Tuesday National Basketball Association Capsules.
Tuesday National Basketball Association Capsules.
LA CLIPPERS 90, OKLAHOMA CITY 88
OKLAHOMA CITY Mike Taylor and the Los Angeles Clippers spoiled the Oklahoma City Thunders first-ever home game at the Ford Center.
Taylor came up with a crucial steal and scored four points in the final minute as the Clippers held on for a 90-88 victory over the Thunder.
Taylor, a rookie point guard battling for playing time behind veterans Baron Davis and Jason Hart, came up big down the stretch as the Clippers held off a fourth-quarter rally. Tuesdays game was the only home preseason game for the Thunder, who are entering their first season here since relocating from Seattle.
Kevin Durants 3-pointer with 6:41 remaining gave the Thunder their first lead since the first quarter, and it was a back-and-forth battle from then on.
Desmond Mason put the Thunder on top with a layup with just over a minute on the clock, but Taylor didnt let them get any further. On Oklahoma Citys next possession, he stripped rookie guard Russell Westbrook and led a charge the other way.
Ricky Davis tip-in put the Clippers on top for good. With 31 seconds remaining, Taylor drove down the lane and delivered an emphatic dunk to make it a three-point game, then added a pair of free throws moments later to help put the victory on ice.
The 6-2, 165-pound guard - who in June became the first player in league history to get picked in the draft after playing in the D-League - finished with 14 points, three assists and three steals. He saw extra playing time as Baron Davis - the clubs marquee offseason acquisition - was battling flu-like symptoms and did not make the road trip.
The Clippers were also without forward-center Marcus Camby, who is nursing a bruised right heel, and forward Tim Thomas, who has a strained left groin.
Second-year forward Al Thornton led the way for Los Angeles with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting and six boards. Ricky Davis added 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists off the bench.
Free-throw shooting doomed the Thunder (1-4) down the stretch, as they were just 5-of-13 from the foul line in the fourth quarter.
Durant led the team with 19 points but was just 6-of-18 from the floor and committed six turnovers. Johan Petro registered a double-double with 12 points and 15 boards.
NEW ORLEANS 96, WASHINGTON 80
BERLIN Chris Paul continued to show the world how good he is.
Paul scored nine points and dished out 11 assists to lead the New Orleans Hornets to a 96-80 preseason victory over the Washington Wizards at the O2 World Arena.
The 23-year-old Paul, who won a gold medal with Team USA during the Beijing Olympics in August, had a breakout season in 2007-08. He averaged 21.1 points and a league-high 11.6 assists last season, finishing second to Kobe Bryant for the league MVP.
Pauls skills were on display in this one. The 6-foot guard finished 3-of-7 from the field and made two steals over 24 minutes.
Paul and the other four starters all scored before the Wizards managed to get on the board, as the Hornets jumped out to an early 18-0 lead. The game was never in doubt from that point.
Rasual Butler poured in 20 points and fellow reserve James Posey added 17 for New Orleans, which held a 61-24 advantage at the break.
DerMarr Johnson scored 19 points and DeShawn Stevenson collected 15 for Washington, which committed 18 turnovers.
SAN ANTONIO 86, DETROIT 64
GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan The San Antonio Spurs picked up their first win of this preseason, riding a furious third-quarter run to an 86-64 triumph over the Detroit Pistons in a rare matchup at Van Andel Arena.
Ime Udoka scored seven points in a 21-2 run to close the third quarter, turning a four-point game into a blowout as the Pistons (4-1) dropped their first exhibition game of the year.
Once again, the Spurs (1-2) went with a limited lineup, as guard Tony Parker and swingman Michael Finley were both given the night off by head coach Gregg Popovich. Even in their absence, San Antonio registered its best offensive output of the preseason. Reserve guard Desmon Farmer led the way with 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting - including 2-for-4 from 3-point range - and Tim Duncan added 10 points and eight rebounds.
After falling behind by double-digits at the half, the Pistons scored the first six points of the second half - with Richard Hamilton knocking down a pair of jumpers - to cut the deficit to 48-44. But they went cold for the rest of the quarter, missing their final 14 field-goal attempts as the Spurs took control.
With Parker resting on the sidelines, rookie point guard George Hill - the teams first-round pick in this years draft - got the start. He buried a pair of 3-pointers and finished with eight points and four assists in 17 minutes.
