National Basketball Association Capsules for Wednesday.
November 28th, 2008 Posted in NBA basketball newsNational Basketball Association Capsules for Wednesday.
TORONTO 93, CHARLOTTE 86
TORONTO Chris Bosh continues to carry the Toronto Raptors.
The All-Star forward scored 39 points and pulled down 11 boards to help the Raptors snap a two-game skid by edging the Charlotte Bobcats, 93-86.
Bosh, who came into the game third in the league in scoring, is now averaging 32.0 points over his last five games. This time, he came up big in arguably the biggest moment of the night.
The Bobcats, who had hung tight for most of the evening, pulled to within one with three minutes left in the fourth quarter, as Emeka Okafor buried a short jumper to cap a 6-0 run that cut Torontos lead to 87-86. But Bosh quelled the momentum with one shot, burying a jumper of his own and the Raptors closed the game with a 6-0 surge.
DETROIT 110, NY KNICKS 96
AUBURN HILLS, Michigan The Detroit Pistons didnt take well to a two-game losing streak – and the New York Knicks had to take the brunt of the punishment.
The Pistons rebounded from their recent skid with their biggest scoring output since acquiring Allen Iverson, cruising to a 110-96 rout of the Knicks.
It was quite a recovery for a group that managed just 80 points in each of the last two games – losses to the Boston Celtics and the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves. They got production from everywhere this time, as eight players reached double figures. The two-headed point guard duo manufactured the bulk of the damage, as Iverson finished with 16 points and five assists and Rodney Stuckey added 13 and 11 off the bench.
The Knicks – still retooling their rotations after last weeks trades that brought in Al Harrington, Tim Thomas and Cuttino Mobley – briefly pushed back into contention in the third quarter thanks in large part to their newcomers. Thomas and Harrington hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the deficit to single digits at 75-66.
But Jason Maxiells jump shot sparked a 9-0 run that gave Pistons control for good. Richard Hamilton led Detroit with 17 points while Amir Johnson had a double-double off the bench with 12 points and 12 boards.
UTAH 117, MEMPHIS 100
SALT LAKE CITY Deron Williams made his triumphant return to the Utah Jazz Wednesday – and the result, appropriately enough, was the teams biggest offensive output of the season.
After missing all but two games over the first month with a sprained right ankle, Williams came back to lead the Jazz to a 117-100 rout of the Memphis Grizzlies. The star point guard showed no ill effects from the injury, showing the kind of explosiveness that he has been accustomed to over the last three-plus years.
Williams finished with 11 points and 15 assists in 29 minutes as Utah shot 54 percent from the field. Even with Utahs leading scorer, Carlos Boozer, out with a strained left quadriceps tendon, Williams found plenty of other options. Paul Millsap led the way with 24 points and a career-high 16 boards, while Mehmet Okur and Ronnie Brewer chipped in with 21 apiece.
Andrei Kirilenko added 17 off the bench.
The Jazz recovered nicely from Mondays loss to the Chicago Bulls, as Larry Hughes buzzer-beater dealt Utah its first home loss. Memphis had no such luck. Despite a pair of hot shooting performances by O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay, the Grizzlies couldnt keep up with the Jazz as they dropped their fourth straight game.
INDIANA 91, HOUSTON 90
HOUSTON Danny Granger tipped home his missed shot with 13.7 seconds left to give the Indiana Pacers a 91-90 victory over the Houston Rockets.
The Pacers overcame a 10-point deficit in the final quarter, chipping away at the lead throughout before Grangers heroics.
The Rockets had multiple chances to win during a final flurry, but the ball didnt find its way through the hoop.
Trailing by a point at halftime, the Rockets enjoyed a 30-17 advantage in the third quarter and rolled to a 74-64 advantage.
Troy Murphy had a team-high 21 points and Granger added 16 for the Pacers.
The Rockets, who were without Tracy McGrady (sore left knee), were led by Yao Ming and Ron Artest, who had 19 points apiece. Yao took four stitches above his right eye when he suffered a cut in the first half.
PHOENIX 110, MINNESOTA 102
MINNEAPOLIS For the second straight night, the Phoenix Suns were pushed to the limit by one of the NBAs bottom-feeders. And for the second straight night, they survived.
The Suns overcame a late surge by the Minnesota Timberwolves, putting the game away at the free-throw line en route to a 110-102 triumph – the teams third in a row.
Phoenix escaped a scare from the one-win Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, rallying for a 99-98 victory. Wednesdays win wasnt quite as dramatic, but the T-Wolves did get hot from the perimeter over the final three minutes. Or rather, Rashad McCants did.
The backup guard buried three 3-pointers down the stretch as Minnesota pulled to as close as six on two occasions. But with time working against the T-Wolves, all the Suns had to do to finish them off was connect from the foul line – and Steve Nash and Matt Barnes were happy to oblige.
