BOSTON: Ray Allen, who missed 11 of his first 13 shots, hit a 3-pointer with just 42 seconds left in overtime to give the Boston Celtics a 98-95 win over the Portland Trail Blazers in Friday’s NBA action.
Portland’s LaMarcus Aldridge followed with a miss from 3-point range, and after a scramble at mid-court Allen wound up with the ball and passed to Tony Allen for a breakaway dunk.
Paul Pierce scored 24 for the Celtics and Kevin Garnett, who returned after missing 10 games with a knee injury, added 13.
Andre Miller scored 28 points for the Blazers, who were without leading scorer Brandon Roy because of a strained hamstring.
Lakers 115, Knicks 105: In New York, Kobe Bryant scored 13 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter to help Los Angeles bounce back from a disappointing loss and beat New York. Pau Gasol added 20 points, half in the final period, as the Lakers quickly made up for a defeat by title rival Cleveland the previous day.
New York’s David Lee scored a season-high 31 points and grabbed 17 rebounds.
Hawks 103, Bobcats 89: In Atlanta, the hosts overwhelmed Charlotte with dominating performances in the first and third quarters.
Jamal Crawford scored 24 points and Al Horford had 23 for the Hawks, who made 11 straight shots in the opening period and raced to a 16-point lead. Charlotte pulled within four points by halftime but in the third, Atlanta made 12 of 18 shots, converted a trio of three-point plays and stretched the margin back out to 22 points.
Gerald Wallace had 25 points as the Bobcats failed in their bid to win a team-record seventh straight.
Rockets 116, Spurs 109: In San Antonio, Houston ended a five-game road skid at the expense of Texas rival San Antonio.
Aaron Brooks and Kyle Lowry scored 23 points apiece as the Rockets held off a furious San Antonio run in the final minutes led by Tim Duncan, who became the 35th player in NBA history to reach 20,000 points.
Duncan had 25 points, including the last 11 for the Spurs.
But with San Antonio trailing by four with 37 seconds left, Richard Jefferson missed a jumper to end the comeback.
Grizzlies 86, Thunder 84: In Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis extended its franchise-record home winning streak to 10 by edging Oklahoma City. Rudy Gay scored 25 points, including a game winning 20-footer with 1.3 seconds left, and Zach Randolph also scored 25 points for the Grizzlies.
Bulls 115, Suns 104: In Phoenix, Chicago shot 51 percent to win just their fifth road game of the season, handing Phoenix Suns only its fifth home loss. Derrick Rose scored 32 points and Luol Deng for the Bulls.
Magic 100, Kings 84: In Orlando, Florida, Orlando became the latest team to bully struggling Sacramento. Dwight Howard had 19 points and 15 rebounds, helping the Magic build a 32-point lead. The much-maligned free throw shooter also made his first 10 from the line and finished 11 for 12.
Tyreke Evans had 19 points for the Kings, who have lost six straight.
76ers 92, Mavericks 81: In Philadelphia, Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams sizzled instead of sulking after getting bumped from the starting lineup, combining for 33 points from the bench to lead Philadelphia over Dallas.
Raptors 101, Bucks 96: In Toronto, Jarrett Jack scored a season-high 27 points as Toronto came from 15 points down to beat Milwaukee. Chris Bosh added 17 and Marco Belinelli 16 for the Raptors.
Heat 112, Wizards 88: In Washington, Miami began the second half of its season with a flourish, routing Washington just two nights after a heavy loss in Charlotte. Dwyane Wade scored 32 points, going 12 for 19 from the field with 10 assists to extend his domination of Washington this season.
Hornets 96, Timberwolves 94: In Minneapolis, James Posey scored on a driving layup at the buzzer for a second straight game to give New Orleans the win over Minnesota. Posey’s winner came two nights after he did the same thing with 1.1 seconds to play to beat Memphis.
Pacers 105, Pistons 93: In Auburn Hills, Michigan, Indiana won its first game in four by downing Detroit.
Danny Granger scored 25 points and Troy Murphy added 16 points and 11 rebounds as the Pacers notched a rare road win.
Warriors 111, Nets 79: In Oakland, California, Stephen Curry scored a career-high 32 points as Golden State hammered hapless New Jersey. Corey Maggette added 29 for the Warriors.
