Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS — Kobe Bryant scored 34 points and Andrew Bynum added 26 points and 10 rebounds to lift the reeling Los Angeles Lakers to a 105-102 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.
Bynum dominated the smaller Wolves down low and Bryant made four free throws in the final 16 seconds for the Lakers, who beat the Timberwolves for the 18th straight time.
Derrick Williams had 22 points and 10 rebounds and Nikola Pekovic had 25 points and 13 boards for the Wolves, who found out less than 30 minutes before the game that leading scorer and rebounder Kevin Love could not play because of back spasms.
The Wolves had a chance to win it down one with 16 seconds to go, but Williams’ drive to the basket was blocked by Pau Gasol. Williams wanted a foul but didn’t get the call.
CELTICS 104, TRAIL BLAZERS 86
BOSTON — Paul Pierce and Ray Allen each scored 22 points and Boston rebounded from a lopsided loss and handed one to Portland.
The win came after Boston lost by 32 points at Atlantic Division-leading Philadelphia on Wednesday, its worst setback in more than six years.
Kevin Garnett grabbed seven defensive rebounds to move into second place on the NBA’s career list with defensive rebounds since the league started keeping the stat in 1973-74. He has 10,122 and moved ahead of Robert Parish (10,117). Karl Malone holds the top spot with 11,406.
LaMarcus Aldridge led the Trail Blazers with 22 points. Portland has dropped five of six games and played the second of seven straight away from the Rose Garden.
CAVALIERS 96, THUNDER 90
OKLAHOMA CITY — Antawn Jamison scored 21 points and Kyrie Irving orchestrated a decisive run in the final 3 minutes and Cleveland snapped Oklahoma City’s 14-game home winning streak.
The Cavaliers scored their first consecutive road wins of the season by turning the normally fast-breaking Thunder into a half-court team. Oklahoma City converted only three transition baskets until trying to make a dramatic comeback in the final minute.
Neither team led by more than five until the final minute, when the Cavaliers were putting the finishing touches on a 12-0 run spearheaded by Irving. He drove for a pair of layups to put Cleveland ahead and then found Jamison wide open under the basket for a layup to make it 90-85.
Kevin Durant tried to lead Oklahoma City back, but missed on a pair of 3-point attempts. He finished with 23 points and Russell Westbrook scored 19 for the Thunder.
PISTONS 86, HAWKS 85
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Tayshaun Prince made a driving left-handed shot with 24.3 seconds remaining, and Detroit held on to beat Atlanta.
The Pistons wasted a 12-point fourth-quarter lead and trailed by one after Jeff Teague’s layup with 36.6 seconds to play, but Prince answered and Atlanta’s Joe Johnson missed a contested shot from the left corner in the final seconds.
Josh Smith came up with the rebound for the Hawks and sank a fadeaway that was immediately waived off for coming after the buzzer. The call was upheld after a video review.
Greg Monroe scored 20 points and Jason Maxiell added 19 for Detroit. Smith led the Hawks with 21 and Johnson scored 18 in his first game back after missing four with left knee tendinitis.
NETS 83, BOBCATS 74
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kris Humphries had 20 points and 15 rebounds and New Jersey overcame an injury to Deron Williams to beat Charlotte.
Anthony Morrow scored all 17 of his points in the fourth quarter to help the Nets break open a tight game.
Williams, who scored a career-high and franchise-record 57 points on this same floor Sunday night against the Bobcats, left in the second quarter with a sore right calf and did not return. He finished with seven points and three assists.
Corey Maggette led the Bobcats with 19 points and Bismack Biyombo had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
76ERS 104, JAZZ 91
PHILADELPHIA — Lou Williams and Thaddeus Young scored 21 points each, lifting Philadelphia past Utah.
Evan Turner had 16 points and 12 rebounds, Jrue Holiday also scored 16 point, and Andre Iguodala added 10 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for the Sixers, who followed Wednesday’s 32-point victory over the Boston Celtics with another impressive performance.
Young returned with a strong performance following a one-game absence with an upper respiratory illness.
Paul Millsap had 15 points to lead the Jazz while Derrick Favors and Al Jefferson added 14 each. Gordon Hayward had 13 and Devin Harris 10 as Utah snapped a two-game winning streak.
BUCKS 119, KNICKS 114
MILWAUKEE — Ersan Ilyasova scored 26 points, including a critical putback in the final minute, and Milwaukee held on to beat New York.
Brandon Jennings and Mike Dunleavy added 25 points each for the Bucks, who were coming off a last-second loss at home to Chicago on Wednesday.
Amare Stoudemire had 27 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks, who have lost four straight and seven of their past 10. Carmelo Anthony had 22 points, while Jeremy Lin had 20 points and 13 assists, with four steals and five turnovers.
The game had some significance to the Eastern Conference playoff picture. The Knicks came into the game holding on to the No. 8 playoff spot in the East, with the Bucks three games behind. Milwaukee’s win cuts the deficit to two.
CLIPPERS 120, SPURS 108
SAN ANTONIO — Chris Paul had 36 points and 11 assists, Mo Williams scored a season-high 33 and the Clippers ended a 17-game losing streak at San Antonio.
It was the Clippers’ first victory in San Antonio in a decade, and a 3-point barrage led by Williams is what finally snapped their long skid here. Williams was 7 of 9 from behind the arc, including consecutive makes in the fourth that deflated the Spurs.
Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 22 points. Tony Parker missed just his second game this season with a sore thigh, depriving the game of an All-Star matchup with Paul.
The Clippers needed the win after losing six of nine.
NUGGETS 110, HORNETS 97
DENVER — Arron Afflalo scored 28 points, Al Harrington had 20 and Denver pulled away to win for the fifth time in six games since the All-Star break.
Nene added 12 points and Ty Lawson had 11 points to go with 10 assists for the Nuggets.
Lance Thomas scored 18 points to lead the Hornets, who lost their fourth in a row.
Jarret Jack added 17 points and Xavier Henry and Marco Belinelli had 12 points apiece for New Orleans.
Locked in a tight game most of the way, the Nuggets used a 10-2 run to pull out to their biggest lead to that point, 74-63 with 2:58 left in the third period.
Harrington scored five points in the run, including driving the lane for a dunk and Afflalo finished it off with a 3-pointer.
KINGS 110, MAVERICKS 97
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Tyreke Evans and Marcus Thornton each scored 17 points to help Sacramento end a 10-game losing streak against Dallas.
Rookie Isaiah Thomas added 14 points, including three 3-pointers in the third quarter, for the Kings, who last beat Dallas on Jan. 11, 1999. The worst of those losses came in the first meeting earlier this season when the defending champion Mavericks won 99-60 in Dallas.
Jason Terry scored 23 points to lead the Mavericks, who have lost six straight road games for the first time since November 1999. Dallas has lost seven of nine games overall to fall into seventh place in the Western Conference.
