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.
Delonte West out 5-6 weeks
Cavaliers guard Delonte West was injured in last night’s game in Chicago vs. the Bulls. He was re-evaluated at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health today by Dr. Peter Evans in Cleveland. X-rays and an MRI confirmed a non-displaced fracture of his right wrist. He is projected to be Out the next five to six weeks. His status will be updated as appropriate.
Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas was re-evaluated yesterday at Cleveland Clinic Sports Health and today in Baltimore at The Institute for Foot and Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy Medical Center by Dr. Mark Myerson, and in consultation with Cavaliers Head Team Physician Dr. Richard Parker. Both evaluations showed that his left ankle was progressing as expected. He is cleared to progress in his rehabilitation work and return to court activity next week in continued preparation for a return to the active roster after that. His status will be updated as appropriate.
Bobcats trade Matt Carroll and Ryan Hollins to Mavericks for DeSagana Diop
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has acquired center DeSagana Diop from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for guard Matt Carroll and center Ryan Hollins.
“DeSagana is the type of player that has a natural athletic ability to block shots, rebound and defend,” Higgins said. “This is a nice complement to our roster and someone we feel will add size, depth and experience to our power positions.”
The 7-0 Diop has appeared in 468 career NBA games spread between Cleveland, New Jersey and Dallas. He has career averages of 2.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, while shooting .430 from the field. In 34 games with the Mavericks this season he averaged 1.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 13.3 minutes.
Originally drafted by the Cavaliers with the eighth overall pick in the first round of the 2001 NBA Draft, Diop had his best season as a professional during the 2005-06 season in Dallas, when he appeared in 81 games (45 starts) with averages of 2.3 points and 4.6 rebounds, while shooting a team-best .487 from the field and leading the Mavericks with 146 blocks. During that season he also ranked 14th in the NBA in blocks per game and set a career high with 16 rebounds and tied a career high with six blocks in 37 minutes of action versus Denver on Nov.15, 2005. Diop also appeared in 28 career postseason games in Dallas, with 22 of them coming during the Mavericks run to the 2006 NBA Finals before falling to eventual champion Miami in six games.
Carroll signed with the Bobcats as a free agent on Feb. 23, 2005 and has appeared in 289 games, averaging 8.4 points and 2.3 rebounds. His career three-point field goal percentage of .411 (302-735) coming into the 2008-09 season had him tied for 11th among the NBA’s all-time leaders and fifth among active players. In 34 games this season, he averaged 4.1 points and 1.6 rebounds in 13.9 minutes.
Hollins is in his third NBA season and averaged 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in 18 games played for Charlotte this season. In 105 career games, Hollins has averaged 2.6 points and 1.7 rebounds for the Bobcats, who selected him with the 50th overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
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