Magic Spoil Fitzsimmons’ First Game Back With Suns

NBA

Shaquille O’Neal scored 18 of his 35 points in the third quarter Wednesday night in Phoenix, helping the visiting Orlando Magic beat Phoenix 113-95 and spoil Cotton Fitzsimmons’ debut in his third stint as coach of the Suns.

Magic 113, Suns 95

ORLANDO (113)

Scott 7-13 1-2 16, Wolf 4-5 0-0 8, O’Neal 15-20 5-7 35, Anderson 5-8 1-2 13, Hardaway 9-19 4-4 25, Vaughn 0-0 2-2 2, Shaw 4-6 0-0 9, Bowie 1-3 0-0 2, Turner 0-2 0-0 0, Armstrong 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 46-78 13-17 113.

PHOENIX (95)

Finley 7-16 3-6 18, Green 4-7 3-6 11, Kleine 3-9 0-0 6, Person 8-15 0-0 16, Perry 4-11 3-4 11, Tisdale 5-12 6-7 16, Smith 3-10 1-2 7, Carr 3-5 4-4 10. Totals 37-85 20-29 95.

Orlando 25 36 24 28 - 113 Phoenix 26 19 22 28 - 95

3-Point goals-Orlando 8-21 (Hardaway 3-6, Anderson 2-5, Armstrong 1-1, Shaw 1-2, Scott 1-5, Turner 0-1, Bowie 0-1), Phoenix 1-10 (Finley 1-2, Carr 0-1, Person 0-3, Smith 0-4). Fouled out- Turner. Rebounds-Orlando 50 (Scott 11), Phoenix 43 (Kleine 9). Assists-Orlando 32 (Hardaway, Anderson, Scott 7), Phoenix 26 (Perry 7). Total fouls-Orlando 23, Phoenix 21. A-19,023 (19,023). Nets 97, Hornets 93 Charlotte, N.C.

Two free throws by Kenny Anderson with 6.6 seconds remaining clinched New Jersey’s win over Charlotte.

NEW JERSEY (97)

Brown 3-10 2-2 8, Gilliam 10-17 4-4 24, Bradley 8-15 0-0 16, Childs 5-14 3-4 15, Anderson 6-14 7-9 22, Williams 3-6 2-2 8, Dare 0-1 0-0 0, Glass 1-1 0-0 2, Fleming 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 37-81 18-21 97.

CHARLOTTE (93)

Johnson 9-16 1-1 20, Curry 10-15 0-0 23, Geiger 3-10 3-4 9, Rice 8-25 5-6 23, Gill 3-7 2-3 9, Addison 0-0 0-0 0, Adams 2-5 3-6 8, Parish 0-0 0-0 0, Hancock 0-1 0-0 0, Zidek 0-2 1-2 1. Totals 35-81 15-22 93.

New Jersey 32 24 19 22 - 97 Charlotte 20 29 27 17 - 93

3-Point goals-New Jersey 5-6 (Anderson 3-4, Childs 2-2), Charlotte 8-23 (Curry 3-5, Rice 2-9, Gill 1-1, Adams 1-3, Johnson 1-5). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-New Jersey 52 (Gilliam, Williams 10), Charlotte 48 (Geiger 15). Assists-New Jersey 27 (Anderson 10), Charlotte 24 (Gill 8). Total fouls-New Jersey 20, Charlotte 22. Technical-Geiger. A-24,043 (23,698).

Timberwolves 98, Warriors 88 Minneapolis

Isaiah Rider scored a season-high 31 points to lead Minnesota to its first two-game winning streak since Dec. 6-8.

GOLDEN STATE (88)

Kersey 0-5 0-0 0, Smith 6-15 6-10 18, Seikaly 2-4 0-0 4, Sprewell 6-19 5-6 19, Armstrong 5-10 3-4 13, Gatling 5-11 4-6 14, Mullin 3-12 4-5 11, Hardaway 2-11 0-0 4, Barry 1-1 0-0 2, Marshall 1-2 1-2 3. Totals 31-90 23-33 88.

MINNESOTA (98)

Mitchell 4-7 1-1 9, Gugliotta 6-14 6-8 18, Rooks 4-9 0-0 8, Rider 13-21 5-5 31, Porter 2-4 0-0 5, Garnett 5-12 0-0 10, Martin 3-12 3-4 9, West 3-7 2-3 8, Bragg 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 40-86 17-21 98.

