The AP reports: Dallas remained in eighth place in the West after Dirk Nowitzki had 29 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Mavericks to a 93-89 win over Portland on Wednesday night. Better things aren?t far out of Dallas? reach, though, as the Mavericks won for the seventh time in nine games. “This is big for our confidence right now,” said Dallas guard Jason Terry, who scored 24 points… LaMarcus Aldridge led Portland with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Roy had 22 points and eight rebounds. Joel Przybilla pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds for the Blazers. Jason Kidd was three points short of a triple double, with seven points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
Balkman rises, Nuggets beat Thunder 112-99
The AP reports: Renaldo Balkman to the rescue, of all people. The Denver Nuggets snapped a three-game losing streak with a 112-99 win over Oklahoma City on Wednesday night that was fueled by Balkman, who made the most of a rare start with a double-double… With Kenyon Martin’s bad back putting him in street clothes again, Nuggets coach George Karl needed some size in his starting lineup, so he inserted Balkman… Carmelo Anthony led seven Nuggets in double figures with 22 points. Jeff Green’s 19 points led the Thunder, who had won five of six since losing leading scorer Kevin Durant to an ankle injury. Earl Watson added 18 points for Oklahoma City.
Bryant scores 37, Lakers beat Rockets 102-96
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 18 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter and the Los Angeles Lakers ended Houston’s 12-game home winning streak with a 102-96 victory. Artest, the fiery forward who’s one of Houston’s top 1-on-1 defenders, used all of his tactics in vain to stop Bryant in the final quarter. He also had a dismal offensive night, scoring only 11 points on 4-for-16 shooting with six turnovers… Pau Gasol scored 20 points and Josh Powell added 17 for the Lakers, who overcame the absence of Lamar Odom to snap a three-game road losing streak… Reserve Von Wafer scored 20 points for the Rockets, who’ve lost all three meetings with the Lakers this season.
Wolves snap 10-game skid, beat Memphis 104-79
The AP reports: Kevin Love had 19 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high four assists and the Timberwolves snapped a 10-game losing streak with a 104-79 victory against the Grizzlies on Wednesday night. Mike Miller, who for reasons unknown has been a reluctant shooter most of the season, had 18 points and 11 rebounds and Ryan Gomes scored 25 for the Wolves… O.J. Mayo had 18 quiet points and Mike Conley Jr. had 17 for the lethargic Grizzlies, who trailed by 21 points after one quarter and lost for the 11th time in 12 games.
Wade does it again, lifts Heat past Celtics
The AP reports: It’s that time of year, where little aches and pains are starting to add up for Dwyane Wade. Sore knee, stiff ankle, that sort of thing. He tried to say it was a problem Wednesday. “I was only able to get 32,” Wade said, unable to hold in a laugh— knowing those 32 points were good enough for the Miami Heat. Wade continued his post-All-Star offensive tear, hitting the game-sealing 3-pointer with 34 seconds left, and the Heat held on to beat the injury-depleted Boston Celtics 107-99… Ray Allen hit his first six shots and finished with 27 for Boston, but only three of those came after halftime—as he missed six of his final seven shots. Leon Powe had 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Celtics, who got 16 points from Paul Pierce.
Robinson scores 30, helps Knicks top Pistons in OT
The AP reports: The Knicks rallied after halftime on the road for the second time in two nights Wednesday, beating the Detroit Pistons 116-111 in overtime… Nate Robinson had 30 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter and overtime. In Tuesday’s win over Milwaukee, the reserve scored 13 of his 32 points in the fourth… Antonio McDyess had 21 points and a career-high 22 rebounds—Detroit’s first 20-20 game in over 11 years, and his first since 2001. That, though, wasn’t enough to overcome the absence of Rasheed Wallace (calf) and Allen Iverson (back)… David Lee had 16 points and 18 rebounds for the Knicks, who trailed 83-71 in the early seconds of the fourth.
Magic clinch playoff berth, beat Bulls 107-79
The AP reports: Tony Battie had 18 points and eight rebounds, and the Magic got a big boost from the bench to clinch a playoff spot with a 107-79 win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night… J.J. Redick had 13 points, and Marcin Gortat added 13 points and 15 rebounds in reserve for the Magic, who have won five of their last six games and moved closer to taking another Southeast Division title… John Salmons had 18 points and eight rebounds, and Brad Miller added 11 points for Chicago, which shot a mere 31.4 percent from the floor and had 16 turnovers.
Hawks end Utah’s 12-game winning streak, 100-93
The AP reports: Deron Williams knew the Jazz wouldn’t go unbeaten through the end of the regular season. Even so, Utah’s star point guard wished his team had given itself a better chance against the Hawks to extend its winning streak to 13 games… Joe Johnson scored 31 points and Josh Smith had 22 points and 12 rebounds to help the Atlanta Hawks end Utah’s 12-game winning streak with a 100-93 victory Wednesday night… Flip Murray scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter for the Hawks. Smith ended the scoring with a pair of free throws with 24.3 seconds remaining.
Paul’s triple-double leads Hornets past Wiz 109-98
The AP reports: Taking over the game when he wanted to—no matter what defensive schemes he faced—Chris Paul compiled 30 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds Wednesday night, steering the New Orleans Hornets to a 109-98 victory over Washington… Guarded by Wizards reserve Juan Dixon, Paul did pretty much whatever he wanted over the next 3 1/2 minutes, engineering a 12-0 run that tied the score. During that stretch, Paul scored 10 points and assisted on the other basket. He probably should have had two fewer points and an extra assist, but Rasual Butler somehow missed a layup off a perfect pass. So all Paul did was grab the rebound and drive for a layup himself.
Young, Dalembert lead 76ers over Raptors 115-106
The AP reports: Samuel Dalembert heeded the advice of Hall of Fame center Moses Malone earlier this week when the former Philadelphia center told him to get mean. Thaddeus Young scored a career-high 29 points, Dalembert snapped out of his recent slump, and the Philadelphia 76ers handed the Toronto Raptors their sixth straight loss with a 115-106 victory Wednesday night… Dalembert, who entered the night with only three blocks over the last four games, recorded his 11th double-double of the season with a season-high 19 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots… Chris Bosh was limited to 17 points for Toronto after consecutive 30-point outings.