Dirk Nowitzki scored 33 points in 34 minutes as the Dallas Mavericks beat the lethargic Minnesota Timberwolves 119-95 on Sunday afternoon.
Steve Nash had a season-high 15 assists to go with 14 points in three quarters, and reserve Nick Van Exel contributed 19 points and nine assists for the Mavericks, who led 100-71 after the third period.
PHOTO: AFP
Minnesota, equaling its season high with three straight losses, missed another chance to clinch a seventh straight playoff berth. Kevin Garnett had 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Wolves.
Minnesota's Rasho Nesterovic, in his second game back after missing five with a sprained ankle, had nine of his 11 points in the first half but was a step behind Shawn Bradley and Raef LaFrentz on the other end.
Raptors 95, Knicks 86
In Toronto, Vince Carter scored 28 points as the Toronto Raptors beat New York, hurting the Knicks' slim playoff hopes.
Allan Houston had 24 points for the Knicks, who have lost three straight and four of five. Latrell Sprewell scored just four points and was benched for the entire fourth quarter when the Knicks cut a 19-point deficit to four.
New York trails eighth-place Washington by three games and is two-and-a-half games behind ninth-place Milwaukee. The Bucks and Wizards played later Sunday.
Carter added nine rebounds and six assists and made a spectacular 360-degree dunk in the first half.
Alvin Williams had 12 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter for the Raptors, who have won just three of their last 13.
Bucks 109, Heat 87
In Milwaukee, Gary Payton had 24 points and Sam Cassell had 23 points and nine assists as the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a three-game losing streak, using a big first half to defeat the Miami Heat.
Toni Kukoc added 18 points, Michael Redd 14 and Desmond Mason had 11 points and 11 rebounds for Milwaukee, whose reserves outscored Miami's 47-25.
Rookie Caron Butler led the Heat with 24 points, Mike James added 15 and Eddie House 12, but it wasn't enough to keep the Heat from losing their 12th game in the last 16.
Pacers 92, Suns 81
In Indianapolis, Jermaine O'Neal had 24 points and 11 rebounds and Ron Artest had 20 points as the Indiana Pacers led by as many as 17 points and defeated the Phoenix Suns.
The Pacers have won two straight games after dropping 15 of 19 to fall into fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They have two games left with teams ahead of them in the standings -- Detroit on April 4 and New Jersey on April 16.
Indiana is starting to show signs of playing like the team that was 22 games over .500, not the one plagued the last two months by injury, suspension and off-court distractions.
Phoenix's Shawn Marion finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds, Joe Johnson had 19 points and Amare Stoudemire 15.
Pistons 99, Kings 88
In Auburn Hills, Michigan, the Detroit Pistons dominated when it mattered most, closing the game with a 15-1 run.
Cliff Robinson scored 21 points and Corliss Williamson had 15 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter for the Pistons, who trailed by 21 midway through the second quarter and by 10 after three quarters.
Detroit outscored Sacramento 14-3 to open the fourth quarter and take a 81-80 lead -- its first since the opening minutes -- with 7:32 left. The Kings went ahead 87-84 on Peja Stojakovic's layup with 5:08 left, but then scored only one point the rest of the way.
Sacramento, which was 42-2 when leading after three quarters, was trying to extend its winning streak to a season-high seven games.
Spurs 92, Hornets 90
In New Orleans, Tim Duncan had 33 points and 12 rebounds, including a clinching 3-pointer in the final minute, as the San Antonio Spurs won their fifth straight .
Duncan's late 3, which came quickly off an inbounds play, gave San Antonio a 91-86 lead after P.J. Brown missed a shot he normally makes -- an open 14-foot jumper -- that could have tied the game.
Duncan set up the shot -- his sixth 3-pointer of the season -- by diving after a loose ball and calling timeout just before being tied up by Baron Davis.
San Antonio remained two games behind Midwest Division-leading Dallas, while New Orleans fell two-and-a-half games behind Indiana for the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
SuperSonics 119, Lakers 98
In Seattle, Ray Allen scored 32 points and Rashard Lewis returned from a one-game injury absence to score 24 as Seattle defeated the Los Angeles Lakers.
Brent Barry added 15 points, 13 assists and nine rebounds, just missing his first career triple-double for the second straight game. He had 14 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in Friday's 95-71 win over Memphis.
Peja Drobnjak had 20 points as the Sonics, making a late bid for the final Western Conference playoff spot, scored a season-high point total and snapped the Lakers' three-game winning streak. The Sonics pulled within 2 1/2 games of Phoenix and Houston for the No. 8 spot in the West.
Nuggets 88, Wizards 72
In Denver, Shammond Williams scored eight consecutive points early in the fourth quarter and finished with 15 as the Nuggets beat Washington to spoil Michael Jordan's final appearance in Denver.
Jordan finished with 19 points for Washington, which shot only 35 percent. The loss damaged the Wizards' playoff hopes, dropping them one-half game behind Milwaukee in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Six Denver players scored in double figures as the Nuggets outscored Washington 28-13 in the third quarter to erase a 44-36 halftime deficit and take a 64-57 lead.
Clippers 102, Grizzlies 100
In Los Angeles, Corey Maggette scored six of his 18 points in the final 3:19 as the Los Angeles Clippers beat Memphis to snap a four-game losing streak.
In the first game of a two-night stand at Staples Center, the Grizzlies squandered their best chance to record the first winning month in the franchise's eight-year history.
They are 8-7 in March with one game left -- against the NBA champion Lakers, who are 17-0 at home against the Grizzlies.
Fenerbahce on Thursday earned a rare 2-1 win in England, but were still knocked out of the UEFA Europa League by Nottingham Forest in the playoffs. Forest entered the second leg with a healthy 3-0 lead from the opener in Istanbul — where Vitor Pereira made an impact in his first game in charge — and that proved enough to advance to the round-of-16 with a 4-2 aggregate score. The result was a boost for Forest, struggling at 17th place in the Premier League, in their return to Europe after three decades. They next face Real Betis Balompie or Kerem Akturkoglu gave Fenerbahce
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
EVERY DAY A VICTORY: Players on the women’s team faced pressure from society just getting out onto the field as they prepare for their first Women’s Asian Cup game today Bangladesh’s national soccer team face daunting odds at their first-ever Women’s Asian Cup, but have already scored a major victory by qualifying. In the South Asian nation of 170 million, social stigma, family expectations, poverty and religious hardliners have long relegated women and girls to sports sidelines. The first women’s soccer league matches took place in 2011 and the squad, known to fans as the Red and Green, have kept pressing forward despite deeply embedded prejudices. “Many more girls would have joined us if the community had been even slightly supportive,” captain Afeida Khandaker told AFP ahead of her side’s March 3
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