Shaq injured in loss

Ben Gordon hit five 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and overtime and scored 29 points to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 105-101 victory Tuesday night over the visiting Miami Heat, who lost Shaquille O’Neal in the opening minutes to a knee injury.

O’Neal strained his left knee in the opening minutes after he went up for an alley-oop pass from Dwyane Wade and fell on Chicago’s Othella Harrington. O’Neal stayed on the floor for several minutes holding his knee before being helped off the floor. X-rays were negative and he will be re-evaluated before today’s game at Indiana.

Gordon continues to deliver in the clutch, hitting three 3s and scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter. He leads the NBA with 15 games scoring 10 or more points in the fourth quarter.

After Eddie Jones tied it for the Heat at the buzzer in regulation, scoring off a teammate’s airball, Gordon scored the first eight points in the overtime period.

His second 3-pointer in OT put the Bulls up 100-92 with 2:11 left in overtime. Wade and Eddie Jones hit back-to-back 3-pointers for the Heat to cut the Chicago lead to two points.

After Deng hit a pair of free throws and Gordon hit one, Damon Jones hit a 3 for Miami, cutting the Chicago lead to 103-101 with 13.8 seconds left. Chris Duhon then hit 1 of 2 free throws, making it 104-101. Damon Jones had a chance to tie it for the Heat, but missed a 3-pointer with 7 seconds left.

Wade scored 21 points, had 11 assists and six rebounds for Miami and Damon Jones added 18 points and eight rebounds, who had won seven straight prior to the game.

Bucks 112, Bobcats 102: At Charlotte, N.C., Michael Redd scored 39 points in his return to Milwaukee’s lineup, leading the Bucks to a victory over Charlotte.

Redd, who missed the last three games because of a sprained index finger, was 15 of 24 from the field and made four 3-pointers. He scored 14 points in the fourth quarter to break open a close game and help the Bucks snap a two-game losing streak.

Raptors 100, Nets 82: At East Rutherford, N.J., the sight of his old team made Vince Carter look like the player Toronto wanted to get rid of.

Carter struggled in his first game against the team that traded him to New Jersey earlier this season, missing 17 of 25 shots while being outplayed by Jalen Rose in Toronto’s victory over the Nets.

Carter scored 22 points, and Jason Kidd added 20 for New Jersey.

Pacers 108, Magic 84: At Orlando, Fla., Jermaine O’Neal scored 20 points in 22 minutes, and Fred Jones added 18 points for victorious Indiana. Jamaal Tinsley, returning from a foot injury, had 11 points and six assists.

Jameer Nelson had 15 points for Orlando.

Pistons 97, Knicks 88: At Auburn Hills, Mich., Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince each scored 19 points as Detroit defeated New York for its fifth straight victory and 10th in 11 games.

Chauncey Billups added 15 points and eight assists, and Rasheed Wallace had 12 points, eight rebounds and four blocks. Jamal Crawford had 23 points for the Knicks, who fell to 5-20 in 2005.

Kings 114, Hawks 104: At Sacramento, Calif., Chris Webber scored 30 points, Mike Bibby had 23 and Sacramento beat Atlanta for its second victory in eight games.

Brad Miller had 16 points, 14 rebounds to go with seven assists for the Kings.

Al Harrington scored 25 points in his return to the Hawks’ starting lineup after missing the previous five games with tendinitis in his right knee. The Hawks have lost 16 straight road games and five in a row overall.

Lakers 104, Celtics 95: At Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom each scored 21 points, Chris Mihm had 19 points and 15 rebounds, and Los Angeles beat Boston in the latest chapter of their watered-down rivalry.

Bobcats owner ponders guarantee

Charlotte Bobcats owner Bob Johnson is considering a money-back guarantee to some season-ticket holders if they are not satisfied with the expansion team next season.

Johnson, speaking before the Bobcats game, said he would likely offer the guarantee to “non-premium” ticket holders in Charlotte’s new arena. The arena is set to open next fall, and ticket prices will rise.

Brown misses game with flu

The flu kept Larry Brown from coaching the Detroit Pistons against the New York Knicks.

Assistant coach Gar Heard filled in for Brown. Heard also coached the Pistons after Brown had hip surgery in November.

Brown became ill in the Bahamas during the All-Star break.