Rockets streak past Wizards
Tracy McGrady scored 34 points and Yao Ming had 23, leading the Houston Rockets to their eighth straight win with a 123-93 victory over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night in Houston.
The Rockets’ streak is their longest since March 1999 and the best active streak in the league. It’s also a franchise record for consecutive wins before the All-Star break.
Houston never trailed after the first quarter and Washington couldn’t get closer than nine in the second half.
The Rockets also rebounded from a bad 3-point shooting performance, hitting 12 of 24, after going 0 for 11 against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Antawn Jamison had 23 points and Jarvis Hayes added 21 for the Wizards, but both shot just 9 of 17.
Timberwolves 82, Nets 71: At Minneapolis, Kevin McHale earned his first coaching victory, at the expense of New Jersey. Michael Olowokandi had 17 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota.
The New Jersey Nets spent one night in Minnesota, but Jason Kidd probably would have preferred to stay longer. According to multiple sources, Kidd has let management know that he wants to team up with Minnesota forward Kevin Garnett, the reigning MVP.
Bulls 107, Kings 102: At Chicago, Rookie Ben Gordon scored 11 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, and Chicago ended an 11-game losing streak to Sacramento.
Nuggets 100, Hawks 96: At Atlanta, Carmelo Anthony’s jump shot with nine-tenths of a second to play gave Denver its first victory in Atlanta since 1988. Anthony led the Nuggets with 22 points as Denver ended a 14-game losing streak in Atlanta.
Magic 99, Clippers 94: At Orlando, Fla., Grant Hill scored a season-high 39 points, but it was two clutch jump shots by Steve Francis in the final minute that closed out slumping Los Angeles. Francis finished with 16 points and seven assists for Orlando.
Mavericks 114, Warriors 107: At Oakland, Calif., Dirk Nowitzki had 35 points and 11 rebounds, Michael Finley scored 24 points and Dallas remained unbeaten on a tough road trip by holding off Golden State.
Lakers 102, Jazz 95: At Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant scored 40 points in his second game back from an ankle injury, leading Los Angeles to a victory over Utah.
Heat, Mourning closer to reunion
Alonzo Mourning’s return to the Miami Heat is imminent.
The seven-time All-Star center was examined by doctors, and Heat president Pat Riley expects Miami’s former franchise cornerstone to begin practicing with the team immediately after this weekend’s All-Star break.
Iverson wants to remain in Philly
Allen Iverson said he wants to play the rest of his career with Philadelphia.
“I want to be right here,” Iverson said after practice. Iverson was responding to a story in The Philadelphia Inquirer that said his agent met with Sixers president Billy King last week to express the star guard’s unhappiness over the direction of the team and that he wanted to be traded if there weren’t roster upgrades.