National Basketball Association
Suns stay unbeaten at home, edge Magic
National Basketball Association

Suns stay unbeaten at home, edge Magic

Published Dec. 12, 2009 9:06 a.m. ET

Amare Stoudemire capped a 28-point night with an emphatic offensive rebound dunk with 7 seconds to lift Phoenix into a ties for second in the Western Conference.

Orlando, at the end of a four-game trip after being beaten at Utah on Thursday, lost consecutive games for the first time this season and saw its lead atop the Southeast Division cut to half a game.

Steve Nash had 20 points and 18 assists for the Suns.

Rashard Lewis scored 24 for the Magic, who trailed by 19 in the second quarter and 14 in the third.

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Cavaliers 104, TrailBlazers 99

In Cleveland, the hosts bounced back from consecutive sloppy road losses to beat hobbled Portland.

LeBron James scored 33 points, adding seven assists and rebounds and a soaring block on a shot in the closing seconds.

Anderson Varejao had a season-high 22 plus 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were back home after losing in Memphis and Houston. In those games, Cleveland had 20 and 21 turnovers, respectively. The Cavs were better with the ball, committing 16 miscues.

Brandon Roy scored 23 for the Blazers, who dressed just nine players because of injuries.

Mavericks 106, Heat 93

In Miami, Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points to lead Dallas to a win that deepened Miami's home woes.

Erick Dampier finished with 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Mavericks, who never trailed and whose nine road wins is the most of any team in the Western Conference.

Dwyane Wade scored 28 points and matched a career high with 11 rebounds for the Heat, 2-5 at home since Nov. 10.

Miami, which started 0 for 10 from the floor and trailed by double digits 5 minutes in.

Hawks 111, Raptors 89

In Toronto, Atlanta cruised past Toronto for a third successive win.

Joe Johnson scored 20 points, while Jamal Crawford and Maurice Evans each had 15 for the Hawks, who led by as much as 23 en route to a fourth straight defeat of the Raptors.

Toronto's Chris Bosh had 14 points and 10 rebounds for his league-leading 21st double-double.

Lakers 104, Timberwolves 92

In Los Angeles, the home team made it 11 straight wins by downing Minnesota.

Kobe Bryant scored 20 points while playing with a small break in his finger as Los Angeles wrapped up the generous portion of its schedule, in which it played 17 of its first 21 games at home.

Pau Gasol had 17 points and a career-high 20 rebounds for the defending champions, who improved the NBA's best record to 18-3.

Bryant hurt the index finger on his right hand late in the first quarter. He has an avulsion fracture, in which a small piece of bone tears away near a ligament or tendon.

Thunder 102, Grizzlies 94

In Memphis, Tennessee, Kevin Durant had 32 points and 10 rebounds to lift Oklahoma City past Memphis.

The Thunder's Russell Westbrook scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter as the visitors snapped the Grizzlies' three-game winning streak.

Zach Randolph had 19 points and 20 rebounds for Memphis, which went 14 of 24 from the free-throw line.

Spurs 104, Bobcats 85

In San Antonio, Manu Ginobili scored 22 points as San Antonio had a comfortable win over Charlotte.

Tim Duncan and Richard Jefferson added 17 apiece for the Spurs.

The Bobcats fell to 1-9 on the road, and on Saturday face Dallas - a team they've never beaten.

Stephen Jackson had 23 points for the Bobcats, who scored only six times in the fourth quarter.

Knicks 113, Hornets 96

In New Orleans, New York scored the game's last 18 points to overwhelm New Orleans.

Al Harrington scored 28 points for the Knicks, who won a fourth straight game for the first time since 2005-06.

The Hornets lost for the first time in seven home games.

New York trailed 96-95 with less than five minutes left, but Harrington and Chris Duhon hit a barrage of baskets. Duhon sank back-to-back 3-pointers, and Harrington followed with two more as the Knicks put the game away. Duhon scored 22 points.

David West scored 20 to lead New Orleans.

Rockets 96, 76ers 91

In Philadelphia, Houston held off a late surge to hand Philadelphia its 12th straight defeat.

The 76ers are on their longest skid since also dropping 12 in a row in 2006-07. They traded Allen Iverson near the end of that losing streak, and now have him back.

Iverson, in his third game back with the Sixers after his short retirement, hit a basket with a minute remaining but Aaron Brooks' shot sealed the win. Brooks scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half.

Andre Iguodala scored 12 of his 24 points in the first quarter for the 76ers, who fell to 0-8 against Western Conference teams.

Bulls 96, Warriors 91, OT

In Chicago, the hosts ended a run of four straight defeats with an overtime victory against Golden State.

Luol Deng scored 21 points and Joakim Noah finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Bulls, who never trailed in overtime.

Monta Ellis finished with 27 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Warriors, who have lost five of six.

Pacers 107, Nets 91

In Indianapolis, Indiana won for the first time in seven games, downing hapless New Jersey.

Rookie Tyler Hansbrough scored a season-high 21 points and Roy Hibbert added a career-best 20 points on his birthday for the Pacers, who won despite a second game without leading scorer Danny Granger - out for at least a month with a heel injury.

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