WASHINGTON, 8 November 2004 — Dwyane Wade continued his hot start to the 2004-05 campaign with a career-high 37 points, as the Miami Heat improved to 3-0 on the young season with a 118-106 win over the Washington Wizards.

Wade also dished-out a career-best 12 assists and grabbed eight rebounds for the Heat, who started 3-0 for the second time in franchise history. The 1995-96 squad also began the season with three straight wins.

Eddie Jones scored 17 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter and buried 5-of-7 three-pointers for Miami, which has won the last five meetings with the Wizards. The Heat also won their last three trips to Washington.

Shaquille O’Neal finished with 13 points and eight boards in the win.

Gilbert Arenas led the Wizards with 27 points and Larry Hughes added 26. Antawn Jamison chipped in 24 points and a game-high 13 rebounds for Washington, which suffered its first loss of the season (2-1).

At Auburn Hills, Michigan, Chauncey Billups racked up 20 points and 10 assists to lead six Detroit players who scored in double-figures as the Pistons posted a 99-91 victory over Philadelphia at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

Richard Hamilton added 17 points for the Pistons, who rebounded from Friday’s 101-89 defeat at Toronto, while Rasheed Wallace scored 12 of his 16 points in the third quarter to help the defending World Champions take control of the game.

At New York, Paul Pierce scored 28 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out eight assists to lead the Boston Celtics over the New York Knicks, 107-73, at Madison Square Garden. Pierce, who was held to only 15 points on 5-of-14 shooting in Friday night’s loss to Indiana, shot 10-of-18 from the floor, including 2-of-4 from three-point range, as the Celtics won for the first time in three tries under new head coach Doc Rivers.

At Charlotte, N.C., Primoz Brezec scored a team-high 20 points and Gerald Wallace added 18 points and 10 rebounds, leading the Charlotte Bobcats to their first win in franchise history with a 107-96 triumph over the Orlando Magic at the Charlotte Coliseum.

At East Rutherford, N.J., Amare Stoudemire scored 22 points and pulled down nine rebounds to lead Phoenix to a 112-80 win over New Jersey at Continental Airlines Arena.

Joe Johnson notched 18 points and Steve Nash contributed 17 points and eight assists for the Suns, who opened the season with three straight victories for the first time since 1984-85 when they won five in a row.

At Minneapolis, Kevin Garnett had 29 points and 15 rebounds and Latrell Sprewell scored seven points during a late key run to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves past the New Orleans Hornets, 99-92.

At Indianapolis, Stephen Jackson poured in a team-high 24 points and Jermaine O’Neal added 15 points with 10 rebounds off the bench, as Indiana defeated Chicago, 100-90, at Conseco Fieldhouse.

At Dallas, Michael Finley scored 23 points and Dirk Nowitzki added 22 points and 13 rebounds, as the Dallas Mavericks rolled to a 112-88 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies at the American Airlines Center.

At Milwaukee, Michael Redd poured in 30 points and helped spark a 14-0 second-half run which propelled Milwaukee to a 102-88 victory over Cleveland at the Bradley Center.

At Houston, Yao Ming scored 33 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Houston Rockets to a 104-101 overtime win against the Sacramento Kings at the Toyota Center.

Charlie Ward’s back-to-back, three-pointers in overtime gave the Rockets the lead for good, as Houston captured its home opener while playing its fourth game in five nights.

At Denver, Carlos Boozer finished with 30 points and 17 rebounds to lead Utah to a 106-82 win over Denver at the Pepsi Center. Boozer converted 13-of-19 shots from the field for the Jazz, who started the season with three straight wins for the first time since it won five in a row to open the 2000-01 campaign. Andrei Kirilenko posted 16 points, eight blocks and seven boards.

At Oakland, Corey Maggette poured in a game-high 26 points to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 94-86 win over Golden State at The Arena. Bobby Simmons netted 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Clippers, who have won two of their first three games to begin the season.