durant scored 30 or more points in a career-best fourth consecutive game. … The Thunder are 20-5 this season when Westbrook and Durant each score at least 20 points.

— Reported by Dennis Georgatos of the Associated Press

Mavs hold off late Magic surge in 111-105 win

Shawn Marion had 20 points, and O.J. Mayo and Vince Carter scored 15 apiece as the Dallas Mavericks fought off a late Orlando surge and beat the Magic 111-105 on Sunday night.

The Mavericks led by 13 in the fourth quarter, before the Magic pulled within a basket in the final minute.

Dallas earned its seventh straight road victory in its series against Orlando. The Mavericks now have five days off before hosting division-leader San Antonio on Friday.

Glen Davis led Orlando with 24 points, followed by Jameer Nelson with 20 and J. J. Redick’s 18.

The Magic have lost three of their last four games and also fell for the seventh straight time to an opponent with a sub-.500 record.

Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said Dirk Nowitzki, who played in his 15th game following offseason knee surgery, may need until February to get back to full strength.

The former MVP finished with 12 points and seven rebounds. He scored six points in the first half, but was active with some early assists as Dallas built a small cushion after digging out of an early hole…

Davis was whistled for a technical foul with 9:31 left in the third quarter.

— Reported by Kyle Hightower of the Associated Press

Landry Fields steps up in Raptors win over struggling Lakers

A worn-down Kobe Bryant called it a ”sub-par” performance. For the Los Angeles Lakers, it was the latest in a string of similar efforts by a struggling team.

Landry Fields had a season-high 18 points and 10 rebounds as the Toronto Raptors sent the Lakers to their fifth straight road loss, 108-103 on Sunday.

Bryant scored 26 points and Pau Gasol had 25 for the Lakers, whose road skid is their longest in six years. Dwight Howard was ejected after drawing his second technical foul with 1:18 left in the first half.

The Lakers fell behind by 15 points midway through the first quarter and lost for the eighth time in 10 games.

”We’ve got a lot of issues,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. ”Offensively the ball sticks and we don’t take very good shots. Defensively, ups and downs, we forget guys.”

Jose Calderon had 22 points and nine assists while Ed Davis had 18 points and eight rebounds for Toronto. Alan Anderson added 14 points and eight assists as the Raptors ended a four-game losing streak against the Lakers.

”That was one of the most complete games we’ve had all year, top to bottom,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said.

Bryant made 10 of 32 shots, including 3 of 12 on 3-pointers, and complained the ”heavy legs” had dulled his shooting effort…

Steve Nash scored 16 points and Earl Clark had 14 points and 14 rebounds for the poor-shooting Lakers.

— Reported by Ian Harrison of the Associated Press