NBA-Highlights of Wednesday's NBA games

Dec 24 (The Sports Xchange) - Highlights of Wednesday's National Basketball Association games: - - - Mavericks 119, Nets 118 Dirk Nowitzki capped a milestone night by converting a go-ahead layup with 19.2 seconds remaining in overtime as the Dallas Mavericks outlasted the Brooklyn Nets for a wild 119-118 victory on Wednesday. Early in the second quarter, Nowitzki moved past Shaquille O'Neal into sole possession of sixth place on the NBA's career scoring list with a 17-footer. Long after passing O'Neal, Nowitzki capped a 22-point night by executing an up-and-under move near the basket. Nowitzki now has 28,607 points, while O'Neal finished with 28,596. Nowitzki's shot stood as the game-winner when Brooklyn guard Jarrett Jack missed an 18-foot fade-away from the left wing with nine-tenths of a second remaining. - - - Cavaliers 91, Knicks 84 Kevin Love had 23 points and 13 rebounds, and LeBron James added 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists to lead Cleveland past New York. The Knicks were playing without Carmelo Anthony (sprained right ankle), but they still nearly pulled off the upset thanks to 23 points and 13 rebounds from rookie Kristaps Porzingis. Cleveland's Kyrie Irving had five points and four assists on 1-of-7 shooting from the field in 20 minutes. It marked his second game back from a fractured kneecap. - - - Celtics 102, Hornets 89 Kelly Olynyk scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and Jae Crowder had 19 points and 11 rebounds as Boston beat Charlotte. The Celtics never trailed and they led by as many as 20 points in the second half. They were on top by seven at halftime, then blew the game open by going on a 23-10 run to open the third quarter. - - - Magic 104, Rockets 101 Nikola Vucevic scored 21 points and grabbed six rebounds, leading Orlando past Houston. The Magic won for the fifth time in six games, and they snapped the Rockets' three-game winning streak. James Harden finished with 31 points and seven assists, and Dwight Howard had 12 points and seven rebounds for the Rockets. - - - Kings 108, Pacers 106 DeMarcus Cousins (25 points, 16 rebounds) sank two free throws with 1:05 remaining, and Sacramento defeated Indiana. A Monta Ellis three-pointer with 2:05 remaining gave Indiana a 106-104 lead after the Pacers trailing by 15 at halftime, but a Rudy Gay jumper with 1:31 left tied it at 106, and the Kings won it on Cousins' free throws. - - - Wizards 100, Grizzlies 91 Garrett Temple continued his surprising scoring surge with 20 points, John Wall had 14 points and 14 assists, and Washington won its third consecutive game. Marcin Gortat had 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Wizards, who swept their three-game homestand. - - - Hawks 107, Pistons 100 The Hawks' strategy of repeatedly fouling Detroit center Andre Drummond worked, forcing Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy to take his big man off the floor for stretches and changing the flow of the game. Jeff Teague scored 23 points and handed out nine assists, and the Hawks used a big second-quarter run with Drummond on the bench to take command in a win over the Pistons. Drummond finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds, but he hit just seven of 18 foul shots. - - - Pelicans 115, Trail Blazers 89 Anthony Davis scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds -- his 16th double-double of the season -- and New Orleans snapped a seven-game losing streak to Portland Center The Pelicans sent the reeling Blazers to their fifth loss on a five-game road trip. Portland had not gone winless on a road trip of at least five games since an 0-5 trip in 1974. - - - Spurs 108, Timberwolves 83 San Antonio got a balanced effort in a rout of Minnesota. Six players scored in double figures for the Spurs, who won their seventh consecutive game and 11th in the past 12. Kawhi Leonard led all scorers with 19 points. Minnesota, losers of six of eight games, got 10 points and 11 rebounds from rookie Karl-Anthony Towns. - - - Bucks 113, 76ers 100 Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 22 points and Milwaukee made interim head coach Joe Prunty's debut memorable, cruising to a victory over Philadelphia. Antetokounmpo hit his first 10 shots from the field and went 11-for-13 for the game, as the Bucks shot 60.7 percent from the field and made five of 11 three-pointers. - - - Nuggets 104, Suns 96 Randy Foye stepped into the starting lineup and produced 31 points, hitting seven 3-pointers, and Denver beat Phoenix. Darrell Arthur added 19 points and Will Barton 17 off the bench for the Nuggets, who dressed only 10 players due to illness and injury, blew a 22-point lead and still snapped a three-game losing streak thanks to 14 3-pointers. Brandon Knight has 21 points and Jon Leuer added 18 for the Suns, who lost their third consecutive game. - - - Warriors 103, Jazz 85 Golden State tuned up for its Christmas Day showdown with the Cleveland Cavaliers by dispatching Utah in rather lackluster fashion. The Warriors became the first team since the 1990-91 Denver Nuggets to score 100 or more points in a 47th consecutive game. The defending champs extended their home-court winning streak to 30 regular-season games with their 13th in a row this season. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 20 points, and Stephen Curry added 16 points and nine assists. Derrick Favors had 17 points and Rodney Hood 15 for the Jazz. - - - Thunder 120, Lakers 85 Russell Westbrook had 23 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, Kevin Durant scored 21 points and grabbed seven rebounds, and Oklahoma City routed Los Angeles. The Thunder prevailed for the ninth time in 10 games. They also blew out the Lakers for the second time in five days. Kobe Bryant scored 19 points on 7-of-22 shooting to lead the Lakers. (Editing by John O'Brien/Sudipto Ganguly)