NBASam Cassell had 22 points, Elton Brand scored nine of his 20 points in the final 6 minutes and the Los Angeles Clippers snapped the Houston Rockets' five-game winning streak with an 89-81 victory Saturday.
Tracy McGrady scored 25 of his 29 points in the first half for the Rockets, whose loss was their first in the last 10 meetings with the Clippers. The Rockets are 0-12 this season when they score fewer than 90 points.
Cuttino Mobley scored 18 points for the Clippers, who played without No. 2 scorer Corey Maggette for the sixth straight game because of a sprained left foot.
Cavaliers 115, Heat 107
At Cleveland, LeBron James scored 41 points and Donyell Marshall added a season-high 25 for Cleveland, handing coach Miami Pat Riley his first loss since taking over the Heat on Monday.
The Heat had won four straight, including three with Riley after Stan Van Gundy resigned Monday. Cleveland has won two straight after dropping seven of nine.
James added 10 assists, five rebounds and was 12-of-13 from the foul line.
Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 33 points. Shaquille O'Neal tied a season low with 10.
Pacers 102, Knicks 96
At New York, Jermaine O'Neal scored 31 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:56 left, and Indiana handed New York its season-high sixth straight loss.
Jamaal Tinsley added 23 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Pacers, who have won four of five overall and snapped a two-game road losing streak.
Stephon Marbury scored 25 points for the Knicks, but had a costly turnover with 39 seconds left and New York trailing by three.
Bulls 118, Celtics 86
At Chicago, Michael Sweetney had 24 points and seven rebounds and Chris Duhon added 22 points and eight assists to lead Chicago over Boston.
Chicago, coming off a 28-point loss at Detroit on Friday night, hit a club-record nine 3-pointers in the third quarter and was 14-of-17 overall from 3-point range. The Bulls, who shot 59.7 percent overall, scored a season-high 39 points in the third.
Chicago was 9-of-10 from 3-point range in the third quarter and shot 14-of-20 overall in the quarter. Duhon, who was 4-for-4 from 3-point range in the quarter, hit a 3 at the end of the period to make it 90-63. Duhon was 6-for-7 overall on 3s.
Ricky Davis had 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Celtics.
Spurs 90, Kings 89
At San Antonio, Michael Finley hit a 6m jump shot with 2.5 seconds left to lift San Antonio past Sacramento.
Tony Parker had 25 points and a season-high 12 assists for the Spurs, while Tim Duncan scored 11 of his 24 points in the final period and added 14 rebounds. Finley, starting in place of the injured Manu Ginobili, had 16 points.
Sacramento's Shareef Abdur-Rahim matched his season high with 25 points.
Jazz 88, Bucks 80
At Milwaukee, Mehmet Okur had 14 points and 14 rebounds and Gordan Giricek and Deron Williams also each scored 14 points as Utah defeated Milwaukee.
Michael Redd led the Bucks with 19 points. T.J. Ford added 16 and Jamaal Magloire had 14 points.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a