Allen Iverson outperformed Kobe Bryant, scoring 36 points and leading a decisive third-quarter run in the Philadelphia 76ers' 108-91 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
Iverson helped pull the Sixers (31-33) to four games of Boston for first place in the Atlantic Division. Winning the division may be the only way to qualify for the Sixers, who remain stuck in ninth place in the Eastern Conference.
"It made me feel good," Iverson said. "Any win makes me feel good."
PHOTO: AP
Andre Iguodala scored 15 points for the Sixers, adding a few more spectacular dunks, including an alley-oop where he came crashing down on Jumaine Jones. Kyle Korver had 14.
Bryant -- who came in trailing Iverson by nearly two points in the league scoring race -- led the Lakers with 20 points, but had little help. The Lakers (32-31) fell out of the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference.
"We've got to get more people involved," Bryant said. "They were doubling me and the shots weren't falling."
Bryant made five of nine shots in the first quarter, but went 1-for-6 the rest of the game.
Cavaliers 92, Jazz 73
In Cleveland, LeBron James scored 36 points in 34 dominant minutes against Carlos Boozer's new team, leading Cleveland past Utah for its third straight win.
James went 11-of-15 from the field, 12-of-16 on free throws, added nine rebounds and had a perfectly balanced performance. Of his 36 points, 12 came in the paint, 12 came from the line and the other 12 came on outside jumpers.
Drew Gooden, acquired by Cleveland in a trade last summer to replace Boozer, added 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Utah, which scored just 62 points in a loss at Detroit on Sunday, scored nine in the second quarter and went 27-of-81 from the field. Andrei Kirilenko had 14 points -- 12 in the first quarter -- and Matt Harpring added just six on 2-of-11 shooting as the Jazz lost their sixth straight.
Heat 98, Knicks 96
In New York, Dwyane Wade hit a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer, extending Miami's winning streak to 10 games and making the Heat the first team to clinch a playoff spot.
Miami also became the first team in the league to reach 50 wins this season.
Miami, which had a 14-game winning streak earlier this season, became the first Eastern Conference team since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls to have two double-digit winning streaks in a single season.
Wade finished with 24 points and five assists, Shaquille O'Neal scored 23 and Damon Jones made six 3-pointers for 18 points.
Stephon Marbury led New York with 24 points, Tim Thomas added 20 and Jamal Crawford had 12 assists.
Timberwolves 100, Mavericks 91
In Dallas, Kevin Garnett scored 11 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and Sam Cassell celebrated his return to the lineup with a 3-pointer in the closing minutes, helping Minnesota spark their playoff hopes with a victory over the Dallas.
Minnesota, locked in a tight race with Denver and the Los Angeles Lakers for the West's final playoff spot, improved to 2-2 in a seven-game stretch against playoff-bound foes. Next up are games at San Antonio and Memphis, then home against Houston.
The Timberwolves welcomed Cassell, Michael Olowokandi and Eddie Griffin all back to the lineup. None started, but all three made big contributions: Cassell scored 15, including a 3 with 2:11 that stretched Minnesota's lead to 94-87; Olowokandi had eight points and nine rebounds in 18 minutes and Griffin added three points and eight rebounds before fouling out in 15 minutes.
Dallas coach Don Nelson returned from a three-game absence while caring for his wife to see his team lose at home for the fifth time in nine tries. Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points and 15 rebounds, but missed nine of his first 12 shots and finished just 6-for-19.
SuperSonics 99, Bulls 93
In Chicago, Rashard Lewis scored 30 points and Ray Allen had 17 points and seven assists to lead Seattle past Chicago.
Ben Gordon had 11 points of his 21 points in the fourth quarter for Chicago. Andres Nocioni added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Bulls.
Reggie Evans had 19 rebounds for Seattle, who improved to 22-8 on the road.
Kings 105, Magic 94
Sacramento, California, Mike Bibby scored 10 straight fourth-quarter points with three 3-pointers as Sacramento sent Orlando to its season-worst fifth consecutive defeat.
