Fridays National Basketball Association Capsules
January 31st, 2009 Posted in NBA basketball newsMILWAUKEE 96, TORONTO 85
TORONTO Charlie Villanueva collected 26 points and 13 rebounds and the Milwaukee Bucks used a strong defensive performance to top the Toronto Raptors, 96-85.
Milwaukee trailed, 30-24, after the opening period but forged ahead by a pair at halftime. In a decisive third quarter, the Bucks turned up the defensive pressure and held the Raptors to just 12 points on 25 percent (5-of-20) from the field.
The Bucks were in front, 70-59, after three and built an 18-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
After missing eight games with a back injury, Andrew Bogut was strong in his return for Milwaukee. The Australian had 13 points and eight rebounds in 16 minutes off the bench.
Chris Bosh registered 18 points and nine boards for Toronto, which saw its three-game winning streak snapped.
BOSTON 86, DETROIT 78
AUBURN HILLS, Michigan Kevin Garnett collected 22 points and eight rebounds and the Boston Celtics clamped down on defense while pushing their latest winning streak to 10 games with an 86-78 victory over the Detroit Pistons.
Paul Pierce added 20 points and Ray Allen chipped in 14 for the Celtics, who held the Pistons to 40 percent shooting (30-of-74), including 1-of-8 from 3-point range.
Things got chippy in the fourth quarter when Boston center Kendrick Perkins slammed Pistons forward Jason Maxiell to the ground with a forearm to the back of the neck. Perkins was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected.
Allen Iverson led the Pistons with 19 points and passed Charles Barkley to move into 21st place on the all-time scoring list, pushing his career total to 23,768.
INDIANA 114, MIAMI 103
INDIANAPOLIS The Indiana Pacers have had little trouble putting points on the board all season. On Friday night, that firepower was too much for the Miami Heat.
Mike Dunleavy scored 30 points and Danny Granger and Troy Murphy added 19 apiece as the Pacers snapped Miamis three-game winning streak with a 114-103 triumph.
The Pacers took control early in the second quarter and never looked back.
Maceo Bastons steal less than a minute into the period helped set up a pair of free throws by T.J. Ford, sparking a 12-2 run that put Indiana into cruise control. Murphy and Granger knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers during the spurt, which the Heat finally quelled thanks to Michael Beasleys 3-pointer.
By that time, the damage was already done, as the Heat were down by double-digits for most of the rest of the night.
Dwyane Wade carried Miami with 24 points on 10-of-17 shooting and Mark Blount added 17 off the bench, but it was hardly enough.
LA LAKERS 132, MINNESOTA 119
MINNEAPOLIS All-Star Kobe Bryant scored 30 points and Andrew Bynum added 27 to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 132-119 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Pau Gasol scored 21 points for the Lakers, who scored at least 31 in each quarter and had six players score in double figures.
Bryant was 12-of-23 from the field and Bynum added 15 rebounds for Los Angeles, which got its six-game road trip off to a fast start.
The Timberwolves were led by Al Jefferson and Randy Foyes 30 and 25 points, respectively. Jefferson also had 13 rebounds to record his 25th double-double of the season.
UTAH 110, OKLAHOMA CITY 90
SALT LAKE CITY The Utah Jazz gave the Oklahoma City Thunder the big payback.
Having been whipped by 21 points on January 14, the Jazz spanked the Thunder, 110-90, behind Deron Williams double-double.
The victory snapped a four-game losing streak for Utah.
After a tight first quarter, Utah erupted for a 36-25 advantage in the second quarter to take control. Williams had 13 points and nine assists before intermission en route to a 24-point, 12-assist effort.
The Jazz didnt miss a beat after the break, going on a 13-0 run for an 84-60 advantage, effectively turning out the lights on the Thunder. The beat went on and at the end of three quarters Utah led, 95-75, and extended garbage time ensued.
Mehmet Okur scored 20 points for Utah, which put its five starters in double figures.
Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 29 points.
GOLDEN STATE 91, NEW ORLEANS 87
NEW ORLEANS Corey Maggette scored 12 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter as the Golden State Warriors edged the New Orleans Hornets, 91-87.
Jamal Crawford provided the dagger with a jumper with 15 seconds remaining to push the lead to 87-82 in favor of the Warriors, who held the Hornets to 36 percent (28-of-78) shooting in the contest.
