Parker lifts Spurs past Heat

San Antonio’s 15-point lead was gone, Shaquille O’Neal was flexing a bit at midcourt and the Miami Heat thought they were on the cusp of a breakthrough win.

Tony Parker and the Spurs simply wouldn’t allow it to happen.

Parker scored a career-high 38 points, including a game-clinching jumper with 38 seconds left, as the Spurs rallied to beat the struggling Heat 101-94 on Friday night in Miami.

“Big win, big win,” Parker said. “It’s very motivating to play against Miami.”

The Spurs led by 15 in the third quarter, then had to escape a four-point deficit midway through the fourth to match their best 40-game start (31-9) in franchise history. San Antonio had the same record last year on the way to winning the NBA championship.

Dwyane Wade scored 36 points for Miami (23-17), which has lost eight of its last nine against San Antonio.

The Heat have six fewer wins at this point than they did last season – a disappointing stat for a team that professes to have title aspirations.

“Tough loss, because this is another one of, I think, nine or 10 games we let slip away this year,” O’Neal said. “We’re going to need these games.”

Mavericks 101, Clippers 81: At Los Angeles, Dirk Nowitzki had 26 points and 11 rebounds as Dallas routed the Clippers, extending its winning streak to four games.

Suns 106, Lakers 93: At Phoenix, Shawn Marion had 22 points and 16 rebounds to go with Steve Nash’s 17 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds, and the Suns beat Los Angeles for the sixth straight time. Kobe Bryant scored 20 of his 37 in the fourth quarter, but the Lakers could get no closer than 10 during that span.

Timberwolves 90, Pacers 85: At Minneapolis, Wally Szczerbiak scored 20 points and Eddie Griffin had 17 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks to lead Minnesota over Indiana. Fred Jones scored 19 points for the Pacers, who shot 39 percent.

Nuggets 113, Jazz 83: At Denver, Carmelo Anthony continued his surge with 31 points and the Nuggets beat Utah for their fourth straight victory.

Warriors 99, Cavaliers 79: At Oakland, Calif., Jason Richardson scored 22 points and Golden State handed lifeless Cleveland its sixth straight loss.

Rockets 109, Bulls 108 (2OT): At Chicago, Tracy McGrady scored 35 points, including the tying shot at the end of regulation and the go-ahead 3-pointer in the second overtime, to lead Houston over the Bulls to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Bucks 118, Hawks 102: At Atlanta, Michael Redd scored 28 points and Bobby Simmons chipped in with 25, helping Milwaukee snap a three-game losing streak with a victory over the Hawks.

76ers 89, Grizzlies 86 (OT): At Philadelphia, Allen Iverson hit the tying jumper with 3.2 seconds left in regulation and scored 30 points to lift the 76ers to an overtime victory over Memphis. The Grizzlies lost their fourth straight game.

Magic 104, Bobcats 93: At Charlotte, N.C., Dwight Howard had 19 points and a career-high 21 rebounds, Hedo Turkoglu scored 24 points, and Orlando beat the injury-riddled Bobcats.

Celtics 99, Nets 96: At Boston, Ricky Davis scored 12 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and the Celtics held on for a win over New Jersey.

Wizards 110, Hornets 99: At Washington, Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler each topped 20 points, and the Wizards pulled away from New Orleans early in the fourth quarter for a victory.

Off the court

Kobe Bryant plans to play for the U.S. team at this year’s world basketball championships and the 2008 Olympics. Bryant gave an emphatic nod to joining the U.S. team in a meeting with the head of USA Basketball, Jerry Colangelo. … The fan accused of harassing the wife of New York Knicks forward Antonio Davis will drop threats of a lawsuit if the couple says it’s sorry, the man’s attorney said. No way, the Davises said. “I’m not apologizing to anybody for anything,” Antonio Davis said. Attorney Jay Paul Deratany said he was disappointed with the Davises’ comments and that Michael Axelrod was still considering legal action. … Fred Hoiberg met with doctors to discuss his recovery from open-heart surgery, but still is uncertain about trying to become the first man to play in the NBA with a pacemaker.