NBA ROUNDUP Saturday's games
Wizards 84, Hawks 76
WASHINGTON -- Jerry Stackhouse scored 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter as the Washington Wizards broke a three-game losing streak with a victory over the Atlanta Hawks. "I think he feels he left something on the court [Thursday]," said Michael Jordan, who had 10 points and five assists. "I think he wanted to come in and more or less be that guy for us whenever we need him." Stackhouse, who said he didn't get the ball enough in the fourth quarter of Thursday's loss to Detroit, started the final period with a 3-pointer after the Hawks cut the Wizards' lead to one. He added a pair of free throws and an emphatic one-handed driving dunk in a decisive 13-4 run that put Washington ahead by 10 with 5 minutes left. "Especially late game situations, I'm looking to try to get the ball and trying to close the game out, so that's a good scenario for us," Stackhouse said. Asked to elaborate, Stackhouse said: "I ain't gotta talk about that. That's already been said this week." Jason Terry had 22 points and seven rebounds for the Hawks, who played their second game under new coach Terry Stotts and failed to capitalize on the momentum from Friday night's buzzer-beater victory over San Antonio. They lost their ninth straight road game, falling to 2-13 away from home. Shareef Abdur-Rahim added 18 points and eight rebounds, while Glenn Robinson scored 11 points on 5-for-20 shooting for the Hawks, who entered tied with Washington and Milwaukee for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Pacers 91, Hornets 84
INDIANAPOLIS -- Ron Artest scored 23 points and reserve Erick Strickland scored 12 of his 20 in Indiana's decisive run as the Pacers defeated New Orleans. Strickland, replacing an ineffective Jamaal Tinsley at point guard, sparked a 16-9 surge over the final 3:21 for the Central Division-leading Pacers (22-8). Baron Davis scored 22 points for New Orleans, which overcame 26.5 percent shooting in the first half to rally from a 45-35 deficit and make the game close throughout the second half. George Lynch's layup with 3:32 remaining tied it at 75-75, but Strickland and the Pacers took over from there. Strickland made all three of his field goals and all six of his free throws to lead the final surge.
Magic 101, Celtics 95
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Tracy McGrady scored 25 points and Mike Miller had 20 as Orlando handed Boston its third straight loss. Andrew DeClercq had 13 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double with Orlando, which blew a 19-point lead but put the game away with a 9-2 run that Miller capped with a 3-pointer for a 95-89 lead with 2:45 left. Orlando, which had won four of its last six, avoided a four-game losing streak to Boston. The Celtics haven't won that many consecutive games in the series in a decade. Paul Pierce had 34 points and nine rebounds to lead the Celtics. Antoine Walker, suffering from a stomach bug that affected about eight members of Boston's traveling party during their 1-3 road trip, scored nine points before leaving early in the third quarter.
Pistons 106, Timberwolves 82
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Richard Hamilton scored 24 points, and Chauncey Billups added 21 against his former team as Detroit routed Minnesota. Mehmet Okur had a career-high 15 points and Ben Wallace added 10 points and 17 rebounds for the Pistons, who improved to 8-3 against the Western Conference -- best of any Eastern Conference team. Kevin Garnett led Minnesota with 20 points and 13 rebounds, while Marc Jackson added 17 off the bench as the Timberwolves lost for the third time in five games. Detroit led 54-44 at the half, thanks to 13 points from Hamilton and 10 and eight rebounds from Wallace. Billups, who played in Minnesota for two seasons before coming to Detroit as a free agent in July, scored the first six points in a 13-2 run that boosted the Pistons' lead to 77-56 late in the third. Hamilton scored four points and Michael Curry hit a 3-pointer in the run. Garnett scored the next five points, but the Pistons still led 79-61 at the end of the third quarter. Billups finished with 11 in the period. Detroit led by as many as 28 in the fourth and cruised to a win.