Wade, James lead Heat to win over Magic
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MIAMI — Dwyane Wade scored 27 points, LeBron James had 25 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and the NBA-leading Miami Heat beat the Orlando Magic 90-78 on Sunday for their sixth consecutive victory.
With former President Bill Clinton sitting courtside next to Heat managing general partner Micky Arison, Udonis Haslem scored 10 for the Heat, who improved to 25-7, a half-game better than Chicago for the best record in the NBA and the Eastern Conference. The 12-point final margin Sunday was Miami’s smallest during its current winning streak.
Wade made 13 of 23 shots from the floor, shooting 50 percent or better for the 10th straight game.
J.J. Redick, who was a late addition to the Orlando starting lineup after Jason Richardson was scratched with chest pain, scored 17 points.
Pacers 108, Bobcats 73
INDIANAPOLIS — First-time All-Star Roy Hibbert had 18 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Indiana Pacers to a win over the Charlotte Bobcats.
Danny Granger and David West each scored 14 points. West added eight rebounds for the Pacers, who have won two in a row.
Pistons 96, Celtics 81
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Greg Monroe had 17 points and 10 assists, and Rodney Stuckey added 16 points to lead surging Detroit Pistons over the Boston Celtics.
Detroit has now won seven of its last nine games, including two victories in five days over the Celtics, who were missing Kevin Garnett (personal reasons) and Brandon Bass (left knee).
Paul Pierce led Boston with 18 points.
Cavaliers 93, Kings 92
CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving’s two free throws with 0.4 seconds remaining gave the Cleveland Cavaliers a win over Sacramento, extending the Kings’ losing streak to five games.
Irving’s foul shots came after DeMarcus Cousins’ basket with 2.9 seconds left gave the Kings a 92-91 lead.
Rockets 101, Jazz 85
HOUSTON — Kyle Lowry scored 32 points and Luis Scola had 26 and the Houston Rockets fought off a late run from the Utah Jazz and went on to a win.
Utah cut Houston’s double-digit lead to just two points with a big fourth quarter run, before an 8-2 spurt by the Rockets stretched their lead to 88-80 with four minutes left.
Bucks 92, Nets 85
NEWARK, N.J. — Ersan Ilyasova had career highs of 29 points and 25 rebounds, and the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak with a victory over New Jersey, spoiling the season debut of Nets center Brook Lopez.
Timberwolves 92, 76ers 91
MINNEAPOLIS — Kevin Love scored 12 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, including a pair of free throws with 0.1 seconds, to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to a victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Suns 102, Lakers 90
PHOENIX — Jared Dudley scored a season-high 25 points, Marcin Gortat had 21 points and 15 rebounds and the Phoenix Suns held on to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, ending a four-game losing streak.
The Lakers, who had won three straight, trailed by 23 at halftime and 27 in the third quarter before cutting it to 10 in the fourth.
Kobe Bryant scored 32 points but was 1 of 8 on 3-pointers and committed 10 turnovers, one shy of his career worst.
Thunder 124, Nuggets 118
OKLAHOMA CITY — Kevin Durant scored a career-best 51 points for the top performance in the NBA this season, Russell Westbrook added 40 and Serge Ibaka had his first career triple-double as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets.
Durant hit a 3-pointer and drove for a dunk to tie the game with 4.4 seconds left in regulation, then used the extra period to chalk up the first 50-point game of the two-time scoring champion’s career.
