Rockets bottle up Paul, Hornets
Yao Ming scored 21 points, Tracy McGrady added 18 points and nine rebounds, and the Rockets shut down Chris Paul in a 91-82 victory over the New Orleans Hornets last night in Houston.
Paul, who came in averaging 22 points, went 2 for 10 from the field and finished with 12 points. He had 12 assists, but the Hornets shot 41 percent (31 for 76) and were outrebounded, 41-35.
Luis Scola added 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who led by 12 at the half and shot 53 percent (8 for 15) in the third quarter to take a 70-53 lead to the fourth. The Hornets couldn't crack Houston's double-digit lead until the final 15 seconds.
James Posey scored 5 points in the first three minutes of the last quarter, but McGrady was fouled putting back his own miss and sank the free throw to preserve Houston's comfortable lead.
Warriors 121, Clippers 103 - Undrafted rookie Anthony Morrow had 37 points and 10 rebounds in his first NBA start and visiting Golden State beat Los Angeles in the first meeting between Baron Davis and the Warriors' Corey Maggette since they switched teams as free agents over the summer.
Morrow, who had averaged 7.7 points as a reserve in three games this season, played 42 minutes and was 15 for 20 from the field. The 6-foot-5-inch guard from Georgia Tech signed with the Warriors July 25 after playing for their Summer League team. Andris Biedrins had 17 points and 16 rebounds for the Warriors, who blew a 14-point lead before pulling away in the fourth quarter.
Davis finished with 25 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, while Maggette had 17 points during a foul-plagued 26 minutes.
Nets 119, Hawks 107 - Devin Harris scored 33 points, Vince Carter had 29, and visiting New Jersey completed a sweep of the two-day, home-and-home series.
The Nets lost three straight while Harris was out with a sprained left ankle. He returned Friday night to score 30 points in a 115-108 victory over the Hawks at New Jersey. Joe Johnson scored 31 points for Atlanta, which has lost three straight after a 6-0 start.
76ers 110, Thunder 85 - Thaddeus Young scored 23 points, Elton Brand and Andre Iguodala added 15 apiece, and host Philadelphia cruised past Oklahoma City.
Samuel Dalembert contributed 13 points and 16 rebounds for the Sixers, who won their third straight game to even their record at 5-5.
Jeff Green scored 21 points and Kevin Durant added 13 for Oklahoma City, which fell to 1-9 and dropped its seventh in a row. Durant, who was the Rookie of the Year last season, shot just 6 of 18.
Cavaliers 105, Jazz 93 - LeBron James scored 38 points against shorthanded Utah, leading a second-half rally that gave host Cleveland its seventh straight victory.
Carlos Boozer led Utah with 17 points. The Jazz, in the finale of a five-game Eastern trip, were without starters Deron Williams and Mehmet Okur, and top reserves Andrei Kirilenko and Matt Harpring.
Bulls 104, Pacers 91 - Derrick Rose scored 23 points and host Chicago used a fourth-quarter surge to beat Indiana.
Trail Blazers 88, Timberwolves 83 - Brandon Roy scored 26 points, including a driving layup and a fast-break dunk that sealed visiting Portland's win over Minnesota, the Timberwolves' seventh straight loss. 