Golden State trailed, 69-67, with 10:12 left in the game but went on an 11-3 run over the next six minutes to grab a 78-72 edge. Monta Ellis capped the spurt with a long jumper and finished with 15 points.
Chris Paul collected 31 points and eight assists but committed six turnovers for the Hornets, who had only two other players score in double figures.
CHICAGO 109, SACRAMENTO 88
SACRAMENTO, California One losing streak came to an end Friday at Arco Arena. Another continues to roll along.
Luol Deng and Ben Gordon led a balanced attack with 20 points apiece as the Chicago Bulls won here for the first time since November 1997, romping over the Sacramento Kings, 109-88.
The loss dropped the Kings to 0-21 this season against the Eastern Conference, and it was their 22nd straight setback dating to last season against Eastern foes.
Another sluggish start on their homecourt put the Kings in an all-too-familiar position – a double-digit, first-half deficit.
The game was tied at 12-12 before the Bulls went on a blitz, outscoring Sacramento by 21 over the next 10 minutes to grab a 45-24 advantage with seven minutes left in the second quarter.
The Kings rallied, as per the usual script, reeling off 11 unanswered points and closing the margin to 54-43 at the break.
Chicago would not let the Kings back completely. The Bulls took advantage of a rash of turnovers from Sacramento early in the third to re-establish control.
ATLANTA 105, NEW JERSEY 88
ATLANTA All-Star Joe Johnson scored 29 points as the Atlanta Hawks snapped their three-game losing streak with a 105-88 victory over the sliding New Jersey Nets.
Flip Murray scored 23 points off the bench for the Hawks, who improved to 18-5 at home this season.
Atlanta also continued the poor stretch for New Jersey, which has lost eight of its last nine games. The Nets lone win during that stretch was Saturdays 99-88 triumph over the lowly Memphis Grizzlies, who are in the midst of a tumultuous season.
First-time All-Star Devin Harris scored 20 points and Vince Carter added 18 for New Jersey, which was outscored, 50-35, in the second half.
CLEVELAND 112, LA CLIPPERS 95
CLEVELAND It took them most of the night, but the Cleveland Cavaliers finally put away the pesky Los Angeles Clippers.
Fresh off one of their most lopsided losses of the season to Orlando on Thursday, the Cavs got back on track, but not without a bit of a fight. LeBron James scored 25 points and Zydrunas Ilgauskus added 20 in his return from a fractured left ankle to lead Cleveland to a 112-95 victory over the Clips.
Los Angeles stayed close well into the fourth quarter before the Cavs finally created some distance. Mo Williams kicked off a 13-2 run with a 3-pointer and capped it off the same way to pushthe lead to 102-85.
Williams finished with 23 points and six assists.
Rookie guard Eric Gordon collected 27 points and seven boards for the Clippers, who have dropped four in a row and have just two wins in January.
PHILADELPHIA 104, WASHINGTON 94
PHILADELPHIA Andre Iguodala and Willie Green both scored 20 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 104-94 victory over the Washington Wizards.
Green scored 18 of his points in the first half to help the 76ers open up a 46-39 lead at the break. Iguodala scored 14 points in the second half and was key down the stretch after the Wizards pulled within one in the fourth quarter.
Iguodala scored two straight hoops and Louis Williams made a free throw to cap an 11-2 run and give Philadelphia a 96-86 lead with 3:15 to go.
After Antawn Jamison hit a 3-pointer to make it 98-91, Iguodala answered with two straight hoops to push the lead back to 102-91 with 1:12 left.
Jamison scored 25 points and Caron Butler added 20 for the Wizards.
DENVER 110, CHARLOTTE 99
DENVER Carmelo Anthony scored 19 points in his first game back after a 10-game absence to help the Denver Nuggets defeat the Charlotte Bobcats, 110-99.
Anthony had been out since suffering a non-displaced third metacarpal fracture on his right hand against the Indiana Pacers on January 5. He added five of Denvers 28 assists on the night as the Nuggets shot 55 percent (40-of-73) from the field.
Nene recorded a double-double with 22 points and 12 rebounds and Linas Kleiza added 21 points off the bench for the Nuggets.
Following a 13-0 run early in the first quarter that was sparked by seven points from Anthony, Denver never trailed in winning for the fourth time in five games.
Raja Bell scored 27 points to lead the Bobcats, who have lost three of their first four during a difficult five-game road swing. Charlotte concludes the trip Monday in Utah.
