Clips snap Rockets’ win streak

Sam Cassell had 22 points, Elton Brand scored nine of his 20 points in the final 6 minutes and the Los Angeles Clippers snapped the Houston Rockets’ five-game winning streak with an 89-81 victory Saturday.

Tracy McGrady scored 25 of his 29 points in the first half for the Rockets, whose loss was their first in the last 10 meetings with the Clippers. The Rockets are 0-12 this season when they score fewer than 90 points.

Cuttino Mobley scored 18 points for the Clippers, who played without No. 2 scorer Corey Maggette for the sixth straight game – he sprained his left foot Dec. 5 against Miami. Backup center Chris Wilcox had 11 points and tied a career high with 13 rebounds.

The Clippers’ starting backcourt of Cassell and Mobley – both of whom were drafted by Houston – combined to shoot 17 for 32. Cassell helped the Rockets win NBA titles in 1994 and 1995 after they made him their first-round draft pick in 1993. Mobley spent his first six seasons with them before he was shipped to Orlando in a trade that brought McGrady to Houston in June 2004.

Cavaliers 115, Heat 107: At Cleveland, LeBron James scored 41 points and Donyell Marshall added a season-high 25 for the Cavaliers, handing coach Pat Riley his first loss since taking over Miami on Monday. James added 10 assists, five rebounds and was 12 of 13 from the foul line. Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 33 points. Shaquille O’Neal tied a season low with 10.

Pacers 102, Knicks 96: At New York, Jermaine O’Neal scored 31 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:56 left, and Indiana handed New York its season-high sixth straight loss. Jamaal Tinsley added 23 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Pacers, who have won four of five overall and snapped a two-game road losing streak. Stephon Marbury scored 25 points for the Knicks but had a costly turnover with 39 seconds left and New York trailing by three.

Pistons 103, Bobcats 78: At Charlotte, N.C., Chauncey Billups had 21 points and 12 assists to help Detroit improve to an NBA-best 18-3, the best 21-game mark in franchise history. Richard Hamilton added 15 points, and Ben Wallace had 13 points and 13 rebounds for the Pistons, 11-2 on the road. Primoz Brezec had 17 points and Emeka Okafor added 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Bobcats.

Grizzlies 91, Suns 87: At Memphis, Tenn., Mike Miller had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Pau Gasol also scored 14 points to help Memphis snap a three-game losing streak. Phoenix lost for the fourth time in its last five. Shane Battier added 13 points for Memphis, while Eddie Jones and Antonio Burks had 12 each. Eddie House led the Suns with 21 points.

Jazz 88, Bucks 80: At Milwaukee, Mehmet Okur had 14 points and 14 rebounds and Gordan Giricek and Deron Williams also each scored 14 points for Utah. Utah star Andre Kirilenko left the game in the second quarter with a back injury after playing 17 minutes. Michael Redd led the Bucks with 19 points. T.J. Ford added 16, and Jamaal Magloire had 14 points and 16 rebounds.

Bulls 118, Celtics 86: At Chicago, Michael Sweetney had 24 points and seven rebounds, and Chris Duhon added 22 points and eight assists to lead the Bulls past Boston. Chicago, coming off a 28-point loss at Detroit on Friday night, hit a club-record nine 3-pointers in the third quarter and was 14 of 17 overall from 3-point range. The Bulls, who shot 59.7 percent overall, scored a season-high 39 points in the third. Ricky Davis had 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Celtics.

Spurs 90, Kings 89: At San Antonio, Michael Finley hit a 20-foot jumper with 2.5 seconds left to lift the Spurs past Sacramento. Tony Parker had 25 points and a season-high 12 assists for the Spurs, while Tim Duncan scored 11 of his 24 points in the final period and added 14 rebounds. Finley, starting in place of the injured Manu Ginobili, had 16 points. Sacramento’s Shareef Abdur-Rahim matched his season high with 25 points on 12-for-16 shooting.