Source:AP (www.nba.com)
Crawford leads Hawks to 99-90 win over Knicks
NEW YORK(AP) Atlanta Hawks coach Larry Drew was looking for a way to spark up his team, and lashed out at them for their lack of energy at the start of games after losing at home to Boston and the next day at New Jersey.
"It's called corrective criticism. I'm going to challenge our team every single game we play," Drew said. "We're going to have some nights when we can't put it in the ocean, can't make a shot. (But) there should never be an excuse why we can't come out every single night and play with a high level of energy."
The message must have gotten across.
The Hawks jumped out to an early lead before holding off New York 99-90 on Saturday, snapping the Knicks' five-game winning streak. Atlanta has now won two straight since a modest three-game skid.
Former Knicks guard Jamal Crawford scored a game-high 21 points off the bench and was helped out by 17 points and nine rebounds from Al Horford, and 14 points from Mike Bibby. Josh Smith added Marvin Williams had 13 each for the Hawks.
Howard scores season-high 32, including winner
WASHINGTON(AP) Dwight Howard had a simple message for Jameer Nelson with the Orlando Magic trailing by a point in the final seconds against the Washington Wizards.
"Just throw it up, and I'll go get it," Howard told his teammate.
Howard made good on his promise, putting back Nelson's airball to give the Magic a 100-99 win Saturday night, the final basket among Howard's season-high 32 points. He also had 11 rebounds.
Nelson sent his shot high to get over the Wizards' shot-blocker JaVale McGee, who had come out to contest the jumper. The ball came down short of the rim, but Howard pulled in the rebound and then banked it in to give Orlando the lead with 4.3 seconds left.
"When he threw it up, I knew I didn't have a chance to come back down and try to go back up because they were going to foul right away," Howard said. "So I just tried to shoot it off the glass as quick as possible."
Gilbert Arenas had a chance for a game-winner of his own at the buzzer, but his floater hit the back of the rim and bounced away. Arenas scored a season-high 31 points, including Washington's final nine points over the final four minutes, but on the last shot Howard was once again right in the middle of the play.
"Once I saw Dwight step over, I floated it up a little bit, and it was a little too hard," Arenas said. "I felt it was going to go in."
Quentin Richardson scored 20 for the Magic, who have won seven of their last eight games in Washington.
"It was definitely a hard fought victory with a young team that played really well," Richardson said. "We just fought and fought."
Williams nets 25 in Cavs' 92-86 win over Grizzlies
CLEVELAND(AP) With a certain someone somewhere else, the Cleveland Cavaliers need a go-to star, the one they can count on to take the big shots and make the big plays.
Mo Williams wants LeBron's old job.
He scored 25 points - 18 in the second half - with a season-high 12 assists, J.J. Hickson added 16 points, and the Cavaliers snapped out of a fourth-quarter offensive funk just in time to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 92-86 on Saturday night.
Williams hit a 3-pointer and a floater in the final 1:21, and stuffed the boxscore with stats like LeBron James once did in Cleveland as the Cavaliers overcame missing their first 13 shots in the fourth to win their seventh straight at home over Memphis.
It was the second straight strong performance at home for Williams, whose game-winning, step-back jumper at the horn on Wednesday beat Milwaukee.
"He's playing extremely well," Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. "Tonight, he was fantastic, a double-double, finding the open guys. I think he had four turnovers, which we'd like to cut in half. But other than that, he's trying to play the right way and make the right decisions.
Holiday, Sixers top Nets 102-86
PHILADELPHIA(AP) Jrue Holiday had 20 points and 13 assists, and Thaddeus Young sparked a fourth-quarter spurt to lead the Philadelphia 76ers past the New Jersey Nets 102-86 on Saturday night, snapping a three-game losing streak.
Andre Iguodala contributed 16 points and Lou Williams added 15 for the Sixers, who returned to Philadelphia after losing three straight on the road, including a 99-90 loss to the Miami Heat on Friday night. Saturday's win was their second in 10 games.
The Sixers (4-13) only had five turnovers.
The game featuring the Atlantic Division's bottom two teams was tied at 66 after three quarters, when Young reeled off seven straight points for Philadelphia, during a 10-2 run capped by an Iguodala 3-pointer. Young finished with 13 points.
Wright's 9 3s lift Warriors over Timberwolves
MINNEAPOLIS(AP) On the list of big signings over this blockbuster NBA free agent summer, Dorell Wright landing in Golden State barely even registered.
Everyone is starting to take notice now.
Wright scored a career-high 30 points and set a franchise record with nine 3-pointers to lead Golden State to a 104-94 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night, snapping the Warriors' five-game losing streak.
"It's been 10 times better than what I thought it would be," said Wright, who had averaged 6.3 points a game in his first six seasons with Miami. "I'm enjoying myself. We've struggled the past few games, but I think we're going to get back on the right track when we get everybody healthy."
Monta Ellis had 26 points, 10 assists and seven steals in 48 minutes and David Lee returned from an eight-game absence for the Warriors, who won for just the second time since Lee went down with a staph infection in his left elbow on Nov. 10.
Kevin Love had 21 points and 22 rebounds for the Timberwolves, his fourth 20-20 game of the season. The Timberwolves turned the ball over 22 times, leading to 32 Golden State points and negating a 55-32 advantage in rebounds.
Mavericks win 5th in row, 106-95 over Miami Heat
DALLAS(AP) Caron Butler scored seven of his 23 points in a key run for Dallas to start the second half and the Mavericks went on to win their fifth straight game, 106-95 over the struggling Miami Heat on Saturday night.
Even though LeBron James and Dallas-born Chris Bosh have joined Dwyane Wade in Miami, the Mavericks extended their regular-season dominance over the Heat (9-8).
Dallas has won 13 consecutive games in the series since March 2004, and 16 of 17. That obviously doesn't include the 2006 NBA Finals, when the Heat won in six games after losing the first two.
While Miami missed its first 10 shots after halftime, Dallas scored 13 consecutive points and led 64-49 when Butler hit a 3-pointer with 7:55 left in the third quarter. That came only 30 seconds after Butler's layup on an assist from Jason Kidd.
Miami lost for the fourth time in five games. The Heat were coming off a 99-90 home win over Philadelphia on Friday night that snapped a three-game losing streak.
James had 23 points despite making only 5 of 19 field goals. Bosh and Wade both had 22 points.
Dirk Nowitzki had 22 points for Dallas, while Tyson Chandler had 14 points and 17 rebounds.
Chandler also drew a key charging foul when James tried to drive to the basket after a pass from Wade with just under 3 minutes left to force a turnover.
Jennings scores 32 to lift Bucks over Bobcats
MILWAUKEE(AP) Brandon Jennings scored 32 points and made two free throws with 5.7 seconds left to seal a 104-101 victory for the Milwaukee Bucks over the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night.
Stephen Jackson was ejected less than six minutes into the game.
Jackson thought he was fouled and began arguing with referee Eli Roe. The Bobcats' scoring leader with 19.2 points per game, Jackson got two technicals and was done with 7:31 left in the first quarter
D.J. Augustin scored 26 points for Charlotte, which made it 102-101 after Kwame Brown made one of two free throws with 7.1 seconds left.
Gerald Wallace, who scored 19 points, slashed to the hoop with 11.5 second left, but as he cut between Ersan Ilyasova and John Salmons, Wallace was fouled and tumbled to the ground. He left the court with help and Brown went to the line.
Jennings was fouled on the next possession and made the two free throws for the final margin.
Augustin missed a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer.
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