Golden State 23 22 18 25 - 88 Minnesota 24 27 25 22 - 98

3-Point goals-Golden State 3-18 (Sprewell 2-6, Mullin 1-5, Kersey 0-1 Armstrong 0-2, Hardaway 0-4), Minnesota 1-14 (Porter 1-3, Mitchell 0-1, Gugliotta 0-2, Rider 0-3, Martin 0-5). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Golden State 67 (Smith 10), Minnesota 52 (Gugliotta 14). Assists-Golden State 19 (Armstrong 6), Minnesota 32 (Martin 8). Total fouls-Golden State 20, Minnesota 24. Technicals-Rider, Garnett, Golden State illegal defense. A-11,651 (19,006).

Heat 96, Bullets 89 Miami

Alonzo Mourning tied his season high with 38 points and Miami overcame the ejection of two players for fighting to beat Washington.

WASHINGTON (89)

Howard 3-7 1-1 7, Wallace 9-22 2-7 22, Muresan 9-15 1-2 19, Cheaney 1-8 0-0 2, B.Price 7-9 9-10 27, M.Price 1-7 3-3 6, Legler 1-7 0-0 2, McCann 1-5 0-0 2, McIlvaine 0-1 0-2 0, Butler 0-1 2-2 2, Curry 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 32-83 18-27 89.

MIAMI (96)

Askins 1-2 0-0 2, Willis 5-8 6-8 16, Mourning 13-33 12-15 38, Gamble 1-5 0-0 3, Coles 2-8 1-2 5, Schayes 0-2 1-2 1, Myers 1-4 3-5 6, Thomas 1-4 0-0 2, Chapman 5-10 5-7 18, Rencher 2-4 0-0 5. Totals 31-80 28-39 96.

Washington 19 22 22 26 - 89 Miami 21 24 26 25 - 96

3-Point goals-Washington 7-17 (B.Price 4-4, Wallace 2-5, M.Price 1-4, Cheaney 0-1, Legler 0-3), Miami 6-15 (Chapman 3-6, Myers 1-1, Rencher 1-2, Gamble 1-3, Coles 0-1, Willis 0-1, Askins 0-1). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Washington 58 (Muresan 21), Miami 62 (Mourning 15). Assists-Washington 9 (B.Price 4), Miami 17 (Myers 5). Total fouls-Washington 31, Miami 22. Technicals-Willis, Miami illegal defense 2. Ejections-Howard, Coles, Askins. A-14,573 (15,200).

Hawks 102, Pacers 93 Atlanta

Atlanta, taking advantage of flu-ridden Reggie Miller’s absence, held Indiana scoreless for nearly 5 minutes in the third quarter to win its fifth straight.

INDIANA (93)

McKey 5-8 0-0 11, D.Davis 5-9 1-2 11, Smits 12-20 1-2 25, Pierce 7-11 2-2 16, Jackson 4-7 0-0 9, Johnson 1-6 0-0 2, Workman 3-9 0-0 6, A.Davis 3-5 2-3 8, Hoiberg 1-3 1-1 3, Ferrell 1-2 0-0 2, Caldwell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 42-80 7-10 93.

ATLANTA (102)

Augmon 7-10 10-10 24, Long 1-5 3-4 5, Lang 7-11 3-4 17, Smith 6-15 6-6 19, Blaylock 6-14 2-2 16, Ehlo 0-2 0-0 0, Webb 3-7 2-2 9, Henderson 5-8 2-2 12. Totals 35-72 28-30 102.

Indiana 24 26 15 28 - 93 Atlanta 23 26 28 25 - 102

3-Point goals-Indiana 2-13 (McKey 1-1, Jackson 1-3, Smits 0-1, Pierce 0-1, Hoiberg 0-1, Johnson 0-3, Workman 0-3), Atlanta 4-12 (Blaylock 2-5, Webb 1-1, Smith 1-5, Long 0-1). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Indiana 33 (D.Davis 7), Atlanta 47 (Lang 8). Assists-Indiana 25 (Jackson 8), Atlanta 18 (Long, Blaylock 5). Total fouls-Indiana 23, Atlanta 16. Technicals- Indiana illegal defense 2. A-8,432 (16,365).

Bucks 111, 76ers 100 Philadelphia

Milwaukee overcame Philadelphia’s 81 percent first-quarter shooting to hand the 76ers their third straight loss.

MILWAUKEE (111)

Robinson 14-23 6-7 37, Baker 8-15 6-10 22, Benjamin 6-12 7-8 19, Newman 2-5 8-8 13, Douglas 2-4 1-1 5, Mayberry 3-4 0-0 7, Keys 2-3 0-0 5, Cummings 1-3 1-4 3, Conlon 0-1 0-0 0, Respert 0-0 0-0 0, Reynolds 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 38-70 29-38 111.

