Sonics’ 0-7 start worst in history

Richard Hamilton and the Detroit Pistons needed their quick start to send the young Seattle SuperSonics to their worst start ever.

Hamilton scored 10 of his season-high 32 points during a torrid first quarter, and Detroit held off a late charge to beat Seattle 107-103 on Sunday night at KeyArena, dropping the Sonics to 0-7.

Hamilton capped his night with a 17-foot leaner with 45.9 seconds left to give Detroit a 103-99 lead, after the Pistons squandered a 23-point first half advantage.

Kurt Thomas pulled Seattle even at 99, knocking down a 15-footer with 2:32 left after drawing a charge against Chauncey Billups.

But showing its youth, the Sonics fumbled away the final two minutes. Nick Collison missed a short jumper in the lane. Damien Wilkins got caught in mid-air and threw the ball away. The Sonics failed to block out Antonio McDyess, whose offensive rebound with 1 minute left set up Hamilton’s jumper that gave the Pistons the cushion they needed.

Billups and Hamilton both added free throws in the final minute.

McDyess and Wallace both finished with 15 points, and McDyess grabbed 15 rebounds.

Seattle was led by Kevin Durant’s 19 points and 17 from fellow rookie Jeff Green. But the two couldn’t keep Seattle from dropping to 0-7, the worst start in franchise history. Before this season, the Sonics had previously started 0-6 only once – the 1969-70 season.

Heat 75, Knicks 72: At New York, Jason Williams made the go-ahead jumper with 19 seconds left, and Miami earned its first victory of the season by beating the Knicks.

With Dwyane Wade still out and Zach Randolph not here after his grandmother’s death, both teams were missing their top players. And it showed with long stretches of inept offensive play on both sides.

But the Heat pulled it out after trailing by five with 2 1/2 minutes left. Udonis Haslem made consecutive baskets, and after Stephon Marbury threw the ball away, Williams knocked down his game-winner.

“Though he was cleared to play Nov. 2, Wade missed another game against the Knicks, opting to wait until he says he’s 100 percent after offseason surgeries to his knee and shoulder.

Rockets 85, Bobcats 82: At Charlotte, N.C., Yao Ming scored a season-high 34 points, including a pair of free throws with 20.4 seconds left, and Houston rallied in the fourth quarter to beat Charlotte.

Tracy McGrady scored 12 of his 26 points in the final period and the Rockets fought back from a seven-point deficit to win their third straight game.

Cavaliers 103, Clippers 95: Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 25 points, LeBron James added 22 and Cleveland rallied to beat host Los Angeles.

Drew Gooden added 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Cavs, who needed a fourth-quarter spurt after blowing leads of 11 and 13 points in the game.

Sam Cassell scored 28 points for the Clippers, who lost their second in a row after opening the season 4-0.

Hornets 93, 76ers 72: At Philadelphia, David West and Chris Paul each scored 16 points to lead New Orleans past the 76ers.

The Hornets snapped a two-game losing streak and played more like the team that won the first four games of the season. They used runs of 11-2 at end of the first half and 12-0 in the third quarter to blow out the Sixers.

Spurs 113, Bucks 88: Manu Ginobili scored 21 points and host San Antonio routed Milwaukee.

Michael Finley added 17 points and Tim Duncan had 16 points for the Spurs, who led by double digits for the last three quarters. Mo Williams scored 17 points for the Bucks and Michael Redd had 14 points.

Wizards 101, Hawks 90: At Atlanta, Washington avoided the first 0-6 start in franchise history, beating Atlanta behind Caron Butler’s 24 points.

All five Wizards starters scored in double figures for the first time this season.