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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -The hard-driving Phoenix Suns finally ran out of gas.
The Suns’ offense fell flat in the second half and Al Jefferson tied a career-high with 32 points to go with 20 rebounds to carry the success-starved Minnesota Timberwolves to a 100-93 victory Saturday night.
The Timberwolves entered the game with a league-worst 2-15 record, but dominated on the boards and snapped a five-game losing streak. Marko Jaric added 19 points and Craig Smith had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Wolves, who outrebounded Phoenix 55-33.
Steve Nash had 14 points and 15 assists and Leandro Barbosa scored 16 of his 17 points in the first half for the Suns, who wore down in the second game of a back-to-back and their fourth game in five nights.
76ers 105, Knicks 77
NEW YORK (AP) – Willie Green scored 18 points, and the 76ers completed a home-and-home sweep of the Knicks.
Andre Iguodala added 17 points and Reggie Evans had 14 rebounds for the 76ers, who beat the Knicks 101-90 Friday in Philadelphia. This one was even easier, giving them consecutive victories for the first time this season. The Sixers passed the Knicks to escape last place in the Atlantic Division and have won the last four meetings in the series.
Nate Robinson, who didn’t even play in the first half, scored 25 points for the Knicks, who trailed by as much as 28 during a performance that ranked somewhere between careless and simply not caring. They gave up a number of dunks, usually after a turnover, and were booed on a number of occasions.
Bobcats 96, Cavaliers 93
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) – Gerald Wallace scored 22 points and Raymond Felton went 8-for-8 from the foul line in the final 16 seconds as Charlotte snapped a seven-game losing streak.
Playing again without LeBron James, the Cavaliers couldn’t hold onto a three-point lead early in the fourth quarter, then missed several chances down the stretch to lose their sixth straight game.
Felton’s two free throws with 3.1 seconds left put Charlotte up 3. Without any timeouts left, Cleveland was forced to inbound from the backcourt and Larry Hughes’ halfcourt shot at the buzzer was well short.
Hughes scored 22 points in his first game in over a month after being sidelined with a bone bruise in his left leg. Shannon Brown and Daniel Gibson each scored 15 for the Cavaliers, who committed 27 turnovers.
Emeka Okafor added 19 points, Jason Richardson 18 and Felton scored 15 for Charlotte, which went 14-for-14 from the free-throw line in the final minute.
Hawks 86, Grizzlies 78
ATLANTA (AP) – Josh Smith scored 25 points and rookie Al Horford grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Atlanta, which has won three of four and six of nine.
Memphis, the NBA’s fifth-most accurate team on 3-pointers, lost its fourth straight after shooting a season-worst 1-for-15 beyond the arc.
After hitting a runner midway through the third, Smith followed with a three-point play to stretch Atlanta’s lead to 52-33. He finished 11-for-19 from the field and grabbed seven rebounds.
Rudy Gay led Memphis with 17 points, and Kyle Lowry added 15.
Mavericks 125, Jazz 117
DALLAS (AP) – Josh Howard scored a career-high 47 points, Devin Harris had a career-high 12 assists and Erick Dampier provided a season-high 21 points to lead Dallas.
Deron Williams scored 32 of his career-high 41 points in the second half to rally Utah from 16 down in the third quarter to within 112-110 with 3:41 left.
However, the Mavericks regained control on a basket by Dirk Nowitzki, then Utah’s Carlos Boozer fouled out on Dallas’ next possession and things weren’t tight again.
Utah shot 60.5 percent for the game and an incredible 14-of-17 (82.4 percent) in the third quarter, yet the Jazz lost its third straight.
Dallas shot 59.7 percent to end skids of two straight losses, three of four and six of nine.
Celtics 92, Bulls 81
CHICAGO (AP) – Ray Allen scored 21 points, Rajon Rondo matched a season-high with 18, and Boston won its sixth straight.
The Celtics were leading 86-70 after James Posey threw a behind-the-back pass to Allen with 5:23 remaining, but instead of cruising to a win, they had to hang on.
The Bulls scored the next 11 points, culminating with a three-point play by Andres Nocioni that made it 86-81 with just under a minute left.
Kevin Garnett had 16 points and nine rebounds, James Posey added 11 points and Paul Pierce had 11 on 1-for-8 shooting for the Celtics, who improved to a league-best 17-2.
Nocioni scored 18 points for the Bulls. Kirk Hinrich added 16 points and six assists, while Luol Deng scored 15, and Ben Gordon added 13 on 5-for-20 shooting.
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