Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011
PHOENIX — Dwight Howard was 15 years old the last time the Magic won in Phoenix. It was the only NBA city where he had not walked away a winner.
Until Sunday, and it wasn't even close.
Howard had 26 points, 15 rebounds and five blocked shots, then watched the fourth quarter from the bench as the Magic completed a 111-88 rout of the Suns for its first victory in Phoenix in nine seasons.
"We hadn't won here since I have been in the NBA, so that was our whole focus," Howard said, "to get a good win."
With a hook shot over Robin Lopez in the third quarter, Howard topped 10,000 career points. Big deal, he said.
"I never look at the points," he said. "Rebounds and blocks are what win games for me."
Aaron Brooks, starting in place of injured point guard Steve Nash, had 19 points and 10 assists, but the Suns were blown out at home for the second game in a row.
Nash missed the game with "pelvic instability." Coach Alvin Gentry said Nash probably will miss tonight's game at Houston.
Orlando finished the third on an 11-1 run, the last five points by Howard, to lead 87-65 entering the fourth.
"My job is to dominate on both ends of the court, and I like to get some blocks early just so they know they can't come down the lane, and that sets the tone," Howard said.
Game highlights: Ray Allen scored 17 in just three quarters and the host Celtics set a franchise record for fewest points allowed in the shot clock era in an 87-56 victory over the Bucks. It was the lowest score against the Celtics since they beat the Milwaukee Hawks 62-57 at Providence, R.I., on Feb. 27, 1955. … Russell Westbrook scored 14 of his 20 in the third quarter to awaken his listless teammates, and the Thunder topped the host Cavaliers 95-75. … Tyler Hansbrough scored a career-high 29, and the Pacers ended a six-game losing streak with a 106-93 victory over the host Knicks. … D.J. Augustin scored 23 to help the Bobcats end a five-game road losing streak, 95-90 over the Raptors.
Around the league: A Chicago court awarded Heat guard Dwyane Wade sole custody of his two sons. Wade said "a huge weight is off my back." … Heat center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who stepped on a nail at home several days ago, was admitted to a hospital because of an infected foot. It's unclear when he will return to the court.
Magic 111, Suns 88
ORLANDO (111): Turkoglu 5-8 2-2 13, Bass 7-10 3-4 17, Howard 9-17 8-13 26, Nelson 5-9 1-2 14, J.Richardson 4-14 1-2 10, Arenas 5-10 4-5 16, Anderson 3-10 4-4 11, Duhon 0-1 1-2 1, Q.Richardson 0-4 1-2 1, Clark 1-3 0-0 2, Allen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 39-86 25-36 111.
PHOENIX (88): Hill 2-4 0-0 4, Warrick 1-7 5-6 7, Lopez 1-3 0-0 2, Brooks 8-14 3-5 19, Carter 3-9 4-4 11, Gortat 6-9 0-0 12, Pietrus 4-12 3-6 14, Dudley 3-7 4-5 10, Childress 1-5 0-0 2, Dowdell 2-8 2-2 6, Siler 0-2 1-4 1. Totals 31-80 22-32 88.
Orlando 32 29 26 24— 111
Phoenix 26 26 13 23— 88
3-Point Goals—Orlando 8-24 (Nelson 3-5, Arenas 2-4, Turkoglu 1-3, Anderson 1-4, J.Richardson 1-5, Duhon 0-1, Q.Richardson 0-2), Phoenix 4-15 (Pietrus 3-8, Carter 1-4, Childress 0-1, Dowdell 0-1, Brooks 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Orlando 70 (Howard 15), Phoenix 47 (Warrick 8). Assists—Orlando 15 (Duhon 4), Phoenix 18 (Brooks 10). Total Fouls—Orlando 19, Phoenix 20. Technicals—Orlando three second, Phoenix Coach Gentry, Pietrus. A—18,091.
Bobcats 95, Raptors 90
CHARLOTTE (95): Jackson 5-14 4-6 15, Diaw 7-9 0-0 15, Brown 1-3 4-4 6, Augustin 8-14 4-4 23, Henderson 7-13 4-4 18, Thomas 1-4 2-4 4, White 1-3 0-0 2, Najera 0-0 0-0 0, Livingston 1-2 2-2 4, Cunningham 4-6 0-0 8. Totals 35-68 20-24 95.
TORONTO (90): J.Johnson 2-6 3-4 7, Davis 3-7 2-6 8, Bargnani 6-12 4-6 17, Calderon 5-8 3-3 13, DeRozan 4-13 3-4 11, Evans 2-3 2-3 6, Bayless 3-6 2-4 9, Weems 2-6 0-0 4, Barbosa 6-18 1-1 15, Dorsey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-79 20-31 90.
Charlotte 24 26 26 19— 95
Toronto 22 25 24 19— 90
3-Point Goals—Cha. 5-12 (Augustin 3-5, Diaw 1-3, Jackson 1-4), Tor. 4-17 (Barbosa 2-7, Bayless 1-1, Bargnani 1-2, Evans 0-1, DeRozan 0-2, Weems 0-2, Calderon 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebs—Cha. 38 (Jackson, Brown 5), Tor. 56 (Evans 17). Asts—Cha. 18 (Diaw 6), Tor. 19 (Calderon 7). Ttl Fouls—Cha. 23, Tor. 23. Techs—Henderson, Cha. three second. A—16,557.