Peja Stojakovic scored 27 points and Bibby had 21 points, 10 assists and six rebounds in the Kings' 10th straight victory over Orlando at Arco Arena.
Steve Francis had 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Grant Hill 24 points as the Magic began a tough five-game, seven-day road trip in one of the NBA's most raucous arenas. They haven't won in Arco since a 97-91 victory on Dec. 19, 1993.
College Basketball
It took eight years in Division I for Oakland to get its first win in the NCAA tournament.
As a reward, the Golden Grizzlies get to play top-seeded North Carolina -- in Charlotte, no less.
Oakland broke open a tight game behind Rawle Marshall's 29 points and Cortney Scott's 21 to beat Alabama A&M 79-69 Tuesday night in the opening round of the NCAA tournament at the University of Dayton.
"There can't be too many colleges who can say they won a game in the NCAA tournament," a grinning Marshall said. "We'll ride this momentum and see how far it takes us."
The Golden Grizzlies (13-18) won their sixth game in a row, including three upsets in as many days last week by a combined seven points to take the Mid-Continent Conference title, giving them a berth in the field of 65.
"If we win the national championship, we'll finally get to 19-18," coach Greg Kampe said with a laugh.
Now they get to play the mighty Tar Heels on their home turf.
"To play against some of the No. 1 players in the nation -- it'll be great to put your talent up against them and see where you stand," Scott said.
Oakland became only the fifth team with a losing record to win an NCAA tournament game, following Bradley in 1955 and the last three years at the Dayton opening round: Siena in 2002, UNC-Asheville in 2003 and Florida A&M a year ago.
"There was a whole lot of adversity during the season," said Brandon Cassise, who chipped in with 13 points. "It brought us together. That's why we've played so well in these do-or-die games."
Obie Trotter scored 24 points and Joseph Martin added 22 for Alabama A&M (18-14), regular-season and tournament champs of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Both teams were making their first appearance in the NCAA tournament. Oakland made the jump from Division II to Division I in the 1997-1998 season.
As the Golden Grizzlies stretched the lead to 21 points with 5 minutes left, the emboldened Oakland student section began chanting, "We want Tar Heels! We want Tar Heels!"
The turnaround is almost incomprehensible for a team that was 7-18 and riding a three-game skid just 18 days earlier. Almost as incredible, Oakland opened the season 0-7, losing by an average of 13 points a game, against a who's who of powerhouses: Illinois, Marquette, Xavier, Missouri, Texas A&M, Kansas State and Saint Louis.
Marshall, a wiry, 6-foot-7 senior swingman expected to be taken in the NBA draft this spring, was the focal point for the Golden Grizzlies most of the night.
He was 9-of-16 from the field, including 3-for-4 on 3-pointers and 8-of-11 in free throws, to go with nine rebounds and three assists.
Marshall's most dramatic play came in the opening half. He took a pass on the right elbow, pump-faked a defender off his feet and then sliced through the lane for a soaring dunk and a foul. A crowd of 8,254 roared its approval.
Ahead 38-35 at the break, Oakland scored 16 of the first 18 points in the second half.
Patrick McCloskey, who had sleepwalked through the first half with no points and two rebounds in 12 minutes, led the surge with five points, five rebounds and a blocked shot. The 260-pound Scott, a transfer from Iowa, added four points on two twisting inside moves, Cassise came off the bench for two baskets and Marshall hit a 3-pointer.
"It took us a while to learn how to play against their speed," Kampe said. "We completely controlled the tempo the rest of the game."
The Rochester, Michigan, school with an enrollment of 16,500 pushed the lead to 54-37 and the lead never dropped below double digits.
"This is surreal," Cassise said. "I can't believe it's all happening."
Scott built his 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting and added eight rebounds and McCloskey had 11 rebounds as the Golden Grizzlies took a 43-29 edge on the boards.
A&M coach L. Vann Pettaway said his team was worn out from playing four games in six days, winning the conference tournament on Sunday before hitting the road less than 24 hours later to make it to Dayton.
"We want to get back to the big dance, but we want to dance when we're rested," he said.
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