The Washington Wizards avoided the first 0-6 start in franchise history, beating the Atlanta Hawks 101-90 on Sunday behind Caron Butler's 24 points.
All five Washington starters scored in double figures for the first time this season. Antawn Jamison had 23 points and 15 rebounds, and Brendan Haywood added 13 points and 12 rebounds. Gilbert Arenas scored 18 points.
Washington gave up more than 104 points a game while opening with five straight losses but held the Hawks to 39 percent shooting. Washington won three of four against Atlanta last season and has won 11 of the last 13 games in the series.
PHOTO: AP
Josh Smith scored 23 points, Joe Johnson had 22 and Marvin Williams added 20 for Atlanta. Josh Childress, with 10 points, was the Hawks' other scorer in double figures.
Heat 75, Knicks 72
At New York, Jason Williams made the go-ahead jump shot with 19 seconds left, and Miami edged New York for its first victory of the season.
PHOTO: AP
Trailing by five with two-and-a-half minutes left, Udonis Haslem made consecutive baskets for the Heat. After Stephon Marbury threw the ball away, Williams knocked down his jumper for a 73-72 lead.
Hasm finished with 16 points and 16 rebounds for the Heat (1-5), the last Eastern Conference team to win after Washington beat Atlanta earlier Sunday.
Eddy Curry scored 19 points for the Knicks.
Hornets 93, 76ers 72
At Philadelphia, David West and Chris Paul each scored 16 points, Bobby Jackson had 12 and New Orleans snapped a two-game losing streak.
Peja Stojakovic added 10 points and Tyson Chandler had 12 rebounds.
Samuel Dalembert had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Sixers. Andre Iguodala scored 17, Kyle Korver had 13 and Reggie Evans grabbed 10 rebounds.
Philadelphia finished its four-game homestand at 1-3.
Wizards 101, Hawks 90
At Atlanta, Caron Butler scored 24 points and Washington avoided the first 0-6 start in franchise history with a win over Atlanta.
All five Washington starters scored in double figures for the first time this season. Antawn Jamison had 23 points and 15 rebounds, and Brendan Haywood also posted a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Josh Smith scored 23 points, Joe Johnson had 22 and Marvin Williams added 20 for Atlanta. Josh Childress, with 10 points, was the Hawks' other scorer in double figures.
Gilbert Arenas scored 18 points for Washington and DeShawn Stevenson added 11. The Wizards outscored the Hawks 23-6 in second-chance points and controlled the boards 53-41.
Rockets 85, Bobcats 82
At Charlotte, North Carolina, Yao Ming scored a season-high 34 points, including a pair of free throws with 20.4 seconds left, and Houston rallied in the fourth quarter to beat Charlotte.
Tracy McGrady scored 12 of his 26 points in the final period and the Rockets fought back from a seven-point deficit to win their third straight game.
Matt Carroll scored 17 points to lead five players in double figures for the Bobcats. Jason Richardson and Raymond Felton had 16 points each, Gerald Wallace scored 10 and Emeka Okafor finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Cavaliers 103, Clippers 95
At Los Angeles, Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 25 points, LeBron James added 22 and Cleveland rallied to beat Los Angeles.
Drew Gooden added 18 points and 17 rebounds for the defending Eastern Conference champions, who needed a fourth-quarter spurt after blowing leads of 11 and 13 points in the game.
Sam Cassell scored 28 points for the Clippers, who lost their second in a row after opening the season 4-0. Corey Maggette had 25 points and 11 rebounds, the first time someone other than Chris Kaman led the team in rebounding this season. Kaman added 21 points.
James played the second half with three fouls, which kept him to eight points in the half.
Pistons 107, SuperSonics 103
At Seattle, Richard Hamilton scored 10 of his season-high 32 points during a torrid first quarter, and Detroit held off a late charge to drop the SuperSonics to 0-7, their worst start ever.
Hamilton capped his night with a 17-foot leaner with 45.9 seconds left to give Detroit a 103-99 lead, after the Pistons squandered a 23-point first half advantage.
Antonio McDyess and Rasheed Wallace both finished with 15 points, and McDyess grabbed 15 rebounds for Detroit.
Seattle was led by Kevin Durant's 19 points.
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