NBA - Rockets pound Grizzlies
NEW YORK (NBA) - Yao Ming scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds and reserve forward Luis Scola had a career-high 22 points off the bench to lead the Houston Rockets to a 103-83 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. Former Grizzlies fan favourite Shane Battier added 18 points for Houston, who were without Tracy McGrady for the second time in four games.
NEW YORK (NBA) - Yao Ming scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds and reserve forward Luis Scola had a career-high 22 points off the bench to lead the Houston Rockets to a 103-83 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.
Former Grizzlies fan favourite Shane Battier added 18 points for Houston, who were without Tracy McGrady for the second time in four games.
McGrady, who's suffering from tendinitis in his left knee, is also expected to miss Houston's home game on Saturday against Toronto.
Elsewhere, Kobe Bryant finished with 31 points, seven assists and four steals as the Los Angeles Lakers set a season-high for points in a half on the way to defeating the Utah Jazz 123-109.
Lamar Odom contributed 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists and Andrew Bynum added 10 points and nine rebounds as the Lakers picked up their fourth straight win.
Ben Gordon came off the bench to score 31 points, including 12 in the final five minutes, as the Chicago Bulls posted a 99-93 victory over the struggling Milwaukee Bucks.
Luol Deng scored 14 of his 28 points in the first quarter for Chicago, who ended a three-game losing streak in Jim Boylan's debut as coach.
Amare Stoudemire had 28 points and 10 rebounds as the Phoenix Suns posted a 94-88 triumph over the slumping Los Angeles Clippers.
Grant Hill contributed 22 points and eight assists and Shawn Marion chipped in 18 and seven boards for Phoenix, who completed a home-and-home sweep of the Clippers.
At the AT&T Center, the Toronto Raptors escaped San Antonio with a 83-73 win over the Spurs as Jason Kapono scored 15 points to lead five players in double figures for the Raptors, who snapped a three-game slide.
After turning his right ankle in the third quarter Sean Williams returned to wreak havoc in the fourth en route to posting his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds as the New Jersey Nets posted a 109-106 victory over the Washington Wizards.
Dwight Howard had 29 points and 21 rebounds and Hedo Turkoglu added eight of his 22 in overtime as the Orlando Magic held on for a 121-114 over the Miami Heat.
Jarvis Hayes came off the bench in the second quarter and hit his first five shots, including three three-point baskets, to lead the Detroit Pistons to a 114-101 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
Tyson Chandler had 17 points and 17 rebounds and Chris Paul added 14 points and 11 assists as the New Orleans Hornets broke out early and coasted to their fifth straight win with a 99-85 triumph over the Charlotte Bobcats.
Allen Iverson scored 39 points and handed out six assists to lead the Denver Nuggets to their third straight win as they defeated the Golden State Warriors 124-120.
Finally, the Philadelphia 76ers started their longest road trip of the season in impressive fashion after coasting past the injury-riddled Sacramento Kings 92-80 and Brandon Roy had 15 of his 22 points in the second half as the Portland Trail Blazers matched their longest winning streak since 2002 with a 109-98 victory over the tumbling Minnesota Timberwolves.
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