Timberwolves 98, Knicks 92

Timberwolves 98, Knicks 92
NEW YORK -- Latrell Sprewell made a lot of noise in his return to Madison Square Garden, cursing at the Knicks' owner, screaming at their bench and yelling in triumph after the best comeback game by any player to have spent at least five seasons in New York.
Sprewell scored 31 points in between his yells and taunts to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves over the team that traded him last summer.
Sprewell saved his biggest outburst for the end, too, turning to James Dolan, the chairman of the team's corporate owner, Cablevision, and unleashing a stream of curses after his 3-pointer gave Minnesota a 94-89 lead with 1:14 left. He was warned by referee Dan Crawford to knock if off, but kept it up and directed his next rant at the Knicks' bench.
The tirade earned him a technical foul that allowed New York to pull to 95-92 with 30.4 seconds left, but Sam Cassell wrapped up the victory on a 3-pointer with 11.3 seconds remaining. Cassell finished with 31 points.
Allan Houston had 26 points as the Knicks played their first game under the leadership of new team president Isiah Thomas.
Hawks 93, Celtics 88
ATLANTA -- Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored 25 points and the Hawks took advantage of a poor shooting night by Paul Pierce to beat Boston and end a seven-game losing streak.
Dion Glover scored 18 points and Stephen Jackson added 16 for Atlanta, which won for the first time since beating Denver on Dec. 9. The losing streak was their longest since they lost 10 straight in 2001. They haven't won back-to-back games this season.
Walter McCarty led Boston with 16 points. Pierce made only four of 16 shots from the field and was held to 15 points, nine below his average.
Heat 79, Wizards 72
MIAMI -- Dwyane Wade scored 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to lead Miami over Washington.
Eddie Jones added 11 points, and Lamar Odom and Rafer Alston each had 10 for the Heat, who have won five straight at home.
Larry Hughes scored 16 points for the Wizards, who have lost 10 of 12.
Nets 95, Bulls 78
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Jason Kidd had 18 points and led a trio of highlight-film fast breaks in leading New Jersey over Chicago.
Richard Jefferson added six of his 26 points in a game-breaking 11-point run to start the fourth quarter and the two-time defending Eastern Conference champions won for the seventh time in nine games.
Kenyon Martin, who twisted his ankle on the opening tip-off, had 16 points and nine rebounds, and New Jersey shot 48.7 percent from the field and limited Chicago to 37.2 percent in extending its home winning streak to a season-high six games.
Rookie Kirk Hinrich had 17 points and Jerome Williams 15 for the banged-up Bulls, who lost their fourth straight overall and ninth in a row on the road.
Bucks 83, Pistons 78
MILWAUKEE -- Joe Smith had 18 points, including a three-point play with 59 seconds left, and a season-high 17 rebounds in the Bucks' win.
Redd had 18 points and Mason added 15 for Milwaukee, which climbed back to .500 for the first time since Dec. 2, improving to 14-14 with its fifth win in seven games.
Richard Hamilton scored 17 points, Ben Wallace had 16 points and 20 rebounds, and Mehmet Okur had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Detroit, which has lost six of eight. The Pistons' leading scorer, Chauncey Billups, missed 11 of 14 shots and finished with seven points.
Pacers 79, Rockets 71
HOUSTON -- Jermaine O'Neal had 21 points and 14 rebounds for his 15th double-double of the season for Indiana.
Ron Artest added 21 points and Anthony Johnson 13 for the Pacers.
Steve Francis led Houston with 23 points, Jim Jackson had 14 and Maurice Taylor had 13 rebounds for Houston.
Houston pull within three at 59-56 with 8:52 left, but the Pacers scored 12 straight, including five by Artest, to take a 71-56 lead with 4:59 left. The Rockets made another late charge with nine straight points to make it 75-69 with 51 seconds left, but couldn't get closer.
Spurs 111, Clippers 90
SAN ANTONIO -- Tim Duncan scored 22 points and Tony Parker had a career-high 14 assists to lead San Antonio to its 11th straight win.
Parker added 19 points for the Spurs, who pulled away from the Clippers late in the first quarter and built up a lead of 23 points in the third.
The Spurs, who lost to the Clippers on Dec. 1 while playing without Duncan, set season highs with 32 assists and 55 percent shooting. Their winning streak is the best in the league this year.
Elton Brand led the Clippers with 22 points and 13 rebounds, while Corey Maggette had 19 and Chris Wilcox 14.
SuperSonics 116, Suns 90
SEATTLE -- Ray Allen rejoined the SuperSonics after missing the first 25 games and scored 24 points and led Seattle over Phoenix.
The three-time All-Star shooting guard, sidelined with an ankle injury, started for the Sonics but was limited to 23 minutes. He hit 8-of-13 shots and had seven assists.
Rashard Lewis added 22 points and tied his season high with 13 rebounds, while Ronald Murray came off the bench to score 17 points for Seattle.
Joe Johnson scored 21 points, Shawn Marion 19 and Stephon Marbury 17 for the Suns.
Trail Blazers 97, Mavericks 88
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Zach Randolph had 27 points and nine rebounds to lead Portland over Dallas.
Antawn Jamison had 12 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Mavericks, who have lost four straight.
Jeff McInnis had 14 points and 10 assists and Damon Stoudamire added 16 points for the Blazers, who snapped a two-game losing streak. The Blazers shot 53 percent from the field.
Antoine Walker had 19 points for the Mavericks, and rookie Josh Howard had 12 coming off the bench for Dallas.