The Philadelphia 76ers flicked the switch in the third quarter and swept past the Atlanta Hawks 90-76 on Friday in a clash of NBA division leaders.
Jrue Holiday had 16 points and 11 assists, while Thaddeus Young scored 20 points for Philadelphia, who improved to 7-1 at home.
The Sixers left a dismal first half in the dust with a sensational third quarter. Jodie Meeks hit a pair of three-pointers and Andre Iguodala rocked nearly 18,000 fans with a pair of thunderous dunks during a 14-0 run.
Former Sixer Willie Green scored 14 points for the Hawks, who had been in control and seemed on course for a fifth straight win until the 76ers found their way.
TIMBERWOLVES 101, CLIPPERS 98
In Los Angeles, Kevin Love hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to give Minnesota a memorable win over Los Angeles.
Los Angeles’ Chauncey Billups missed a driving layup coming out of a timeout and Love got the rebound before Minnesota called a timeout with 1.5 seconds on the clock.
Love’s winner came after Ricky Rubio sank a tying three-pointer with 20 seconds to play, choosing the right time to end a dismal night of shooting, as he missed his first 10 field goal attempts.
Darko Milicic had 22 points and seven rebounds for Minnesota before fouling out with 1 minute, 1 second left, while Love had 17 points and 14 rebounds. The Timberwolves have won three straight for the first time in two seasons.
Mo Williams scored 21 of his 25 points off the bench in the first half for the Clippers before getting ejected midway through the fourth quarter. Los Angeles’ seven-game home winning streak was ended.
MAGIC 92, LAKERS 80
In Orlando, Florida, Dwight Howard scored 21 points and grabbed 23 rebounds as Orlando overcame a tough shooting performance to beat Los Angeles.
Jameer Nelson added 17 points and nine assists as the Magic had all five starters in double figures.
Kobe Bryant scored 30 points for the Lakers, who posted a season low in points to drop to 1-6 on the road this season.
The Magic led by as many as 23, helped by Los Angeles’ second consecutive night shooting less than 40 percent.
Orlando were only slightly better at 41 percent, but connected on 12 three-pointers.
KINGS 88, SPURS 86
In San Antonio, Texas, Tyreke Evans had 23 points and 11 rebounds, including the go-ahead jumper with 47.2 seconds left to give Sacramento a surprising road victory over San Antonio.
Marcus Thornton and DeMarcus Cousins added 17 points apiece for the Kings, who had been abysmal on the road this season, losing by an average of 23 points, while San Antonio entered the game with a 9-0 home record.
Tony Parker led the Spurs with 24 points. San Antonio missed their final five shots, including Danny Green’s airball on a short runner as time expired.
PACERS 94, WARRIORS 91
In Oakland, California, George Hill scored on a three-point play with 1.8 seconds remaining as Indiana held off a late charge by Golden State.
Hill stole the ball then raced the length of the floor for a tiebreaking layup. Hill was fouled and made the free throw for the final margin.
Stephen Curry had a final chance to tie it for the Warriors, but his 29-footer at the buzzer bounced off the back of the rim.
Danny Granger had 26 points, while Roy Hibbert added a career-high 16 rebounds for the Pacers (10-4), who are off to their best start since opening the 2003-2004 season 13-1.
Monta Ellis finished with 25 points and six assists for Golden State.
TRAIL BLAZERS 94, RAPTORS 84
In Toronto, LaMarcus Aldridge had a season-high 33 points and a career-best 23 rebounds as Portland handed Toronto their seventh consecutive loss.
Raymond Felton scored 14 points as the Blazers won their seventh straight over Toronto. Portland have not lost to the Raptors since 2006-2007.
James Johnson scored a career-high 23 points for the Raptors.
NUGGETS 108, WIZARDS 104
In Washington, Al Harrington scored a season-high 29 points, making the difference in Denver’s tight win over Washington.
Danilo Gallinari and Ty Lawson each had 21 for the Nuggets, who made it five wins in six games despite the absence of Nene with a bruised heel.
Washington led 100-98 with 2 minutes, 7 seconds to play, before an equalizing basket then a Harrington three-pointer with 1 minute, 14 seconds left to make it 103-98.
Nick Young’s 25 points led the Wizards, who dropped to a miserable 2-13.
SUNS 79, CELTICS 71
In Boston, Marcin Gortat scored 24 points with 12 rebounds to lead Phoenix over Boston in a low-scoring encounter.
Steve Nash had 11 points and nine assists for the Suns.
Playing without point guard Rajon Rondo, the team’s most consistent starter this year, the Celtics had their lowest-scoring game of the season. They lost for the sixth time in seven games and fell to 0-4 against the Western Conference.
Ray Allen led the Celtics with 14 points and six rebounds.
In other games, it was:
‧ Bucks 100, Knicks 86
‧ Grizzlies 98, Pistons 81
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