Thunder 95, Cavaliers 75
OKLAHOMA CITY (95): Durant 6-12 6-6 19, Ibaka 3-12 2-2 8, Mohammed 5-7 1-1 11, Westbrook 10-16 0-0 20, Sefolosha 3-5 0-0 6, Collison 1-5 0-0 2, Harden 5-10 3-4 16, Maynor 2-7 0-0 5, Aldrich 0-0 0-0 0, Cook 3-8 0-1 8, Ivey 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 38-84 12-14 95.
CLEVELAND (75): Gee 2-6 4-6 8, Samuels 3-11 4-5 10, Hickson 4-10 0-0 8, Sessions 1-7 2-4 4, Parker 4-6 0-1 9, Harangody 0-8 3-4 3, Gibson 5-11 1-2 13, Eyenga 2-6 0-0 4, Hollins 2-6 2-2 6, Harris 2-6 0-2 6, Graham 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 27-80 16-26 75.
Oklahoma City 29 21 25 20— 95
Cleveland 14 24 18 19— 75
3-Point Goals—Okl.City 7-23 (Harden 3-7, Cook 2-7, Maynor 1-3, Durant 1-4, Ivey 0-1, Sefolosha 0-1), Cleveland 5-14 (Harris 2-3, Gibson 2-3, Parker 1-2, Eyenga 0-1, Gee 0-1, Harangody 0-4). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Okl.City 51 (Ibaka 14), Cle. 60 (Hickson 15). Assists—Okl.City 25 (Maynor 8), Cle. 16 (Sessions 5). Total Fouls—Okl.City 20, Cle. 15. Technicals—Durant, Cleveland defensive three second. A—19,811.
Celtics 87, Bucks 56
MILWAUKEE (56): Delfino 1-6 0-0 3, Mbah a Moute 3-6 1-1 7, Bogut 4-6 0-0 8, Jennings 3-8 1-3 8, Salmons 0-5 0-0 0, Sanders 1-4 1-2 3, Dooling 3-9 0-2 7, Douglas-Roberts 1-7 0-0 2, Boykins 1-7 0-0 2, Maggette 0-3 3-4 3, Brockman 1-2 1-1 3, Barron 4-7 2-2 10. Totals 22-70 9-15 56.
BOSTON (87): Pierce 4-7 6-7 14, Garnett 4-7 0-0 8, Krstic 5-8 1-2 11, Rondo 1-6 0-0 2, Allen 6-10 3-3 17, Arroyo 1-5 0-0 2, Green 4-10 3-4 11, Davis 3-6 3-3 9, Pavlovic 0-3 1-2 1, Murphy 5-7 2-3 12, Bradley 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 33-72 19-24 87.
Milwaukee 9 13 16 18— 56
Boston 20 19 21 27— 87
3-Point Goals—Mil. 3-14 (Jennings 1-3, Delfino 1-3, Dooling 1-3, Boykins 0-1, Salmons 0-1, Douglas-Roberts 0-1, Maggette 0-2), Boston 2-5 (Allen 2-2, Green 0-1, Murphy 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Mil. 36 (Bogut 8), Boston 62 (Krstic 14). Assists—Mil. 13 (Jennings 3), Boston 19 (Arroyo 6). Total Fouls—Mil. 22, Boston 15. Technicals—Bos. three second 3. A—18,624.
Pacers 106, Knicks 93
INDIANA (106): Hansbrough 12-20 5-7 29, D.Jones 5-11 7-8 18, Hibbert 5-7 2-2 12, Collison 6-10 3-4 16, George 3-4 0-0 6, Rush 3-6 1-2 8, McRoberts 1-1 2-2 4, Foster 0-0 0-0 0, Price 3-6 1-2 7, Posey 2-5 0-0 6. Totals 40-70 21-27 106.
NEW YORK (93): Anthony 9-22 6-6 25, Stoudemire 8-15 12-14 28, Jeffries 0-3 0-2 0, Billups 4-14 1-2 9, Fields 1-3 3-4 5, Douglas 1-12 0-0 3, Turiaf 1-1 2-4 4, Sha.Williams 4-7 2-2 13, Mason 0-3 0-0 0, Walker 2-2 0-0 6. Totals 30-82 26-34 93.
Indiana 29 25 31 21— 106
New York 21 25 26 21— 93
3-Point Goals—Ind. 5-12 (Posey 2-5, Collison 1-1, Rush 1-1, D.Jones 1-3, Price 0-2), N.Y. 7-30 (Sha.Williams 3-6, Walker 2-2, Anthony 1-5, Douglas 1-8, Mason 0-2, Billups 0-7). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Ind. 39 (Hansbrough, Hibbert 8), N.Y. 57 (Billups, Stoudemire 6). Assists—Ind. 19 (Collison 8), N.Y. 11 (Billups 4). Total Fouls—Indiana 27, New York 25. A—19,763.