Boston ? Paul Pierce’s defense on Allan Houston made all the difference in the latest Knicks-Celtics matchup.

Pierce held Houston, the league’s sixth leading scorer, to seven points on 3-of-13 shooting in the Celtics’ 91-80 victory over New York on Friday night.

Houston scored 39 against the Celtics earlier in the season.

“I just tried to get up close to him and not give him any breathing room,” said Pierce, who scored 19 points with nine rebounds and eight assists. “I take a lot of pride in my defense. Coach is putting me up to the challenge and giving me the other team’s best player night in and night out.”

Houston was 0-for-7 in the first half before finally hitting a jumper 33 seconds into the third quarter.

“Paul did a wonderful job on Houston, making sure he was under his chin every time he caught the basketball,” Celtics coach Jim O’Brien said.

Antoine Walker scored 25 points and Tony Delk added 20 to lead the Celtics to their sixth straight victory over the Knicks. The Celtics have not lost to New York since March 1, 2001.

“This is a big win for us, after a tough loss, to come back and play the way we did,” Walker said. “I remember when we couldn’t beat this team.”

Tony Battie added 11 points and nine rebounds, and Walker had nine rebounds.

The Celtics used a 10-2 run in the third quarter to take a 65-47 lead.

Hornets 98, Rockets 96, OT

New York – Jamal Mashburn scored 25, Jamaal Magloire added 16 points and 17 rebounds and New Orleans improved to 11-0 at home. Magloire had five points and four rebounds in overtime as the Hornets built a 98-93 lead before Moochie Norris hit a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer. David Wesley, who was 0-for-8 for no points in his previous game, scored 19. His second three-pointer gave New Orleans an 89-87 lead it would not relinquish.

Suns 102, Pacers 96

Phoenix – Stephon Marbury had 19 points and nine assists and all five Phoenix starters reached double figures. The Suns topped 100 points for the second time this season and outscored the Pacers 10-3 over the final 3:05 in a tight, up-and-down game.

Magic 88, Wizards 78

Orlando, Fla. – Tracy McGrady had 27 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and Orlando’s defense smothered Washington in the first half. Mike Miller added 22 points while Shawn Kemp scored a season-high 15, including 11 in the first quarter. Grant Hill was held to five points but had 10 rebounds for his third straight double-figure rebounding game. Washington was held to 11 points in the second quarter and 35 in the first half.

Raptors 103, Bulls 89

Toronto – Voshon Lenard returned from a three-game absence and scored 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter as Toronto beat Chicago for the 16th straight time. The Bulls, who have lost nine straight overall, haven’t beaten the Raptors since Feb. 28, 1999.

Lakers 105, Mavericks 103

Los Angeles – After being booed off the floor at halftime, Los Angeles pulled off the second-biggest fourth-quarter comeback in NBA history to stun Dallas. The Lakers came back from a 27-point deficit at the start of the final period led by Kobe Bryant, who scored 21 of his 27 in the final 12 minutes :quot; including a turnaround jumper to snap a 103-all tie with eight seconds remaining. Michael Finley missed a three-pointer with one second remaining for the Mavs.

Jazz 104, Grizzlies 71

Salt Lake City – Calbert Cheaney scored a season-high 14 points and Karl Malone added 13 points and eight rebounds as Utah kept Memphis winless on the road. Memphis rookie Drew Gooden sat out the game with a bruised knee.

Kings 98, Nuggets 77

Sacramento, Calif. – Doug Christie had 23 points and eight rebounds and Bobby Jackson scored 21 points as Sacramento won for the 10th time in 11 games.

Trail Blazers 88, Heat 69

Portland, Ore. – Bonzi Wells had 17 points and Derek Anderson added 16 as Portland held Miami to 22 first-half points.

Spurs 98, 76ers 93

San Antonio – The second-longest winning streak (eight) of the NBA season came to an end Friday night as Tim Duncan scored 29 points and San Antonio defeated Philadelphia.