NBA Capsules
January 28th, 2010 Posted in NBA basketball newsEAST RUTHERFORD, NJ -Kris Humphries scored a career-high 25 points and the New Jersey Nets avoided the worst 44-game start in NBA history with a 103-87 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.
The Nets (4-40) were tied with the 1993-94 Dallas Mavericks (3-40) for the NBAs worst record after 43 games and all they had to do was lose another to secure another mark in this miserable season that opened with a league-record 18 straight losses.
It didnt happen although the Nets managed to blow a 16-point first-half lead in the third quarter before winning for the first time in 2010.
New Jersey snapped an 11-game losing streak, their third double-digit losing skid of the season.
Chris Kaman had 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers.
Spurs 105, Hawks 90
SAN ANTONIO – Tim Duncan grabbed a career-high 27 rebounds and scored 21 points, and San Antonio Spurs a three-game slide.
Antonio McDyess added 17 points for the Spurs, who won for just the second time in seven games and finally got a victory four games into their season-long, six-game homestand.
But an injury to Tony Parker might temper this win. The point guard went down in the third quarter with a sprained left ankle, the same one that caused him to miss four games earlier this season.
X-rays were negative, and the Spurs were to evaluate Thursday how much time their second-leading scorer will miss.
Joe Johnson scored 31 points for the Hawks, whose winning streak ended at three games.
Nuggets 97, Rockets 92
HOUSTON – J.R. Smith scored 22 points, Kenyon Martin added 12 points and 15 rebounds and Denver extended its winning streak to eight games.
The Nuggets won for the second straight time without Carmelo Anthony, the NBAs second-leading scorer, who sat out with a sprained left ankle.
Chauncey Billups scored 21 points, Nene added 18 and Denver went 29 for 39 from the free throw line to win in Houston for just the fourth time in its last 16 trips.
Aaron Brooks scored 22 points and Luis Scola added 20 for the Rockets, who have lost four of their last five home games.
Cavaliers 109, Timberwolves 95
CLEVELAND – J.J. Hickson scored a career-high 23, LeBron James added 11 assists and Cleveland finally won comfortably after a string of nail-biters.
Hickson went 8 of 10 from the field and made all 7 free throws in 25 minutes. The Cavs were able to rest their starters – James and Hickson sat out the entire fourth – after the clubs previous seven games were decided by a combined 21 points.
The Cavaliers were again without injured point guards Mo Williams and Delonte West, but it hardly mattered against the Timberwolves, who dropped to 3-21 outside Minnesota.
James added 12 points and six rebounds in 31 minutes.
Corey Brewer scored 22 and Kevin Love 20 for the Timberwolves.
Jazz 106, Trail Blazers 95
PORTLAND, Ore. – Deron Williams scored 24 points and Utah scored 21 of the first 23 points and went to beat Portland.
Utah led by as many as 26 points during the first half. The Jazz won for the eighth time in nine games and took over second place in the Northwest Division.
Kyle Korver hit four 3-pointers and scored 16 points for Utah and Ronnie Millsap had 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Jazz.
Portlands LaMarcus Aldridge scored 14 of his game-high 25 points during the second half. Nicolas Batum scored 16 points, all in the first half.
Bulls 96, Thunder 86
OKLAHOMA CITY – Derrick Rose scored 26 points, Joakim Noah added 13 points and 11 rebounds and Chicago won its fourth straight road game.
The Bulls improved to 22-22, returning to .500 for the first time since they were 6-6 on Nov. 21.
After Oklahoma City took its only lead late in the third quarter, Chicago went on a 25-7 run to go up 89-73 on Roses right-handed flip in the lane with 4:57 remaining.
Kevin Durant ended a run of 16 straight missed shots for Oklahoma City with a 16-footer from the right baseline with 3:59 to play. He finished with 28 points and 11 rebounds.
Lakers 118, Pacers 96
INDIANAPOLIS – Kobe Bryant scored 29 points and Andrew Bynum added a season-high 27 to lead Los Angeles.
Bryant also had nine rebounds and seven assists, and Bynum had 12 rebounds. Pau Gasol had 21 points and 13 rebounds and Lamar Odom added 12 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who won at Washington on Tuesday.
Roy Hibbert scored 21 points, Troy Murphy scored 18, Danny Granger had 14 and Brandon Rush added 13 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana.
The Pacers played in front of just their fourth sellout crowd of the year, and much of it chanted M-V-P for Bryant on several occasions.
Raptors 111, heat 103
TORONTO – Chris Bosh had 24 points and a season-high 18 rebounds, Andrea Bargnani scored 27 points and Toronto beat Miami.
Dwyane Wade had 35 points and 10 assists and former Raptors center Jermaine ONeal scored 22 for Miami, which lost Michael Beasley to a right knee injury.
Beasley scored six of the Heats first 13 points but suffered a hyperextended right knee when he landed heavily after missing an alley-oop pass at 7:32 of the first. He lay under the basket clutching his knee and was tended to by trainers before limping to the locker room. Beasley returned midway through the second, wearing a knee brace, but did not play in the second half.
Grizzlies 99, Pistons 93
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Marc Gasol scored eight of his 25 points in the final two minutes as the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Detroit Pistons 99-93 Wednesday night.
Gasol added 12 rebounds while Zach Randolph had 24 points and 13 rebounds for Memphis, which won its third straight. All five Grizzlies starters scored at least 14 points.
Rodney Stuckey led Detroit with 17 points and 11 assists and Richard Hamilton added 16 points and 10 assists. The Pistons have lost three straight.
Bucks 91, 76ers 88
MILWAUKEE – Rookie Brandon Jennings scored 18 points, hitting a 12-footer with 22 seconds left, and Milwaukee snapped a six-game losing streak against the 76ers.
Charlie Bell added 18 points for Milwaukee, which hadnt topped Philadelphia in more than two years. The Bucks improved to 5-0 at home since Jan. 1 and bounced back from a 108-107 loss in Dallas on Tuesday night.
Elton Brand had his best game of the season for the Sixers, scoring a season-high 26 points and adding 10 rebounds, but he missed a short shot in the closing seconds and Andre Iguodala missed a good look to tie at the buzzer.
Hornets 123, Warriors 110
OAKLAND, Calif. – Chris Paul scored 38 points to lead New Orleans to its fourth win in five games.
Paul shot 14 for 19 from the field, made all nine of his free-throw tries, dished out nine assists and grabbed six rebounds. Marcus Thornton added 18 points, David West 17 points and 12 rebounds and Emeka Okafor had 12 points and 12 boards for the Hornets, who are 11-4 in January and won three of four on this road trip.
Monta Ellis returned for Golden State after missing the past two games with a sprained right ankle and had 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds. He had been averaging 30.7 points over his previous 16 outings.
