In brief: Spurs hand Hornets first home loss

NBA: Manu Ginobili scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half, and the San Antonio Spurs overcame a 17-point third-quarter deficit to hand the New Orleans Hornets their first home loss of the season, 109-95 on Sunday.

Tim Duncan scored 21 points and Richard Jefferson added 19 for the Spurs, who matched a franchise-best 7-0 start on the road, set in the 2006-07 season.

The Hornets were outscored 65-34 in the second half while losing for the first time in eight home games.

Chris Paul added 15 points for New Orleans.

• Stoudemire leads Knicks past Pistons in 2OT: In Auburn Hills, Mich., Amare Stoudemire had 37 points and 15 rebounds, and Raymond Felton added 23 points and 11 assists for the New York Knicks as they beat the Detroit Pistons 125-116 in double overtime.

Tayshaun Prince led the Pistons with 31 points, including 21 in the fourth quarter and OT, and Rodney Stuckey scored 29 points.

• Pacers top Lakers in first win at Staples: Roy Hibbert had 24 points and 12 rebounds, and Kobe Bryant scored 41 points but missed two tying 3-point attempts in the final seconds of the Indiana Pacers’ first victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center, 95-92.

Bryant scored 23 points in the second half as the two-time defending champions rallied back from a 15-point deficit in the second half, pulling to 93-92 on Pau Gasol’s free throws before Hibbert dunked in traffic with 16.4 seconds left.

• Smith’s 30 leads Nuggets past Suns: J.R. Smith scored a season-high 30 points and the Denver Nuggets overcame the absence of Carmelo Anthony to hold off the visiting Phoenix Suns 138-133.

Chauncey Billups returned to the lineup after missing three games with a sprained right wrist and scored 25 points and eight assists for the Nuggets.

Anthony was feeling ill Friday against Chicago but played anyway and hit the winner in the final seconds. Sunday he lasted just 2:48 before sitting down for good.

Jason Richardson did his best to keep Phoenix in it with 39 points.

• Cavs’ coach Scott fined $35K for criticizing refs: Cleveland Cavaliers coach Byron Scott has been fined $35,000 for publicly criticizing game officials.

NBA Executive Vice President Stu Jackson announced the discipline for the comments Scott made following Cleveland’s 110-100 loss at Orlando on Friday.

Scott criticized officials Ed Malloy, Bennie Adams and Kevin Fehr.

He also complained about the crew’s inconsistency.

UConn extends winning streak to 84

College Basketball: Maya Moore scored 26 points and top-ranked Connecticut won for the 84th consecutive time, beating visiting LSU 81-51.

Tiffany Hayes had 20 points and seven assists and Bria Hartly added 15 points for the Huskies (6-0), who broke open what had been a 10-point game with a 12-2 run to open the second half.

The Huskies need just four more wins to tie the Division I record set by UCLA’s men in the early 1970s. They are on course to get their 88th straight win Dec. 19 against Ohio State in New York, and their 89th two days later in Hartford against Florida State.

• Ogwumike’s 22 points help Stanford top Texas: Kayla Pedersen had 19 points, 12 rebounds and five assists and No. 3 Stanford held off 16th-ranked Texas 93-78 in Stanford, Calif., a matchup of ranked and unbeaten teams.

Nnemkadi Ogwumike added 22 points and seven boards and her freshman sister, Chiney, scored 14 for the Cardinal, who moved coach Tara VanDerveer (798-195) within two victories of joining the elite 800 club.

• Griner has fourth triple-double; No. 2 Baylor wins big: Brittney Griner had her fourth career triple-double for second-ranked Baylor, scoring 28 points with 10 rebounds and 10 blocked shots in a 106-41 victory over visiting Southeastern Louisiana.

Griner had 20 points by halftime, when Baylor led 64-18.

• Stanford player collapses after overtime win: Stanford guard Jeremy Green was taken to the hospital after collapsing following the Cardinals’ 81-74 victory over DePaul in Anaheim, Calif.

Stanford athletic director Bob Bowlsby said he spoke to Cardinal coach Johnny Dawkins, who said Green has been fighting a stomach virus all week and had been unable to keep any food down. He never lost consciousness, with the consensus being that he was overcome by a combination of dehydration and exhaustion.

Green appeared to be having trouble breathing and received attention from paramedics before he was taken to the hospital, Bowlsby said. He was given fluids through an IV and it was unclear whether he would remain in the hospital or return with the team.

Varlamov leads Caps over Hurricanes

NHL: Semyon Varlamov made 26 saves and stopped all three Carolina attempts in the shootout to lead the host Washington Capitals to a 3-2 win over the Hurricanes.

Alex Ovechkin converted his shootout attempt to give the edge to the Capitals.

Carolina’s Eric Staal forced overtime with 3 seconds left in regulation, scoring his 11th goal of the season. Staal grabbed a loose puck in traffic in front of the net after a faceoff. Staal also had an assist on Erik Cole’s earlier goal.

Gruenenfelder wins World Cup super-G

Miscellany: Tobias Gruenenfelder raced to his first World Cup victory, beating Swiss teammate Carlo Janka by 0.07 seconds in a super-giant slalom on the Men’s Olympic course in Lake Louise, Alberta.

Gruenenfelder completed the 1.49-mile course in 1 minute, 32.31 seconds.

• Swede wins World Cup slalom: Maria Pietilae-Holmner of Sweden won a World Cup slalom, holding off Maria Riesch of Germany with a strong final run in Aspen, Colo.

Pietilae-Holmner finished two runs in an unofficial time of 1 minute, 46.19 seconds.

• Guatemalan pro soccer player found chopped up: Police in Guatemala have found the body of a professional soccer player chopped up and left in five plastic bags.

National Civil Police spokesman Donald Gonzalez says the remains were found with a message saying the player was killed for “messing with other women.”

The spokesman said investigators are trying to determine whether that was the real reason for the slaying of Carlos Mercedes Vasquez, who played for Malacateco in Guatemala’s first-division soccer league.

• McCune rolls strike to win PBA opener: Eugene McCune edged Norm Duke 238-237 to win the Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship in Las Vegas, rolling a strike on his final ball to earn the second title of his 24-year PBA Tour career. McCune, of Munster, Ind., earned the No. 1 position for the stepladder finals for the first time in his career.

• Gracia upgraded to stable: Jockey Jason Gracia has been upgraded from critical to stable condition following a spill Saturday at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.

Gracia suffered broken ribs, a broken collarbone and a hairline fracture of his neck, said his agent Jorge Velasquez, the former Hall of Fame rider. Gracia will be further evaluated in the Intensive Care Unit at Jamaica Hospital.

Gracia will be sidelined indefinitely.