Detroit was without its floor general as well. All-Star Chauncey Billups was held out of action with a sprained right ankle, which he suffered during Saturdays 111-99 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. The injury is not considered serious.
The rest of the Pistons had a rough night offensively. Billups replacement, second-year guard Rodney Stuckey, went 1-for-9 from the floor. Rasheed Wallace was even worse, failing to connect on any of his seven field-goal attempts. By comparison, Hamiltons 4-for-11 showing was respectable, but the Pistons as a whole shot 27.8 percent (22-for-79) from the field.
Reserve guard Will Bynum was the only Piston to reach double-figures in scoring, finishing with 10 points.
TORONTO 86, CSKA MOSCOW 78
TORONTO Chris Bosh scored 24 points and Jose Calderon added 14 as the Toronto Raptors edged CSKA Moscow, 86-78, in preseason action.
Bosh hit 7-of-16 field goals and pulled down 10 rebounds. Andrea Bargnani and Jermaine ONeal each chipped in 11 points for Toronto, which shot 48 percent (30-of-62) from the floor.
ONeal, who was acquired from Indiana in the offseason, hit 5-of-9 from the field in his fourth preseason game with the Raptors.
Ramunas Siskauskas led Moscow CSKA with 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the floor. Former Duke standout Trajan Langdon added 14 for Moscow, which scored just 11 points in the third quarter.
BOSTON 90, CLEVELAND 86
PITTSBURGH Leon Powe scored 17 points to lead five players in double figures as the Boston Celtics defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time in five days by posting a 90-86 victory.
Ray Allen scored 15 points and Paul Pierce added 14 for the defending champions, who defeated Cleveland by two points on Friday.
The Cavaliers trailed, 88-86, with under 10 seconds to play when rookie Vernon Hamilton drove the lane with an attempt to tie the contest.
But Powe came over to help, swatting away the scoop shot in the paint. Eddie House made a pair of free throws with two seconds remaining to seal the victory.
Daniel Gibson scored 14 points and rookie Jawad Williams added 13 to lead the Cavaliers, who made 23-of-40 (58 percent) shots from the free throw line.
LeBron James scored 12 points in 18 minutes and sat out the entire second half for Cleveland.
PHILADELPHIA 116, NEW YORK 109
NEW YORK Andre Miller scored 22 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 116-109 victory over the New York Knicks in preseason action.
Andre Iguodala had 18 points while second-year forward Thaddeus Young chipped in 16 for Philadelphia. Free-agent acquisition Elton Brand collected 13 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who shot 51 percent (44-for-87) from the field.
Iguodala made 7-of-14 shots and his two biggest ones spoiled any chances of New York pulling out a victory in its first home game under new coach Mike DAntoni.
The Knicks had their last lead after Mardy Collins layup put them ahead 95-94 with nine minutes to play. Philadelphia gradually pulled back in front and Iguodalas dunk with 2:55 left and reverse layup 56 seconds later iced the win.
New York, which will run a lot more under DAntonis system, was led by Nate Robinson and Wilson Chandler.
Robinson was 4-of-9 from the arc and scored 21 points and Chandler hit 5-of-6 three-pointers and finished with 20 as the Knicks shot 47 percent (15-of-32) from the arc.
David Lee and Zach Randolph added 17 points apiece for the Knicks, who shot 47 percent (41-of-87).
Stephon Marbury went scoreless in 20 minutes and Eddy Curry scored a point in just 6:21. Marbury did have six assists and two rebounds with no turnovers.
MINNESOTA 96, CHICAGO 86
CHICAGO The Minnesota Timberwolves overcame a 19-point deficit to post a 96-86 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
The first and second quarters could not have been more opposite. Chicago surged to a 30-13 advantage only to see Minnesota erupt in the second 12 minutes, outscoring the Bulls, 33-15, for a 46-45 lead at intermission.
Minnesota edged away to a 68-63 lead after three quarters. The Timberwolves led 86-83 late in the fourth quarter before Kevin Ollie hit two baskets to ignite an 8-0 run that salted away the victory.
Corey Brewer led Minnesota with 15 points and nine rebounds. The Timberwolves placed six players in double figures, including four off the bench.
Chicago was led by Drew Gooden with 20 points. Andres Nocioni added 18 and Luol Deng scored 15.
