The Boston Celtics brought up their second 10-game winning streak of the season with a 86-78 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
The previous time the Celtics won 10 in a row twice in a season was 1985-1986, when they went on to win one of their 17 NBA titles.
Kevin Garnett scored 22 points to top the Boston scorers, while Paul Pierce had 20 and Ray Allen added 14.
PHOTO: AP
The defending champions are an NBA-best 39-9 thanks to the current run and a franchise-record 19-game winning streak early in the season.
Detroit’s Allen Iverson scored 19 points, moving past Hall of Famer Charles Barkley and into 16th place on the NBA’s career scoring list.
■LAKERS 132, TIMBERWOLVES 119
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Los Angeles began a six-game road trip with their highest score of the season, defeating Minnesota.
Los Angeles’ Andrew Bynum bulled his way inside to 27 points and 15 rebounds, a perfect complement to Kobe Bryant, who scored 30 points as the Lakers recorded a sixth consecutive win over the Timberwolves.
The Wolves rallied from a 20-point hole with an 18-7 run in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t get any closer. It was the most points they’ve allowed in regulation time this season.
The Lakers moved five games ahead of San Antonio in the battle for the Western Conference’s best record.
■NUGGETS 110, BOBCATS 99
In Denver, Colorado, Carmelo Anthony scored 19 points in his first game back from a broken right hand as Denver downed Charlotte.
After missing 10 games, Anthony wasn’t bothered by a broken bone in his shooting hand, finishing five-of-12 from the floor and nine-of-11 from the free-throw line. He played with his two middle fingers wrapped in tape.
The win put Denver two games clear of Portland atop the Northwest Division.
■HAWKS 105, NETS 88
In Atlanta, Georgia, the home team won the battle of high-scoring back-courts, downing New Jersey.
Joe Johnson scored 29 points and his back-court teammate Mike Bibby added 20.
New Jersey’s Devin Harris and Vince Carter form the top-scoring back-court in the league with a combined average of 43.1 points, but they sank only 11-of-31 between them against the Hawks.
■CAVALIERS 112, CLIPPERS 95
In Cleveland, Ohio, the hosts tied the franchise record for most consecutive home wins, making it 22-0 on their court this season by beating Los Angeles.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 20 points with 11 rebounds in his first game in exactly a month after a broken left ankle and LeBron James added 25 points.
The Clippers stayed close for nearly three quarters, before dropping their eighth straight road game. They have lost 18 of 20 overall.
■PACERS 114, HEAT 103
In Indianapolis, Indiana won their seventh straight home game, defeating Miami.
Mike Dunleavy scored a season-high 30 points. He missed the first 34 games this season with a knee injury, but the Pacers are 6-3 with him in the starting lineup.
■WARRIORS 91, HORNETS 87
In New Orleans, Corey Maggette scored 12 of his 19 points in the last six minutes, steering Golden State to an upset win over New Orleans.
Jamal Crawford hit a 19-foot jumper with 15 seconds left to all but seal it after Peja Stojakovic had pulled New Orleans to 85-82 with 37 seconds left.
■BUCKS 96, RAPTORS 85
In Toronto, Charlie Villanueva had 26 points and 13 rebounds to lead Milwaukee over Toronto.
Richard Jefferson added 17 points as the Bucks won for the first time since Michael Redd went down with a season-ending knee injury.
■JAZZ 110, THUNDER 90
In Salt Lake City, Utah snapped a four-game losing streak with a comfortable win over Oklahoma City.
Deron Williams had 24 points and 12 assists for the Jazz, who capitalized on the Thunder’s 24 turnovers.
■76ERS 104, WIZARDS 94
In Philadelphia, Willie Green scored a season-high 20 points as Philadelphia overcame Washington in a see-sawing encounter.
Andre Iguodala also had 20 as the 76ers won the first of seven straight home games.
■BULLS 109, KINGS 88
In Sacramento, California, Chicago notched their first win at Sacramento since the Michael Jordan era.
Ben Gordon and Luol Deng each scored 20 points for the Bulls.
Chicago had lost nine straight in Sacramento and hadn’t beaten the Kings at Arco Arena since 1997, Michael Jordan’s final year with the Bulls.
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