Cleveland — The most shocking thing about Cleveland's 12-game losing streak was the way the Cavaliers ended it.
Wesley Person scored 27 points, Andre Miller had 17 and 12 assists and the Cavs snapped their longest losing skid in 20 years with a surprising 114-81 rout Tuesday night over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
"No one ever gave us a chance against Minnesota," Person said. "They said, 'Oh, another L'. It's a relief."
Cleveland hadn't won since Jan. 2, and the Cavs didn't figure to stop their streak against the Timberwolves, who came in with the NBA's third-best record.
But everything finally went Cleveland's way.
The Cavs made 12 of 13 field-goal attempts and outscored the Timberwolves 45-4 over a 9:37 stretch bridging the second and third quarters.
It was Cleveland's most lopsided win since beating Charlotte by 33 on Jan. 25, 1997.
The Cavs were so far ahead, and having so much fun in the fourth quarter, that 7-foot rookie center DeSagana Diop even wanted a piece of the Timberwolves.
"The rook was saying, 'Let's blow these guys out by 20 so I can get in'," guard Bimbo Coles said of Diop, averaging just 1.8 points per game. "I was like, 'Hey, big fella, just calm down, let's get a win."'
Person made sure they did, going 7-for-7 while scoring 16 points in the third quarter when the Cavs outscored Minnesota 37-18 and took control.
Kevin Garnett scored 14 points but missed his last nine shots.
Lakers 127, Hawks 93
Atlanta Kobe Bryant scored 20 of his 32 points in the first quarter and Los Angeles routed Atlanta.
The defending NBA champions stopped a mini-slump they had lost three of four with a dominating performance against the league's worst defensive team. Los Angeles had a season high in points, racing to a 68-41 lead at halftime and reaching triple digits on Derek Fisher's layup with 1:08 remaining in the third quarter.
Pistons 89, Wizards 86
Washington Clifford Robinson hit a 19-foot jump shot over Popeye Jones with 18.8 seconds remaining as Detroit defeated Washington.
Jerry Stackhouse, disappointed he wasn't selected for the All-Star game earlier in the day, had 24 points, six rebounds and six assists, but was 1-for-6 in the final quarter as the Wizards overcame a 12-point deficit.
Robinson's shot made it 88-86, and both Chris Whitney and Hubert Davis missed jumpers that could have tied it for the Wizards in the final seconds. The Wizards wanted Michael Jordan, who scored 32 points, to take the shot, but Jordan was smothered with good defense by Michael Curry and never touched the ball.
Robinson finished with 14 points.
Knicks 78, 76ers 71
New York Charlie Ward did more in one quarter than he had in a long time, scoring 11 of his season-high 14 points in the final 12 minutes to lead the resurgent New York Knicks past Philadelphia.
The Knicks extended their winning streak to a season-high four games and held the 76ers to their lowest point total of the season. It was just the second loss in the past nine games for the 76ers, who got just 15 points from Allen Iverson.
Bucks 109, Celtics 90
Milwaukee Sam Cassell scored 20 points, and Glenn Robinson and Ray Allen added 19 apiece.
Celtics' forward Paul Pierce, picked as an Eastern Conference All-Star earlier in the day, left midway through the fourth quarter after re-aggravating his sprained left wrist and did not return.
Milwaukee, which snapped a three-game home losing streak, gained control by outscoring Boston 35-17 in the third quarter.
Antoine Walker had 25 points for the Celtics, and Erick Strickland added 18.
Celtics' forward Paul Pierce, picked as an Eastern Conference All-Star earlier in the day, left midway through the fourth quarter after reaggravating a sprained left wrist and did not return.
"I got hit on my wrist and there was a sharp pain," Pierce said. "It's been bothering me for the last week or so. That's about it. It's sprained and I just have to play through it."
Clippers 117, Mavericks 100
Dallas Jeff McInnis scored a season-high 31 points, including three straight 3-pointers in the closing minutes.
The Clippers led 104-100 with 3:58 left, then scored the final 13 points. McInnis had the first eight and Darius Miles the last five, including a 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left.
Suns 91, Bulls 90
Phoenix Shawn Marion had 24 points and 10 rebounds, including a 20-foot jumper that proved to be the winning basket, as the Phoenix Suns escaped with a 91-90 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night.
Hornets 78, Spurs 73
San Antonio Reserve Bryce Drew scored 15 points to lead Charlotte over San Antonio. Elden Campbell added 13 points and P.J. Brown 10 to help Charlotte snap a two-game losing streak. Tim Duncan had 29 points and 21 rebounds for San Antonio.
Rockets 100, Warriors 96
Houston Steve Francis had 33 points and 12 rebounds, and Kenny Thomas added 23 points as Houston rallied from 13 points down to beat Golden State.
Thomas scored six points in overtime. Moochie Norris hit two free throws with 29 seconds to play and Francis added a free throw with 15 seconds left to wrap up the victory as the Rockets won consecutive games for the first time since Nov. 6-8. They beat Charlotte in overtime Saturday.
Blazers 92, Sonics 86
Seattle Dale Davis had 20 points and 14 rebounds, and Bonzi Wells scored 19 points to lead Portland over Seattle.
The Blazers won for the 10th time in 12 games and beat the Sonics for the eighth time in nine games, including two straight this season. Rasheed Wallace, who got his 13th technical of the season in the first half, kept his temper in the second half and finished with 16 points.
Heat 100, Nuggets 94, OT
Denver Eddie Jones scored 37 points, including a crucial three-point play in overtime, as Miami held off Denver.
Nick Van Exel, who had 15 points, made a 3-pointer with 19 seconds left to put the Nuggets up 89-87, but Jones came back with a layup to tie and Van Exel missed a jumper in the final seconds in regulation. Grant had 11 points and 14 rebounds for Miami. Raef LaFrentz led Denver with 30 points.
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