PHILADELPHIA (100)

Alston 3-6 0-1 6, Weatherspoon 6-8 0-0 12, Wright 3-5 0-0 6, Stackhouse 6-14 2-3 16, Ruffin 6-12 4-5 17, Thompson 2-2 0-0 4, Higgins 6-9 0-0 13, Maxwell 8-14 3-4 20, Sutton 2-5 0-0 6. Totals 42-75 9-13 100.

Milwaukee 28 24 29 30 - 111 Philadelphia 38 21 25 16 - 100

3-Point goals-Milwaukee 6-12 (Robinson 3-4, Keys 1-1, Mayberry 1-2, Newman 1-3, Benjamin 0-1, Conlon 0-1), Philadelphia 7-16 (Sutton 2-3, Stackhouse 2-5, Higgins 1-1, Ruffin 1-3, Maxwell 1-4). Fouled out-Thompson. Rebounds- Milwaukee 41 (Baker 10), Philadelphia 37 (Wright 10). Assists-Milwaukee 23 (Mayberry 10), Philadelphia 25 (Ruffin 7). Total fouls-Milwaukee 22, Philadelphia 32. Technical- Douglas. Ejection-Douglas. A-7,435 (18,168).

Rockets 120, Nuggets 112 Denver

Hakeem Olajuwon scored 16 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter as Houston pulled away from Denver.

HOUSTON (120)

Elie 5-5 0-0 13, Brown 3-7 0-0 6, Olajuwon 13-27 11-14 37, Drexler 6-15 8-10 22, Smith 4-8 2-2 11, Bryant 2-3 3-4 7, Cassell 0-0 1-2 1, Chilcutt 0-1 0-0 0, Recasner 3-4 1-1 8, Jones 0-0 0-1 0, Breaux 6-9 0-0 15. Totals 42-79 26-34 120.

DENVER (112)

D.Ellis 8-13 0-0 18, McDyess 14-22 3-6 31, Mutombo 3-4 0-0 6, Abdul-Rauf 12-21 0-1 26, Stith 1-3 0-0 2, L.Ellis 8-17 3-4 20, Rose 4-8 1-3 9, Williams 0-3 0-0 0, Hammonds 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 50-91 7-14 112.

Houston 34 19 30 37 - 120 Denver 21 36 28 27 - 112

3-Point goals-Houston 10-19 (Breaux 3-3, Elie 3-3, Drexler 2-5, Recasner 1-2, Smith 1-3, Chilcutt 0-1, Olajuwon 0-2), Denver 5-14 (D.Ellis 2-3, Abdul-Rauf 2-7, L.Ellis 1-1, Rose 0-3). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-Houston 44 (Drexler 9), Denver 49 (Mutombo 14). Assists-Houston 33 (Drexler 12), Denver 34 (Rose 13). Total fouls-Houston 16, Denver 24. Technicals- Olajuwon. A-15,717 (17,171).

Knicks 92, Clippers 81 Los Angeles

Patrick Ewing had 22 points and 10 rebounds as New York held Los Angeles to its lowest score of the season.

NEW YORK (92)

Smith 8-13 4-5 20, Mason 5-7 3-6 13, Ewing 11-19 0-0 22, Starks 3-9 0-0 8, Harper 5-9 4-4 16, Grant 0-3 0-2 0, Christie 2-3 2-2 6, Davis 1-6 2-3 5, H.Williams 1-1 0-0 2, Ward 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 36-71 15-22 92.

L.A. CLIPPERS (81)

Murray 3-7 0-0 7, Vaught 5-12 5-6 15, B.Williams 8-21 3-4 19, Richardson 3-5 0-0 7, Sealy 0-3 0-0 0, Dehere 4-5 0-1 9, Barry 4-8 5-6 13, Rogers 0-3 2-4 2, Harvey 2-5 1-2 5, Piatkowski 1-1 0-0 2, Outlaw 1-2 0-2 2, Tower 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-72 16-25 81.

New York 22 18 28 24 - 92 L.A. Clippers 17 18 23 23 - 81

3-Point goals-New York 5-10 (Harper 2-3, Starks 2-5, Davis 1-1, Christie 0-1), Los Angeles 3-9 (Murray 1-1, Richardson 1-2, Dehere 1-2, Rogers 0-1, Barry 0-3). Fouled out-None. Rebounds-New York 48 (Ewing 10), Los Angeles 44 (Vaught 8). Assists-New York 17 (Starks 6), Los Angeles 14 (Richardson, Barry 3). Total fouls-New York 24, Los Angeles 22. Technicals-New York coach Nelson, Murray. A-8,067 (16,021).