Dwyane Wade had 30 points, eight rebounds and six assists, leading a balanced attack that carried the Miami Heat to a 104-95 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday.
Shaquille O'Neal only took 11 shots and finished with 15 points and five rebounds. Udonis Haslem hit his first seven shots from the floor and finished with 16 for Miami, as did Damon Jones. Eddie Jones added 11.
Tracy McGrady had 28 points for Houston, which lost for the first time in its last four road games. Yao Ming had 12 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter for the Rockets, and Bob Sura added 21 -- 15 of those coming in the game's first 13 minutes.
Miami improved to 33-13, moving 20 games over the .500 mark for the first time since the end of the 1999-2000 season .
Kings 94, Timberwolves 84
In Minneapolis, Brad Miller had 27 points, 15 rebounds and plenty of help picking up the slack for two injured stars, sparking the Sacramento Kings to a victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Sacramento backcourt, Cuttino Mobley (23 points) and Mike Bibby (21 points), combined for 34 points over the final two quarters following a slow first half. All-Star forwards Peja Stojakovic (back spasms) and Chris Webber (sore left knee) didn't dress for the Kings.
Kevin Garnett had 21 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for Minnesota.
Suns 123, Raptors 105
In Toronto, Amare Stoudemire scored 19 of his 27 points in the third quarter and the Phoenix Suns won their fifth straight with a victory over the Toronto Raptors.
Phoenix outscored Toronto 46-26 in the third quarter, the most points the Raptors have allowed in any quarter in their 10-year history.
Shawn Marion added 21 points and 17 rebounds for the Suns, who went 4-0 on their four-game road trip. Steve Nash had 19 points and 12 assists as all five Phoenix starters scored at least 17 points. Nash, playing in his home country, didn't play in the fourth.
Chris Bosh tied a career high with 27 points for the Raptors, who have lost three straight. Jalen Rose added 21 points.
Cavaliers 104, Bucks 87
In Cleveland, Ohio, Drew Gooden scored a career-high 33 points -- 27 in the second half -- and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 28 points and 18 rebounds as the injury-depleted Cavaliers survived another day without LeBron James.
Ilgauskas and Gooden took over in the second half, scoring 42 of Cleveland's 50 points and adding 16 rebounds after halftime as the Cavaliers improved to an Eastern Conference-best 16-4 at home and 1-1 since losing James.
James sprained his left ankle last week against Memphis and is still too sore to give it a try. Coach Paul Silas expects to have James for Tuesday night's game in Orlando.
Michael Redd scored 23 points and Desmond Mason 17 for the Bucks.
Lakers 101, Bobcats 90
In Los Angeles, Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins each scored 20 points, Chris Mihm had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat Charlotte to end its first three-game losing streak of the season.
Lakers coach Rudy Tomjanovich missed the game because of a stomach virus. Assistant coach Frank Hamblen, the only holdover from former coach Phil Jackson's staff, guided the team, 4-4 since Kobe Bryant sprained his right ankle Jan. 13.
Primoz Brezec had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the expansion Bobcats, who lost for the 17th time in 19 games and are 1-19 on the road.
BOUNCE BACK: Curry scored 46 points in the Warriors’ victory over the Spurs, after ‘everybody stepped up’ following Tuesday’s blowout loss to Oklahoma City Nikola Jokic scoring 50 or more points had never been enough for the Denver Nuggets to win — until now. Jokic on Wednesday night tied the highest-scoring performance in the NBA this season with 55 points, as the Nuggets beat the Los Angeles Clippers 130-116 for their sixth straight victory. The Nuggets were 0-4 in his previous 50-point outbursts. “It’s a good feeling,” the three-time NBA Most Valuable Player said. He equaled Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 55 in a double-overtime game at the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 23. Jokic has been on a roll during Denver’s winning streak. He is the
The tri-nation Twenty20 international series featuring hosts Pakistan, as well as Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, is to be played entirely in Rawalpindi from Tuesday next week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said yesterday, after this week’s suicide bombing in the capital, Islamabad. The change came after at least eight Sri Lankan players asked to leave over security fears following Tuesday’s bombing that killed 12 people and wounded 27. Their country’s cricket board issued a stern directive to the team to stay put or face consequences. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said the decision to stay was taken after “close consultations” with hosts Pakistan who
France’s Kevin Aymoz snatched the men’s title at Skate America on Saturday, winning his first grand prix title with a battling free skate, while short program leader Kazuki Tomono faltered. It was an emotional triumph for Aymoz, who made his grand prix level debut in 2017, with seven prior podium finishes, but no gold. He had struggled with a painful foot injury since a disappointing 10th-place finish at Skate Canada last month. “It was so difficult,” the 28-year-old said. “After Skate Canada I wanted to give up so much and today I’m here and it’s so beautiful to be with my friends competing
Australian restaurant chain Grill’d has made a cheeky apology for putting a “curse” on Oscar Piastri’s Formula One title hopes with their offer of a free burger for every time the McLaren driver gets on the podium. The Melbourne native has not finished in the top three since the promotion relaunched five races ago, losing the championship lead to teammate Lando Norris and now 24 points behind. Online conspiracy theorists have been quick to put two and two together. The chain’s Piastri 81 Burger debuted ahead of the Australian Grand Prix in March, with his endorsement, and was relaunched in September after he
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