EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ? Without Allen Iverson, the Philadelphia 76ers can’t compete with Jason Kidd and the New Jersey Nets.

Kidd had 17 assists and 19 points as the Nets beat the leaderless 76ers, 102-92, on Saturday in a game marking the return of New Jersey’s Kenyon Martin from his fifth flagrant-foul related suspension this season.

“I got to play,” Martin said. “If I am going to think about it, I might as well not play. I’m aware of what I can’t do. I’m aware of the things they call me on.”

A mostly mellow Martin had 18 points, including two third-quarter slams and an important fourth-quarter three-pointer and tough pick in the final minutes as the Eastern Conference-leading Nets beat the defending conference champions for the second time in four days.

The Nets extended their franchise-record home winning streak to 11 games.

However, both wins against the 76ers have a big asterisk. Iverson has been sidelined since March 22 with a broken left hand. He is expected back for the playoffs.

“You’ve got to play the game with the guys who can suit up,” said Kidd, who was two assists shy of his season high. “Allen is a big part of that team. We know that. We got two Ws, and we move on.”

Derrick Coleman had 23 points and Eric Snow added 20 in doing their best to take over for Iverson, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

In the two earlier meetings with New Jersey, Iverson had 28 and 43 points in easy Philadelphia wins. Both victories seemed to back Iverson’s boast that the 76ers were the team to beat in the conference this year, no matter what the standing indicated.

Without him in the lineup this week, the Nets have opened big leads and were never seriously threatened.

“Allen is a great player and we need him, no question about that,” said 76ers forward Matt Harpring, who added 16 points. “He’s a big part of our team.”

Keith Van Horn added 19 points for the Nets, who had six players in double figures.

“I think we would have liked to have won all four games against Iverson but I think we can take something out of this,” Nets center Todd MacCulloch added.

Jazz 105, Clippers 92

Los Angeles John Stockton had 16 points and 14 assists as Utah beat Los Angeles to move closer to wrapping up the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The win, Utah’s 13th in a row over the Clippers, gave the Jazz a 412-game edge over ninth-place Los Angeles in the West. The Jazz (41-32) have nine regular-season games remaining and Los Angeles (37-37) has eight.

SuperSonics 92, Trail Blazers 87

Portland, Ore. Brent Barry scored 22 points and Gary Payton drove for the go-ahead layup with 2:11 left as Seattle defeated Portland. Jerome James added 10 rebounds and made a key defensive play late for the Sonics, who have won four straight and have defeated two of the Western Conference’s better teams on successive nights. They beat San Antonio the night before.

Grizzlies 105, Warriors 99

Memphis, Tenn. Pau Gasol had 26 points and 12 rebounds and Jason Williams added 22 points and a career-high 19 assists as Memphis defeated Golden State.

Nuggets 100, Bulls 84

Chicago Juwan Howard scored 23 points, and reserve Zendon Hamilton added a career-high 20 as Denver beat Chicago. Reserve Voshon Lenard had 17 points and Calbert Cheaney added 16 for the Nuggets, who had lost 11 of their previous 12 road games. Jamal Crawford had 16 points.

Suns 90, Rockets 88

Houston Shawn Marion scored 26 points, including two free throws with five seconds to play, to lead Phoenix over Houston. A 16-4 run, led by four points each from Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kenny Thomas, gave the Rockets their first lead since the first two minutes of the game 81-80 with 4:57 to play.

Hornets 93, Cavaliers 85

Cleveland Baron Davis had 20 points and 17 assists to spark Charlotte to a 93-85 victory over Cleveland as the Hornets moved into a tie with Philadelphia for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The Hornets won for the eighth time in nine games and pulled within a half-game of second-place Milwaukee in the Central Division.