Orlando, Fla. ? The Houston Rockets can once again look forward to visiting central Florida.

Yao Ming scored 17 of his 23 points in the first half and grabbed 11 rebounds, helping Houston broke an 11-year losing streak in Orlando by beating the Magic 91-81 Wednesday night.

“The last time we won here, Snoop Dogg was still a puppy,” said relieved Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich.

The last time the Rockets won a regular-season game in Orlando was Dec. 22, 1991. For the record, the rap musician was then 19 years old and two years away from releasing his first album.

Yao let his presence be known early, sinking a first-quarter layup over Shawn Kemp then shouting “And one!” when the foul was called. He shot 8-of-14 en route to his 11th double-double of the season and second of the week.

“It was definitely part of the plan to get the ball inside,” Yao said through an interpreter.

Steve Francis scored 12 of his 16 points in the third quarter and Cuttino Mobley had 14 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Eddie Griffin added 12 points, nine rebounds and four blocked shots, and Glen Rice had 10 points as all five of Houston’s starters reached double figures.

The Magic, who had won 14 of 15 from Houston, shot 35.6 percent, including 4-for-15 on 3-pointers. They also had nine shots blocked, eight in the first half.

Houston center Yao Ming, right, works the ball against Orlando's Pat Garrity during Wednesday's game in Orlando, Fla. The Rockets won, 91-81.

“Yao, Eddie and (Kelvin) Cato did a marvelous job down there inside as we were out playing defense on the guards,” Francis said. “That’s what you need; you need a front core of your defense and also a back end, a last line of defense.”

Tracy McGrady scored 27 points but shot 10-for-26. Mike Miller was 3-for-17 — missing his last 13 shots — for eight points.

Pacers 89, Knicks 87

Indianapolis — Ron Mercer scored 19 points, Reggie Miller had 18 and Indiana came away with a victory as the New York Knicks missed three shots on their final possession.

It was the third straight loss for the Knicks, all of them coming when they failed to convert in the final seconds.

After Mercer made one of two free throws, Kurt Thomas missed a jumper from the lane, Michael Doleac missed a putback and Allan Houston shot an off-target 3-pointer just before the final buzzer.

Brad Miller added 15 points and 11 rebounds and Jermaine O’Neal had 16 points for the Pacers, who avenged a two-point loss in New York last Friday.

Thomas led New York with 24 points, 12 in the final quarter.

Wizards 101, Bulls 98

Washington — Michael Jordan needed plenty of help to continue his unbeaten streak against Chicago.

Larry Hughes had 22 points and Christian Laettner had season-highs of 18 points and 11 rebounds. The Wizards nearly blew an 11-point fourth-quarter lead.

Jordan, now 4-0 when playing against his former team, had 14 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Donyell Marshall had 24 points and nine rebounds for the Bulls, who had their two-game winning streak snapped and lost their 15th straight on the road.

Mavericks 117, Hawks 99

Atlanta — Dirk Nowitzki and Nick Van Exel combined for 18 points during a decisive 20-4 run as Dallas pulled away.

Nowitzki finished with 30 points and 14 rebounds and Van Exel added 14 points for Dallas, which won its fourth in a row and seventh in eight games.

Kansas University product Raef LaFrentz scored 26 points for Dallas.

Jason Terry scored 20 of his 27 in the first half for the Hawks, who got poor performances from Glenn Robinson and Shareef Abdur-Rahim to lose their sixth straight.

Pistons 103, 76ers 94, OT

Philadelphia — Richard Hamilton scored nine of his 29 points in overtime.

Chauncey Billups had 19 points, including a key 3-pointer early in overtime, and Clifford Robinson added 17 for Detroit, which won its third straight.

The Pistons, who trail Indiana by one game in the Central Division, have won 11 of 14.

Allen Iverson had 25 points and nine assists for the Sixers before fouling out early in overtime. He scored eight of Philadelphia’s last 12 points in regulation, but missed a running, one-hander that would’ve won it at the buzzer.

Celtics 93, Hornets 83

New Orleans — Paul Pierce scored 21 of his 28 points in the second half and made 16 foul shots to lead Boston.

Pierce, who started 2-for-7 from the floor, found his touch in the third quarter and seemed to demoralize the Hornets with a 3-pointer that gave Boston an 84-75 lead with 6:40 left.

Boston, getting a couple of 3-pointers by Tony Delk, went on a 16-2 run to put the game away.

Eric Williams added 17 for Boston and Delk had 16.

Timberwolves 102, Warriors 95

Minneapolis — Troy Hudson had 23 points, 11 assists and no turnovers and Gary Trent came off the bench for the first time in 22 games and added 14 points for Minnesota.

Kevin Garnett added 21 points and 14 rebounds for his league-high 29th double-double of the season.

Jason Richardson led Golden State with 32 points and Earl Boykins added 20.

Spurs 106, Sonics 95

Seattle — Tim Duncan scored 23 points and Tony Parker had 10 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter.

The Spurs won their third straight game and handed the Sonics their third consecutive defeat and their seventh loss in nine games.

Rashard Lewis led the Sonics with 19 points, while Gary Payton and Desmond Mason each had 18 points.

Jazz 99, Suns 93

Salt Lake City — Karl Malone scored 24 points and Mark Jackson recorded his 10,000th career assist, helping Utah beat Phoenix.

Matt Harpring finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Jazz. His jumper late in the third quarter gave Jackson his 10,000th assist, making him just the third NBA player to reach the milestone.

Stephon Marbury had 29 points and 10 assists to lead the Suns, who went 1-2 on a brief road trip and were playing their second game in two nights.

Nuggets 86, Heat 76

Denver — Juwan Howard had 28 points and 12 rebounds, and Rodney White added 15 points as Denver beat Miami.

Denver won for just the third time in 20 games and beat Miami for the first time since March 3, 1995, a span of 15 games. The Nuggets also ended another obscure streak, winning on a Wednesday for the first time in 20 games.

Caron Butler had 20 points and Malik Allen 15 for Miami, which lost its fourth straight.

Clippers 103, Grizzlies 95

Los Angeles — Elton Brand scored 10 of his season-high 30 points in the fourth quarter and Lamar Odom scored 23 as the Los Angeles Clippers ended a six-game losing streak.

Andre Miller had 19 points and 14 assists for the Clippers, whose victory drought was their longest since a nine-game skid in January 2001.

Pau Gasol scored 23 points for the Grizzlies, who are 1-14 on the road. Kansas University product Drew Gooden added 14 for Memphis.