Jamaal Magloire's last-second jumper gave the New Orleans Hornets an 82-81 victory over Detroit, snapping the Pistons' eight-game winning streak.
Chauncey Billups made a 3-pointer with 17 seconds left to put Detroit ahead Tuesday night. The Hornets responded by going inside to Magloire, whose first shot was blocked out of bounds by Ben Wallace with 5.3 seconds left.
PHOTO: REUTERS
"Wallace had a couple of huge blocks. We were just lucky on the last one that it fell into an open player's hands and Cat got an open shot," Hornets coach Tim Floyd said. "I'm just proud of our guys' effort.
On the inbounds play, David Wesley went up for a perimeter jumper and Wallace blocked that shot, too, but Magloire grabbed the ball out of the air, turned and swished a jumper. He was mobbed by teammates while several Pistons collapsed onto the court.
"It feels good ... because we were rewarded for playing such great defense," Magloire said. "The game was filled with runs and we just kept plugging away until that last possession."
Magloire finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds, while Wesley scored 19, going 3-of-4 from 3-point range. Baron Davis had 12 points, 10 rebounds and was two assists shy of his first triple-double of the season when he sprained his left ankle diving for a loose ball late in the third period. He did not return.
Timberwolves 86, Spurs 81
In Minneapolis, Sam Cassell had a triple-double despite being guarded by defensive specialist Bruce Bowen, as Minnesota defeated San Antonio and extend its Midwest Division lead to three games.
Cassell had 14 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for the third triple-double of his career and his first this season. He shot just 2-for-11 from the floor but went 10-for-11 from the free throw line, including four crucial foul shots in the final two minutes.
Kevin Garnett scored 27 points and Latrell Sprewell added 20 as the Wolves won their third straight and extended their lead over the Spurs to three games.
The Spurs have lost four consecutive road games.
Nets 84, Bulls 81
In Chicago, Lucious Harris started for the injured Jason Kidd and scored 19 points with three key fourth-quarter baskets, giving New Jersey a victory over Chicago.
Richard Jefferson led the Nets with 20 points, and he and Harris each had 10 rebounds.
Jamal Crawford scored 34 points to lead Chicago but missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have tied the game.
Grizzlies 95, Raptors 86
In Memphis, Tennessee, Pau Gasol scored 29 points, Stromile Swift added 21 points and 13 rebounds as Memphis forced Toronto to miss two-thirds of its shots.
Gasol shot 10-of-16 as Memphis won for the 10th time in 12 games.
Vince Carter, who led Toronto with 30 points, keyed a fourth-quarter rally, but the Raptors could get no closer than six on two occasions. Toronto's 33 percent shooting was a season-low for a Memphis opponent.
Memphis had a 48-28 advantage in the paint and outrebounded the Raptors 53-47.
Suns 103, Cavaliers 86
In Cleveland, Joe Johnson tied a career-high with 31 points as Phoenix defeated Cleveland to hurt the Cavaliers' playoff hopes.
It was the third straight loss for the Cavaliers, whose lead over Boston for eighth place in the Eastern Conference was cut to a half-game.
Stoudemire had 21 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots. Shawn Marion scored 20.
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