Nash led the way with 20 points and six assists for the Suns, while Shaquille ONeal added 18 and 10 boards and Amare Stoudemire chipped in with 16.
BOSTON 119, GOLDEN STATE 111
BOSTON During the second quarter of the Boston Celtics game with the Golden State Warriors, the big screen showed an All-Star promotion with Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo as the featured player. Hes starting to look like a pretty good option.
Rondo scored 16 of his 22 points in the third quarter and provided a spark again in the fourth as the Celtics posted a 119-111 victory over the Warriors.
The Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen combined for 67 points and Kendrick Perkins chipped in nine and eight rebounds for Boston, winners of six straight. Glen Davis added nine off the bench as Boston improved to 8-1 at home.
Corey Maggette had 32 points and Stephen Jackson 30 for Golden State, which has lost the first three games of a five-game road trip and four straight games overall. In his second game with the Warriors, Jamal Crawford had 18 points.
The Celtics led by as many as 10 in the first quarter and trailed by as many as 13 in a second period that saw the Warriors explode for 39 points – a high for a Celtics opponent in one quarter this season.
ORLANDO 96, PHILADELPHIA 94
PHILADELPHIA Rashard Lewis hit a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining to lift the Orlando Magic over the Philadelphia 76ers, 96-94
After Andre Iguodala hit a pair of free throws to give the Sixers a 94-93 lead with 14 seconds to play, the Magic advanced the ball on a timeout.
With the Philadelphia defense keying on Hedo Turkoglu, Lewis found himself open in the left corner. Turkoglu drove from the wing and dished to Lewis, who drained his fourth 3-pointer of the contest to provide the winning margin.
Lewis finished with 19 points and Dwight Howard added 21 points and 14 rebounds for Orlando.
SAN ANTONIO 98, CHICAGO 88
SAN ANTONIO Tim Duncan scored 21 points and Manu Ginobili added 15 in his second game back as the San Antonio Spurs posted a 98-88 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
George Hill added 19 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Spurs, who have won three straight.
Ben Gordon scored 23 points for the Bulls, who have lost four of their last six games.
CLEVELAND 117, OKLAHOMA CITY 82
CLEVELAND The Cleveland Cavaliers shot 61 percent and need only 17 minutes from LeBron James to post a 117-82 victory over the hapless Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday.
James scored 14 points as the Cavaliers led wire-to-wire, easily disposing of the Thunder.
Cleveland (12-3) solidified the third best record in the NBA while improving to 8-0 at home. The Cavaliers have won three in a row and 11 of their last 12.
Oklahoma City (1-15) lost its 13th consecutive games and third straight under interim coach Scott Brooks, who played 43 games for the Cavaliers during the 1997-98 season.
James struck for 10 points and three assists in the opening quarter as the Cavaliers led, 33-14, after 12 minutes. Cleveland had eight assists on its first nine baskets.
DENVER 106, LA CLIPPERS 105
LOS ANGELES Carmelo Anthony had 30 points and 11 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets held on for a 106-105 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Clippers trailed by eight after three quarters but fought back to tie the game at 103-103 on rookie Eric Gordons 3-pointer with 1:35 remaining.
Anthony gave Denver the lead on a jumper with 1:14 left to play and the Nuggets were clinging to a one-point lead in the final seconds when Marcus Cambys desperation 3-pointer from the top of the arc grazed the front rim.
Gordon finished with 24 points and Zach Randolph had seven on 3-of-11 shooting in his Clippers debut.
NEW JERSEY 116, SACRAMENTO 114 (OT)
SACRAMENTO, California The Sacramento Kings opened the door one too many times for the New Jersey Nets. And Devin Harris made them pay.
Harris buried a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime, then hit a 16-foot jumper over Bobby Jackson with 11 seconds left in the overtime to give the Kings a 116-114 win.
Vince Carter scored 25 for the Nets but missed the final 2:18 of overtime after injuring his right leg, and Harris more than filled the void, finishing with 18 critical points.
The Kings led by six with 34 seconds left in regulation but opened the door for the Nets with missed free throws and bad decisions on defense that allowed New Jersey to convert from the line.
Harris closed out the fourth with a driving layup and then nailed a 3-pointer with seven seconds left that tied it. Sacramento fumbled away its final possession to send the game into overtime.
Brook Lopez had 20 for New Jersey and Brad Miller had 20 for Sacramento.
ATLANTA 102, MILWAUKEE 96
ATLANTA Al Horford scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a 102-96 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Mike Bibby had 18 points and Joe Johnson added 15 for the Hawks, who shot 48 percent from the floor (38-of-90).
Richard Jefferson had 25 points for the Bucks, who played a 13th straight game without guard Michael Redd. Milwaukee was without center Andrew Bogut, who is out 7-10 days with a knee injury.
