NBA ROUNDUP | WEDNESDAY'S OTHER GAMES

Nets 101, 76ers 90
PHILADELPHIA -- Vince Carter scored 31 points and had 10 assists to lead New Jersey. Allen Iverson led the Sixers with 36 points and Chris Webber had 15. Iverson came up limping late in the fourth quarter when he appeared to knock knees with Jason Collins on a driving layup. Iverson hobbled around the court, rubbed his right leg, but remained in the game. The Atlantic Division standings show the Nets with a four-game lead over the second-place Sixers. The gap, though, seems considerably wider considering New Jersey has won 12 of 15 while Philadelphia has lost seven of 10. Much like how the Sixers collapsed in their embarrassing 104-76 loss to Washington on Monday, they again put up little fight in the fourth quarter. The Nets got a pair of jumpers from Clifford Robinson and a 3 from Richard Jefferson during a 10-0 spurt that opened the fourth and gave them an 86-69 lead. Jefferson finished with 20 points and 16 rebounds.
Magic 106, Wizards 98
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Steve Francis had 12 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in his first game back from a two-game suspension and Orlando snapped a four-game losing streak. Trailing 51-44 at halftime, the Magic used a 10-2 run to take the lead and pull away in the third quarter. They shot 63 percent from the field in the period, while Washington hit just 27 percent from the floor. Antawn Jamison had 30 points and 12 rebounds, giving him more than 10,000 career points. Gilbert Arenas scored 21 on 5-of-20 shooting, while Caron Butler added 18 for the Wizards. Francis was suspended by the team for refusing to re-enter a blowout game late in the fourth quarter. He came off the bench against the Wizards for the third time in his six-year NBA career. He entered with 4:01 left in the first quarter to a mixed reaction from the crowd. Jameer Nelson had 22 points, five assists and five rebounds, and hit several pull-up jumpers in the third that helped Orlando pull away.
Pacers 98, Bobcats 92
INDIANAPOLIS -- Anthony Johnson scored 16 of his career-high 27 points in the second half to lead Indiana. Johnson also grabbed 10 rebounds and shot 9-for-14 from the field. Stephen Jackson scored 17 points and Sarunas Jasikevicius and Fred Jones each added 14 for the Pacers. Brevin Knight had 15 points and 15 assists and Primoz Brezec and Raymond Felton each scored 15 points for the Bobcats. The Pacers held a 43-29 rebounding edge over the Bobcats, who played without one of their top post players. Emeka Okafor, who averages 13 points and 10 rebounds, has missed the last four games with a sprained right ankle. Johnson scored nine points in the third quarter to help the Pacers take a 73-65 lead into the fourth.
Pistons 117, Hawks 89
ATLANTA -- Chauncey Billups scored 23 points and Richard Hamilton added 21 to help Detroit win the matchup of the NBA's best and worst records. The Pistons have won five in a row -- all by double-digit margins -- to boost their record to 31-5. Atlanta fell to 10-27. Detroit got rolling in the second quarter, led by backup guard Maurice Evans. He scored 12 of his 14 points in the period, including a pair of 3-pointers that helped the Pistons run away from the hapless Hawks. Billups connected on four 3-pointers, while Hamilton hit nine of 15 shots. Ben Wallace took care of the dirty work, grabbing 18 rebounds to go along with six blocks. Al Harrington had 21 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta.
Celtics 103, Timberwolves 96
BOSTON -- Paul Pierce scored 14 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and the Celtics rallied to get the victory. Pierce scored 11 consecutive points for Boston to spark a 13-2 run spanning the third and fourth quarters and help the Celtics turn a seven-point deficit into a four-point lead. Boston outscored Minnesota 34-23 in the fourth quarter. The Celtics trailed by as many as 14 early in the second quarter and 55-46 at halftime but chipped away at the lead. Al Jefferson finished with 18 points and eight rebounds and Kendrick Perkins added 17 points and six rebounds for the Celtics, who committed a season-low five turnovers. Minnesota's Kevin Garnett had 29 points and 13 rebounds but was held to just two points in the fourth quarter.
Hornets 87, Grizzlies 79
OKLAHOMA CITY -- David West had 12 points and 13 rebounds to help New Orleans win its fourth straight. The win pushed the surprising Hornets past their win total from last season and evened their record at 19-19. It's their first four-game winning streak since December 2003.
Mavericks 103, Rockets 76
HOUSTON -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 13 of his 29 points in a decisive third quarter as Dallas opened a five-game road trip with a win. Josh Howard added 18 for the Mavericks, who handed the Rockets their seventh straight loss both overall and at home. The Rockets suffered their worst defeat since the Mavericks beat them 116-76 in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series last season. Rafer Alston had 17 and Luther Head added 16 for Houston, which dropped to 3-13 at the Toyota Center.
Associated Press
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