The AP reports: Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest were out, the Houston Rockets were just back from a five-game trip and facing a team that was going to force a fast pace. Perfect. Luis Scola had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Rafer Alston added 17 points and six assists and the undermanned Rockets didn’t miss their two stars at all, taking advantage of New York’s poor shooting to beat the Knicks 96-76 on Saturday night. Aaron Brooks scored 16 points, Von Wafer had 15 and Yao Ming 14 for the Rockets, who’ve won nine of their last 10 home games… Tim Thomas scored 18 points, Nate Robinson had 17 and Lee added 14 points and 11 rebounds for his eighth consecutive double-double for New York.
Wolves rally to beat Bucks 106-104 for 5th straight
The AP reports: Randy Foye scored 10 of his 11 points in the fourth quarter and the Timberwolves rallied from 13 points down in the second half for a thrilling 106-104 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. Coach Kevin McHale was ejected after the first quarter with two quick technicals by referee Sean Corbin and Al Jefferson fouled out with 1:29 to play and the Wolves clinging to a three-point lead… Rodney Carney scored 22 points, and Sebastian Telfair added 17 points and 11 assists for the Wolves, who have won five in a row for the first time since December 2005. Michael Redd scored 32 points for Milwaukee, but missed a chance to tie it in the final 9 seconds. Richard Jefferson added 29 points for the Bucks, who led by 13 points with less than 3 minutes to play in the third quarter before Carney got going.
Felton shakes off ankle sprain, Bobcats beat Wizards 92-89
The AP reports: The Charlotte Bobcats appeared to be in big trouble when point guard Raymond Felton was carried off the court with 10:17 left in the third quarter after stepping on a cameraman along the baseline. But right after Washington took its largest lead of 13 points with 4 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter, Felton returned despite a sprained right ankle, and sparked a 16-2 run in the Bobcats’ 92-89 victory Saturday night… Raja Bell led Charlotte with 19 points, and Boris Diaw added 18, and Felton had 11 assists.
Rick Carlisle wants aggressive Brandon Bass
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Jeff Caplan) reports: Rick Carlisle has pressed Mavs forward Brandon Bass to use his aggressiveness to draw fouls. Thursday against the New York Knicks, Bass finally did, getting to the free-throw line a season-high 12 times. It was the first time Bass had taken more than four foul shots in a game. “That’s a by-product of aggression and just persistence,” Carlisle said. “When you’re moving your feet and you’re that aggressive, opportunity at the free-throw line is going to follow. He’s got to continue with that.” An 84.2 percent free-throw shooter, Bass missed four. “He’s the kind of guy,” Carlisle said, “that if he misses four free throws out of 12, he’ll go to the gym and shoot 2,000 the next day.”
Yi Jianlian out 4-6 weeks
The New York Post (Fred Kerber) reports: The Nets finally saw the Yi Jianlian they wanted, the 7-foot bundle of emerging talent they felt was worth dealing Richard Jefferson to obtain. The past few weeks, Yi was good. The past few games, Yi was very good. But now the development will be shelved for up to six weeks after Yi broke his right pinkie in Friday’s 104-102 defeat at Milwaukee. “Lousy timing,” team president Rod Thorn said. “He’d been playing well the last 2½, 3 weeks. Even in games he didn’t score a lot in, he’s been playing well. So it’s a tough time for him to get hurt.” Yi, who said he heard a “little pop” as he swiped at the ball in the third quarter, had 16 points in 25 minutes against Milwaukee, well on his way to a third straight 20-point game. In his last three games, he shot .538 (21-of-39), averaged 19.3 points – plus 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
Boozer out 4+ weeks
Utah Jazz forward Carlos Boozer underwent a successful arthroscopic procedure on his left knee performed by Dr. Richard Ferkel in Los Angeles on Friday. All loose pieces of cartilage in the knee area were removed and microfracturing will not be required. Everything else in the knee joint was found to be fine. Boozer will now undergo a four-week rehabilitation program, after which his return to activity will be re-evaluated.
