West, Hornets cool off Celtics

David West scored 37 points and the New Orleans Hornets overcame an early 15-point deficit to defeat the Boston Celtics 113-106 on Saturday night.

Chris Paul, despite playing only 28 minutes because of foul trouble, had 19 points and hit a pair of clutch jumpers in the waning minutes as New Orleans added a win over the mighty Celtics to recent triumphs over San Antonio, the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston.

Paul Pierce had 16 of his 28 points in the first quarter and the Celtics shot better than 60 percent and led by double digits until well into the third. But Boston seemed to tire in the fourth as New Orleans surged to its ninth straight victory at home while stopping Boston’s road winning streak at eight.

Suns 122, Rockets 113: At Phoenix, Amare Stoudemire scored 38 points, including a franchise-record 20 of 20 on free throws, and the Suns won their seventh in a row by beating Houston.

Stoudemire, who also had 13 rebounds and four blocked shots, broke the club record for consecutive free throws in a game of 17, set by Paul Silas against Atlanta on Jan. 10, 1971. Shaquille O’Neal added 23 points – his most since coming to Phoenix – and grabbed 13 rebounds.

Tracy McGrady had 30 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Rockets, who trailed by 23 in the second quarter and 17 at the half. The Rockets cut it to eight on several occasions, but could get no closer.

The Suns shot 57 percent, 76 percent in the first half, to move ahead of the Rockets with the third-best record in the Western Conference (46-22), a half-game behind New Orleans and a game behind the conference-leading Los Angeles Lakers.

76ers 91, Nets 87: At Philadelphia, Andre Iguodala scored 19 of his 28 points in the second half, Samuel Dalembert had 11 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks, and the 76ers beat New Jersey.

Andre Miller had 21 points and five assists, and Lou Williams added 15 points on 4-for-6 shooting from the field for the Sixers, who have won 17 of their last 22 games.

Vince Carter led New Jersey with 27 points, but was only 10 for 25 from the floor. Richard Jefferson was held to 11 points on 3-for-15 shooting.

Hawks 98, Magic 90: At Atlanta, Joe Johnson scored 34 points, Mike Bibby had 20 and Josh Smith 19 in the Hawks’ sixth straight home victory over Orlando.

The Magic, who dropped to 22-2 on the road when entering the fourth quarter with a lead, had won seven of eight overall. Hedo Turkoglu led Orlando with 18 points. Jameer Nelson had 16 points, and Dwight Howard finished with 16 rebounds.

Bucks 108, Cavaliers 98: At Milwaukee, Mo Williams scored 29 points and the Bucks snapped a six-game losing streak by beating Cleveland.

LeBron James scored 29, Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 20 and Wally Szczerbiak 14 as Cleveland failed in its first attempt at going 11 games over .500 this season.

While Cleveland has won nine straight at home, they have lost seven of the last eight on the road, including five straight.

Pacers 108, Bulls 101: At Chicago, Mike Dunleavy scored 25 points, Troy Murphy added 24, and Indiana extended its winning streak to a season-best four games with a comeback victory over the Bulls.

Danny Granger added 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacers, who snapped a five-game road losing streak and continued their late-season playoff push.

Indiana pulled into a tie with New Jersey for ninth place in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers trail the Atlanta Hawks by 11/2 games for the eighth and final playoff spot.

Bobcats 94, Heat 82: At Charlotte, N.C., Gerald Wallace scored 26 points, Jason Richardson had 24, and the Bobcats held off an early fourth-quarter rally to beat Miami to snap a five-game losing streak.

Jason Williams scored 19 points, Ricky Davis had 15 and Chris Quinn 14 for the injury-riddled Heat, who dressed just nine players in losing their third straight and 11th in 13 games in March.

Miami assistant Ron Rothstein led the team for the second consecutive game in place of coach Pat Riley, who is scouting prospective draft picks at this week’s NCAA tournament. Riley is expected to be back with the team when it plays at Milwaukee on Monday.

Timberwolves 114, Knicks 93: At Minneapolis, Ryan Gomes scored 26 points, reserve Rashad McCants had 24, and Minnesota beat New York, another lottery-bound team.

Al Jefferson had only eight points, just his third single-digit scoring game of the season for Minnesota (18-51), which has won six of nine. Reserve Malik Rose had 20 points for the Knicks (19-50), who have lost 11 of 12.

Grizzlies 117, Kings 111: At Memphis, Tenn., Juan Carlos Navarro scored 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and the Grizzlies held on to beat Sacramento.

Rudy Gay scored 24 points and Darko Milicic had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Memphis, which has won consecutive games for only the second time this season. Seven Grizzlies scored in double figures, including all five starters.

Kevin Martin led the Kings with 29 points, and Spencer Hawes had career highs with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Francisco Garcia added 15 points, and John Salmons finished with 12.

Trail Blazers 83, Clippers 72: At Los Angeles, Joel Przybilla had a career-high 25 rebounds and 24 points, Brandon Roy scored 23 points and Portland sent the Clippers to their seventh straight loss.