Dickau’s career high not magical enough

Hedo Turkoglu and Steve Francis each scored 22 points, and the Orlando Magic held off the New Orleans Hornets 97-94 on Sunday night in Orlando, Fla.

Pat Garrity added 12 points for Orlando and Grant Hill and Dwight Howard each had 11.

Orlando gave up 48 to New Orleans’ backcourt of Dan Dickau and J.R. Smith.

Dickau scored a career-high 28 points, 17 in the second half. He hit seven 3-pointers, four in the third quarter when he was all that stood between the Magic and a rout.

Smith had 20 points, 14 in the first half when he made his first five shots.

New Orleans cut the deficit to 95-94 with 15.9 seconds left, when Dickau sank a layup after the Hornets were denied an open look at a 3-pointer. Dickau was 10 for 16, adding six assists.

Dickau fouled out 4 seconds later, and Francis hit two free throws to re-establish a three-point lead. Francis made all five of his foul shots in the fourth quarter, shooting 10 for 11 for the game while contributing 11 assists.

Cavaliers 103, Lakers 89: At Cleveland, LeBron James scored 21 of his 25 points in the second half, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 30 points to spoil Kobe Bryant’s return to the Los Angeles lineup, leading Cleveland to the victory. James added nine assists and eight rebounds for the Cavs. Bryant had 26 points on 7-of-22 shooting in 41 minutes for the Lakers.

Bulls 87, Timberwolves 83: At Minneapolis, Ben Gordon had 21 points and eight rebounds in a reserve role, and Chicago spoiled Kevin McHale’s first game as Minnesota’s coach. Latrell Sprewell scored 26 points for Minnesota, and Kevin Garnett added 23 points and 14 rebounds.

Heat 96, Spurs 92: At Miami, Dwyane Wade scored 13 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter, including a jumper with 25.1 seconds left, and Miami beat San Antonio for the first time in more than three years. Wade hit five of his final seven shots, and added six assists and five rebounds to help Miami extend its winning streak to six games. Shaquille O’Neal added 27 points and seven rebounds.

Knicks 102, Bobcats 99: At New York, Tim Thomas got a lucky bounce on a 3-pointer from the corner as the final buzzer sounded, lifting New York past Charlotte. Thomas’s shot was short, hit the iron and bounced 4 feet above the rim before caroming off the top of the backboard and dropping through to give New York just its fourth victory in its past 22 games.

Kings 104, Celtics 100: At Boston, Chris Webber had a triple-double – 14 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists – by the third quarter, and Mike Bibby took over from there, scoring 14 of his 27 points in the fourth in Sacramento’s win over Boston.

Nets 94, Nuggets 79: At East Rutherford, N.J., Vince Carter scored 23 points and the Nets spoiled Kenyon Martin’s return to New Jersey, holding Denver without a basket for nearly 11 minutes late in the first half and early in the second en route to a victory. Martin finished with 13 points on 6 of 14 shooting.

Pacers 76, Grizzlies 73: At Indianapolis, Stephen Jackson had 19 points and eight rebounds, and Fred Jones added 15 points to help Indiana overcome an off night from Jermaine O’Neal in beating Memphis. O’Neal finished with 11 points and eight rebounds.

Raptors 109, Clippers 106: At Toronto, Chris Bosh had 26 points, and Rafer Alston scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter to help Toronto snap a four-game losing streak in its win over Los Angeles.

Rockets 81, Trail Blazers 80: At Houston, Yao Ming scored 23 points and Juwan Howard had 17, including four free throws in the last 13 seconds, in Houston’s win over Portland and its seventh straight victory.

Suns 106, Warriors 102 (OT): At Oakland, Calif., Jimmy Jackson hit a go-ahead shot in the lane with less than 20 seconds left in overtime and Phoenix overcame a second-half drought to tie San Antonio for the best record in the NBA. Joe Johnson led Phoenix with 23 points. Shawn Marion had 21 points and 16 rebounds, Quentin Richardson scored 21 and Steve Nash added 20 points and 12 assists for the Suns.

Former Hawk stable after stroke

Former Atlanta Hawks star Lou Hudson was in stable condition, a day after having a stroke.

The 60-year-old Hudson was able to communicate with family and friends at University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, Hawks spokesman Arthur Triche said.

“He’s alert and responsive,” Triche said. “He’s doing better, but it will be a couple of more days before they find out more details” about the severity of the stroke.

Around the league

Denver center Nene sprained his left knee going for a rebound with about four minutes left in the second quarter of the Nuggets’ game against New Jersey. Nuggets coach George Karl said Nene would return to Denver today to be examined by Dr. Steve Traina. … The Clippers activated guard Shaun Livingston and placed guard Kerry Kittles on the injured list.