“I had a successful surgery and the loose bodies that were floating around and causing my pain were removed,” said Boozer following the procedure. “My knee is now on its way to recovering and getting completely healthy so that I can return to help my team.”
Grizzlies sign Darius Miles to 10-day contract
The Memphis Grizzlies have re-signed forward Darius Miles to a 10-day contract, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today. Miles, who was waived by the Grizzlies on Jan. 7, cleared waivers and subsequently became an unrestricted free agent.
In two games with Memphis, Miles collected two rebounds and two blocked shots in a total of nine minutes of action. The 6-9, 235-pound forward also served a 10-game league suspension, which concluded following the Jan. 2 game vs. San Antonio.
“Darius did everything asked of him in his initial stint with the Grizzlies and was well received by his teammates,” Wallace said. “In the last Minnesota game (Jan. 6), his length, experience, rebounding, shot blocking and defense on one of the elite post scorers in the league, Al Jefferson, were all impressive. Our young team is short on frontcourt players and can use a veteran with his attributes.”
Miles was signed by the Grizzlies as a free agent on Dec. 13 after missing all of the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons following microfracture surgery on his right knee. The 27-year-old signed a free-agent contract with the Boston Celtics on Aug. 22, 2008 and appeared in six preseason games, averaging 1.8 points and 1.3 rebounds in 10.4 minutes before his release on Oct. 20.
The third overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft became the first player in league history drafted straight out of high school (East St. Louis High School) to earn All-Rookie honors when he posted 9.4 points and 1.54 blocks for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000-01.
The Bellville, Ill. native holds career averages of 10.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.15 blocks in 27.6 minutes in 414 career games (190 starts) with Memphis, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Portland Trail Blazers.
Memphis will return to action next to face LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. CST at the FedExForum The Grizzlies’ current roster stands at 14 players.
Bryant’s late surge gives Lakers win over Pacers
The AP reports: With the game tied and the clock ticking down, Bryant ran off 23 seconds, then, with defenders lunging at him, coolly hit a turnaround, fadeaway jumper with 3 seconds remaining Friday night to give the Los Angeles Lakers a 121-119 victory over the stubborn Indiana Pacers. Bryant’s 36 points included the Lakers’ final 11 of the game, and he also finished with 13 assists and seven rebounds… “We couldn’t stop Kobe,” said the Pacers’ Danny Granger, who had 28 points when he fouled out with 47 seconds remaining… Troy Murphy had 24 points for Indiana and Dunleavy finished with 22. Pau Gasol had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers, and Andrew Bynum had 20 points.
O’Neal leads Suns to 128-100 rout of Dallas
The AP reports: The Suns outscored the Mavericks 40-19 in the third quarter and went on to a 128-100 rout on Friday night. Shaquille O’Neal had 25 points and 10 rebounds in just under 27 minutes for the Suns… Jason Richardson added 21 points and Leandro Barbosa had 20 in the Suns’ highest-scoring game of the season… Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 for Dallas, and Josh Howard had 16 before departing with a sprained left wrist in the third quarter. X-rays were negative. Amare Stoudemire scored 16 in Phoenix’s fourth win in five games. Grant Hill added 10 points, eight in the third quarter, as the Suns shot 63 percent for the night. Steve Nash had nine points and 12 assists.
Wade scores 41 to lead Heat over Kings
The AP reports: Dwyane Wade was having a rough night. His shot was unreliable. Wade, of course, was still spectacular. He scored 10 of his 41 points in overtime to help the Miami Heat outlast the Sacramento Kings 119-115 on Friday night… Kevin Martin and John Salmons scored 29 points for the Kings, who had a 10-point lead early in the fourth quarter but have now lost five straight and 11 of 12. Rookie Michael Beasley came off the bench to score 23 points for the Heat. Mario Chalmers had 13 points and Udonis Haslem had 11.