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Wade carries Heat past Raptors

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade, left, drives to the hoop past Toronto Raptors forward Morris Peterson in Toronto on Wednesday. Miami beat Toronto 98-94. PHOTO: AP

Dwyane Wade scored 16 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter, and the Miami Heat overcame the absence of injured Shaquille O'Neal to beat the Toronto Raptors 98-94 in the NBA on Wednesday.

Miami trailed by as many as 13 in the final period, but Wade scored 10 straight points as Miami went on a 16-4 run to take its first lead since early in the first.

Wade's two free throws made it 92-89 lead with a minute left, but Eric Williams tied it with three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt. Wade made two more with 30 seconds left and Williams -- who barely plays -- missed an off-balance layup, costing Toronto a chance to tie.

After Toronto failed to foul Gary Payton, Udonis Haslem dunked to give Miami a 96-92 lead with 11 seconds left. Wade made two more free throws with 4.8 seconds remaining to seal the victory.

Morris Peterson had 28 points for the Raptors.

Cavaliers 107, Mavericks 94

At Cleveland, LeBron James scored 46 points to help Cleveland clinch their first playoff berth since 1998.

James was relentless driving to the basket and shot 16-of-23, adding five rebounds and four assists as he led the Cavaliers to their sixth straight win. He played long after the game was out of reach, and took a couple of vicious fouls before finally leaving to a standing ovation with 2:18 left.

Hawks 94, Pacers 93

At Atlanta, Al Harrington had 23 points and eight rebounds, helping Atlanta end a five-game losing streak and sweep a season series from Indiana for the first time since the 1984-85 season.

The Hawks kept Peja Stojakovic -- who hit four 3-pointers in the final 4:04 -- from touching the ball on the Pacers' final possession.

Jermaine O'Neal missed a turnaround jumper with 5 seconds remaining, and Fred Jones tipped a pass to Jamaal Tinsley that could've given the Indiana point guard a chance to get off a shot from the left wing. Tinsley, however, decided to pass to Jones at the top of the key. Jones' straightaway missed, but the ball left his hands after the buzzer sounded.

Pistons 101, 76ers 91

At Philadelphia, Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess each scored 18 points to lead Detroit.

Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince both had 16 points and Ben Wallace grabbed 11 rebounds for the balanced Pistons.

The game was a possible preview of a first-round playoff series. Detroit has a comfortable lead in the Eastern Conference standings, while the Sixers' three-game losing streak has them in eighth place.

Celtics 123, Knicks 98

At New York, Paul Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak each scored 22 points, Delonte West added 21, and Boston snapped a two-game losing streak and handed New York its sixth straight loss.

Ryan Gomes added 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Celtics, who shot 57 percent from the field and led by as many as 38 points. Raef LaFrentz and Tony Allen each had 14 points.

The Celtics led 40-28 after the first quarter and never relinquished their double-digit lead.

Timberwolves 103, Magic 91

At Minneapolis, Kevin Garnett had 27 points, 19 rebounds and six assists to lead Minnesota.

Garnett flustered Orlando's Dwight Howard, the second-year player who, like Garnett, came straight to the NBA from high school. Howard had 15 points and 12 rebounds.

The Magic allowed Minnesota to shoot 55 percent and had their four-game winning streak snapped, further diminishing their long-shot playoff hopes.

Nets 86, Grizzlies 74

At East Rutherford, New Jersey, Richard Jefferson scored 27 points and New Jersey tied a season high with its 10th straight win.

Vince Carter added 23 points for New Jersey, which built a 20-point lead in the second quarter and led by as many as 23 in the third before Memphis whittled it down to 67-56 early in the final period.

New Jersey has won 20 of its last 23 home games.

Rockets 115, SuperSonics 87

At Houston, Yao Ming had 29 points and 10 rebounds, and Houston beat Seattle to snap a five-game home losing streak.

Stromile Swift and newly acquired Richie Frahm had 16 points apiece for the Rockets, who shot 52 percent (42-of-81) and outrebounded Seattle 46-32. Frahm, a second-year guard, was claimed off waivers on March 20 and went 4-for-8 from 3-point range.

Yao also matched a career high with three steals.

Kings 106, Trail Blazers 90

At Portland, Oregon, Brad Miller scored 24 points and Sacramento extended Portland's longest losing streak in 20 years to nine.

The Kings, who had lost two straight and five of their last seven games, led by as many as 20 points. Former Blazers forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim finished with 21 points.

Jazz 115, Nuggets 104

At Denver, Mehmet Okur scored 24 points, and Utah downed Denver to keep pace in the Western Conference playoff race.

Andrei Kirilenko added 21 points and a key block late in the game for the Jazz, who have won three of their last five games.

Hornets 86, Warriors 85

At Oakland, California, Rasual Butler scored 20 points and hit three 3-pointers in the final four-and-a-half minutes to lead New Orleans to just its second victory in 14 games.
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