Bucks upend Celtics
Cassell's triple-double leads Milwaukee
Boston ? Ray Allen and Sam Cassell dominated for Milwaukee while Antoine Walker watched helplessly from the Boston bench.
Allen scored 34 points, Cassell had the second triple-double of his career and the Bucks capitalized on a rare injury to Walker to defeat the Celtics 106-97 Wednesday night.
“Ray had a great roll going,” Milwaukee coach George Karl said. “It’s great to have a guy like that to go to on the road.”
Allen had 14 points in the third quarter when Milwaukee stretched a 56-54 lead to 84-76. After Kansas University product Paul Pierce led a Celtics surge that cut an 11-point deficit to 98-93, Allen hit the Bucks’ next two baskets for a 102-95 lead with 1:33 to go.
Cassell had 14 points, 16 assists and 11 rebounds, and Michael Redd added 16 points.
The Bucks shot well despite Boston’s defense. They hit 53 percent of their shots and 12 of 24 from three-point range. Allen, 13-for-23 overall, was 5-for-9 on three-pointers.
“We just ran into a buzzsaw with their ability to knock down shots,” Boston coach Jim O’Brien said. “We did a nice job of moving the basketball, not quite as nice as they did, though.”
Boston, which ended a four-game winning streak, was led by Pierce with 30 points, Walter McCarty with 22 and rookie J.R. Bremer with 18.
“I was able to get some of the shots that (Walker) gets,” McCarty said.
Pacers 101, Raptors 98
Indianapolis — Jermaine O’Neal had a rare triple-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocked shots, and made the winning three-point play with 3.2 seconds left.
Erick Strickland scored 19 points and Reggie Miller 16 as the Pacers (30-12) couldn’t shake the lowly Raptors until the final seconds.
Trail Blazers 112, Hawks 110, 2OT
Atlanta — Bonzi Wells banked in a running one-hander with 1.4 seconds left in double overtime, giving Portland a victory over Atlanta.
Wells was dribbling at the top of the key when he drove past Corey Benjamin and hit a 6-footer to give the Blazers their fourth win in five games.
Clippers 96, Jazz 89
Salt Lake City — Elton Brand had 24 points and 10 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers won in Utah for the first time in nearly 14 years.
The Clippers had lost their previous 26 games in Utah since defeating the Jazz at the old Salt Palace on April 18, 1989.
Karl Malone led the Jazz with 23 points.
Grizzlies 98, Spurs 93
San Antonio — Pau Gasol had 28 points and 17 rebounds as the Grizzlies defeated San Antonio for the first time in nearly six years.
Memphis hadn’t defeated the Spurs since Feb. 12, 1997, when the franchise was based in Vancouver. The Grizzlies are now 4-26 against San Antonio.
Jason Williams added 18 points, 10 assists and no turnovers, while Kansas University graduate Drew Gooden started and had 12 points.
Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 30 points and 21 rebounds.
Hornets 103, Wizards 94
New Orleans — Jamal Mashburn scored 24 points and David Wesley added 19, leading New Orleans to a victory against Washington.
Michael Jordan scored 18 points for the Wizards but shot just 9-of-21 from the field. Jerry Stackhouse led Washington with 26 points.
Jamaal Magloire added 16 points and 14 rebounds for the Hornets.
76ers 92, Pistons 83
Auburn Hills, Mich. — Allen Iverson scored 11 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, helping the 76ers to a rare victory.
The win was just Philadelphia’s third in 11 games and ended a three-game losing streak to Detroit.
Knicks 97, Nuggets 88
New York — Allan Houston scored 24 of his 37 points in the first half, and the New York Knicks pulled away from Denver in the third quarter.
Juwan Howard scored 28 and Donnell Harvey had 19 for the Nuggets, who outrebounded the Knicks 35-32.
Heat 92, Suns 85
Miami — Brian Grant had 16 points and 10 rebounds, helping Miami overcome the absence of Eddie Jones to hold off Phoenix. Grant, playing with a sprained right thumb, led a balanced attack to help offset the loss of the Heat’s leading scorer, Jones, who missed the game because of the flu.
Shawn Marion led the Suns with 27 points to go along with nine rebounds.
Timberwolves 96, SuperSonics 91
Minneapolis — Kevin Garnett scored 20 points and Minnesota overcame a strong performance by Gary Payton. Payton led Seattle with 20 points and 13 assists and went 10-for-13 from the floor. Desmond Mason added 14 points.
Magic 94, Bulls 91
Orlando, Fla. — Tracy McGrady had 31 points and seven assists, and Orlando overcame a dismal fourth quarter to beat the Chicago Bulls.
Jalen Rose had 28 points for Chicago, 20 of them in the second half when the Bulls nearly erased a 13-point deficit.