NBA ROUNDUP \ Wednesday's other games

Nets 106, Celtics 103
BOSTON -- Vince Carter scored 23 points, 16 in the fourth quarter, and Jason Kidd added 19 as New Jersey snapped a six-game losing streak. Paul Pierce scored 31 points for Boston and Wally Szczerbiak had 25. Szczerbiak had a chance to tie it with 3 seconds to go, but curiously drove baseline and lost the ball out of bounds as time expired. A frustrated Pierce looked at Szczerbiak holding up three fingers to indicate how many points were needed to tie the game. Szczerbiak walked over to Celtics coach Doc Rivers and apologized as Pierce walked off the court annoyed.
Hawks 99, Bobcats 90
ATLANTA -- Joe Johnson scored a season-high 36 points and Charlotte couldn't overcome the longest field-goal drought to open an NBA game this season. Johnson missed his first five shots and had only two points in the opening quarter before scoring 22 in the second. Raymond Felton and Sean May each scored 21 points for Charlotte. The Bobcats were 0-for-13 from the field to start the game before a jumper by May with 4:07 left in the period.
Mavericks 117, Raptors 98
DALLAS -- Josh Howard scored 26 points and the Dallas Mavericks overcame the loss of Dirk Nowitzki to beat the Raptors for their 11th straight win. Nowitzki left the game in the first quarter with blurred vision. A team spokesperson said he was not poked in the eye but he did not return. Nowitzki and a team trainer walked off the floor with 1:46 remaining in the first. The five-time All-Star had six points and six rebounds in 10 minutes. Howard keyed a 12-4 run in the third with a 3-pointer and a three-point play after the Raptors rallied to cut it to 64-59. Dallas' Jerry Stackhouse added 23 points, Jason Terry chipped in 14, and Erick Dampier had 13 points and 14 rebounds. The Mavericks have won 22 straight games against Eastern Conference opponents. Chris Bosh scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Toronto, which fell to 1-8 on the road.
Associated Press
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