Hawks climb out of basement

Bulls drop fifth straight, fall back in Central

? The Atlanta Hawks know that pulling a half-game out of last place in the Central Division is just a start.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored eight points in an 11-0 run in the final 3:36 and the Hawks beat Chicago, 97-87, Wednesday night to move ahead of the Bulls in the division standings.

“We’re not really worried about that right now,” said Jason Terry, who had 14 points and seven assists. “We’re just excited and enthused about the way we’ve been playing.”

The Hawks are 19 1/2 games behind first-place Indiana.

“We’re still at the bottom,” Abdur-Rahim said. “We’re not really where we want to be. We’ve got a nice stretch at home and we need to get some things done.”

Stephen Jackson scored 22 points for the Hawks, but went scoreless after the 11:06 mark in the third period. Abdur-Rahim finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Theo Ratliff scored 15 points.

It was the fifth straight loss for Chicago, which received 17 points from Kendall Gill and Eddie Robinson.

“The bottom line is you can’t make a moral victory out of any loss,” Gill said. “Winning is everything. Not just in basketball but in life. All you can do is stay positive.”

Chicago’s reserves scored 59 points, the most by any Atlanta opponent this season.

Chicago's Kirk Hinrich (12) and Atlanta's Jason Terry collide. The Hawks defeated the Bulls, 97-87, Wednesday night in Atlanta.

“I thought we were flat most of the first half until we went to some of the second-unit guys,” Chicago coach Scott Skiles said. “It was a shocking contrast to how the initial group was playing.”

Atlanta led by as many as seven in the first half, when Jackson made 7-of-11 field goals. The Hawks pushed their lead to 10 midway through the third, but Chicago closed the quarter on an 8-4 run and trimmed Atlanta’s lead to 84-83 on Eddie Robinson’s steal and dunk with 6:29 left.

T’wolves 108, Raptors 97

Toronto — Sam Cassell had 30 points and 13 assists to lead Minnesota over Toronto, the Timberwolves’ seventh win their last eight games. Kevin Garnett had 28 points and 11 rebounds, and Latrell Sprewell added 24 points for Minnesota, 19-4 in its last 23 games. Cassell, who hopes to selected to the All-Star game for the first time in his career, scored 14 points in the final 6:10.

Rockets 86, Knicks 71

Houston — Yao Ming had a season-high 29 points and 10 rebounds to help Houston beat New York, handing Lenny Wilkens his first loss as coach of the Knicks. Wilkens won his first three games after replacing Don Chaney Jan. 15, and the Knicks had won four straight overall. Yao, whose career high is 30 points, was 12-for-15 from the floor. After trailing 20-8 late in the first quarter, the Rockets outscored the Knicks 39-15 to take a 47-35 lead at the half.

Nuggets 97, Suns 92

Denver — Earl Boykins and Marcus Camby combined to score Denver’s last 18 points, and the Nuggets beat Phoenix, ending the Suns’ four-game winning streak. Boykins had 10 points and Camby eight in the final quarter, and they fueled an 18-10 run in the final nine minutes. Camby had 22 points and 18 rebounds. Andre Miller also had 22 points for Denver, which posted its third straight win. Rodney White had 17 points, Carmelo Anthony 14 points and Boykins 13.

Spurs 99, Nets 76

San Antonio — Manu Ginobili scored all eight of his points in a 18-6 run at the start of the fourth quarter, helping defending champion San Antonio beat New Jersey in a rematch of the NBA Finals. The Spurs, who built up a small cushion after trailing most of the first half, outscored New Jersey 28-12 in the fourth. Tim Duncan led San Antonio with 21 points.

76ers 92, Hornets 86

New Orleans — Glenn Robinson scored 23 points and Allen Iverson had 22 in Philadelphia’s victory over New Orleans. John Salmons added 12 points, and Samuel Dalembert had 10 rebounds to help the Sixers snap a three-game losing streak and extend New Orleans’ losing streak to two. New Orleans’ regular starting guards Baron Davis (sprained left ankle) and David Wesley (sprained big left toe) were out.

Grizzlies 88, Lakers 82

Memphis, Tenn. — Jason Williams had 17 points and 10 assists to lead Memphis ove Los Angeles. The Grizzlies have won six straight games, and improved to 3-3 against the Lakers in Memphis. Los Angeles, playing without the injured Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone, has lost three of its last four games. Mike Miller led Memphis with 18 points, and Pau Gasol added 17 more, but was 3-for-12 from the line.

Bucks 113, Magic 102

Milwaukee — Michael Redd scored 32 of his career-high 40 points in the second half in Milwaukee’s victory over Orlando. Redd had a three-point play with 47 seconds left, made his final 10 shots and was 12-of-15 in the second half. Desmond Mason added 18 points for the Bucks, who bounced back from a loss in Orlando Monday night. Tracy McGrady had 20 points for Orlando.

Clippers 106, Warriors 102

Los Angeles — Quentin Richardson scored 25 points, and rookie Matt Barnes made three key baskets down the stretch to help Los Angeles rally past Golden State. The Clippers went ahead for good by scoring 12 straight points for a 100-95 lead with 2:01 to play. Barnes’ follow shot capped the spurt.