NBA Roundup: Yao is match for Shaq

Rockets stop Lakers in overtime, 108-104

? All it took was 3 minutes for Yao Ming to show Shaquille O’Neal that this would no mismatch.

Yao blocked O’Neal’s first three shots, altered Kobe Bryant’s attempt at the end of regulation and dunked with 10.2 seconds left for the biggest basket of the night as the Houston Rockets defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 108-104 in overtime Friday night.

The game turned out to be worthy of all the hype it received for being the first meeting ever between the 7-foot-6 rookie center from China and the 7-foot, 360-pound three-time defending champion.

O’Neal finished with the better statistical line — 31 points, 13 rebounds and four assists to Yao’s 10 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks.

But it was the Rockets that walked off with a victory — their season-high fourth in a row — while ending the Lakers’ longest winning streak of the season at five games.

Steve Francis led the Rockets with a career-high 44 points, and Cuttino Mobley added 29.

Kobe Bryant shot just 5-for-21 and finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists for Los Angeles.

Yao, 22 and eight years younger than O’Neal, made three of his first four shots, missed his next seven — all of them turnarounds and fadeaways, and made his last one — the dunk that gave Houston a 104-100 lead. Mobley made four foul shots the rest of the way to help ice the win.

O’Neal scored the Lakers’ first six points of overtime, all of them with impressive power moves against Yao. The final one was a dunk with 1:27 left that cut Houston’s lead to 99-98.

O’Neal then committed a flagrant foul against Francis, and coach Phil Jackson got a technical for arguing.

Warriors 107, T’wolves 98

Los Angeles center Shaquille O'Neal, right, looks to the basket against Houston's Yao Ming. O'Neal scored 31 points and Yao had just 10, but the Rockets defeated the Lakers, 108-104 in overtime, Friday night in Houston.

Oakland, Calif. — Earl Boykins put on another amazing show with a career-high 28 points and eight assists as Golden State beat Minnesota. Antawn Jamison scored 23 points, and Gilbert Arenas had 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Warriors earned another quality home victory with a 21-8 run in the fourth quarter.

Sonics 103, Grizzlies 97, OT

Seattle — Gary Payton scored seven of his 27 points in overtime and Seattle snapped a six-game losing streak. It was Seattle’s longest skid since 1990. The Sonics had lost 10 out of their previous 12. Rashard Lewis scored 24 points for Seattle, which hadn’t won since Dec. 30 and hadn’t broken 100 points since Dec. 16.

Bucks 99, 76ers 95

Philadelphia — Ray Allen scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half, leading Milwaukee to its fifth straight victory.

Sam Cassell scored 12 and Tim Thomas and Toni Kukoc each added 11 for the Bucks, who are within one game of .500 at 19-20.

Philadelphia’s Eric Snow had a chance to tie it with three free throws with 2.4 seconds left, but he missed his first attempt.

Nets 88, Raptors 77

East Rutherford, N.J. — Jason Kidd scored 18 points and added five assists as New Jersey beat Toronto. Three other players posted double figures for the Nets. Richard Jefferson had 15 points and eight rebounds, Kenyon Martin had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Kerry Kittles had 11 points off the bench.

Celtics 98, Pacers 93

Boston — Paul Pierce scored 31 points and made two key baskets in the fourth quarter as Boston beat Indiana, ending the Pacers’ five-game winning streak. Boston blew a 14-point lead, then came back to win after stopping Reggie Miller twice in the final 30 seconds. Al Harrington had 18 points and 14 rebounds, and Jermaine O’Neal had 22 and nine for the Pacers.

Pistons 99, Knicks 82

Auburn Hills, Mich. — Cliff Robinson scored 22 points in three quarters as Detroit pulled away from New York. The Pistons turned the game into a blowout with a 16-0 run toward the end of the third quarter to take an 84-59 lead. The huge cushion allowed coach Rick Carlisle to rest his starters in the final quarter.

Spurs 106, Hawks 93

San Antonio — Tim Duncan scored 27 points as San Antonio never trailed in defeating Atlanta. The Spurs broke the game open with a 9-0 run to open the fourth quarter. They led 80-62, following two free throws by Duncan with 10:48 left. Tony Parker added 19 points for San Antonio, which won for the sixth time in seven games. Malik Rose scored 16 and Emanuel Ginobili had a career-high 13 points.

Hornets 90, Bulls 83

New Orleans — David Wesley scored a season-high 34 points and Jamal Magloire added 15 points and 14 rebounds, to help New Orleans snap a five-game losing streak. Jamal Mashburn added 16 points for New Orleans, as the Hornets (21-20) avoided falling below .500 for the first time this season.

Nuggets 97, Cavaliers 80

Denver — Juwan Howard had 25 points and eight rebounds, leading Denver past Cleveland in a matchup of the NBA’s two worst teams. Rodney White came off the bench to score 23 points for Denver, which used a 17-0 run at the start of the third quarter to build a 22-point lead. Zydrunas Ilgauskas led Cleveland with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Rookie Carlos Boozer had 16 points and 15 rebounds.

Suns 107, Mavericks 102

Phoenix — Stephon Marbury had 41 points and 11 assists, and committed no turnovers in 46 minutes as Phoenix rallied to hand Dallas its second loss in a row. The Suns sank 10-of-19 three-pointers — 4-of-6 by Marbury — to win their 11th straight at home. It’s their longest winning streak since March of 2000. Dallas, coming off a 123-94 loss at Sacramento on Wednesday night, has lost two in a row for the first time this season.