MIAMI, Feb 27, (Agencies): LeBron James had 40 points and 16 assists, Dwyane Wade scored 39 and the Miami Heat pushed their winning streak to 12 games by outlasting the Sacramento Kings 141-129 in double overtime on Tuesday night. Ray Allen added 21, Chris Bosh finished with 15 and Chris Andersen had 10 for the Heat, who remained six games clear of second-place Indiana in the Eastern Conference standings. Miami's 12-game winning streak is the longest in the NBA and matches the second-longest in franchise history. Marcus Thornton scored 36 points for Sacramento, the most by any reserve in the NBA this season. DeMarcus Cousins finished with 24 points and 15 rebounds, Tyreke Evans added 26 points, John Salmons 15 and Isaiah Thomas 14 for the Kings.
Pacers 108, Warriors 97
In Indianapolis, David West had 28 points and seven rebounds, and the Indiana Pacers overcame the ejection of Roy Hibbert following a fourth-quarter scuffle to beat Golden State. West also was called for a technical foul, along with the Warriors' David Lee, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, for the altercation that began with 6:10 remaining in the game. It began when Lee and Hibbert exchanged shoves under the basket after a missed shot. Curry tried to push Hibbert away and was shoved to the court as the fight went from the key to the baseline. George Hill had 23 points and seven assists, and Paul George had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Pacers (36-21), who have won five straight.
Nets 101, Hornets 97
In New Orleans, Deron Williams scored 33 points, Brook Lopez added 20 while playing against his twin brother, Robin, and the Brooklyn Nets snapped a two-game skid. Williams did not score for much of the second half, but drained a timely 3-pointer with 1:24 left, then added a fadeaway jumper, followed by six free throws in the final 18.7 seconds to seal it. Keith Bogans added 12 points for Brooklyn, hitting all four of his shots, including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, when New Orleans nearly erased a deficit that had been as large as 22 points in the second quarter.
Cavaliers 101, Bulls 98
In Chicago, Dion Waiters scored 25 points to help make up for the absence of Kyrie Irving, and the Cleveland Cavaliers snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Chicago Bulls with a 101-98 victory on Tuesday night. While Irving rested a sore right knee in street clothes on the sideline, Waiters converted a fadeaway jumper and a layup before Tyler Zeller drove along the baseline for a layup that helped Cleveland open an 87-78 lead with 7:33 left in the game. The Bulls were down two when they got the ball back with 37 seconds left, but Luol Deng missed a long jumper. Shaun Livingston, starting in place of Irving, finished with 15 points as improving Cleveland held on for its third win in the last four games, bouncing back from a difficult 109-105 loss at Miami on Sunday.
Bucks 95, Mavericks 90
In Dallas, Monta Ellis scored 22 points, and Milwaukee spoiled Dirk Nowitzki's first game in nearly 10 years with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. Ellis twice put the Bucks ahead in the final 2 minutes, the last time on a jumper for a 92-90 lead with 1:03 remaining. Nowitzki had 21 points and 20 rebounds for the Mavericks, who had two chances after Ellis' go-ahead basket. Vince Carter missed a 3-pointer and Darren Collison's wild shot on a drive wasn't close. Nowitzki's last 20-20 game was April 3, 2003, against the Los Angeles Lakers, when he had 25 points and 22 boards. J.J. Redick, playing his second game in Dallas in six days but in a different uniform after he was traded from Orlando to Milwaukee, had 14 points and Mike Dunleavy added 13.
Clippers 106, Bobcats 84
In Los Angeles, Blake Griffin scored 24 points, keying a decisive second-quarter burst that put the Clippers in command, and Los Angeles beat Charlotte to improve to 23-6 at home. Matt Barnes added 17 points off the bench, Caron Butler had 16 points, DeAndre Jordan 13, and Chris Paul had 13 of the Clippers' season-high 34 assists for their sixth win in seven games. The Bobcats managed just 17 assists.
Gerald Henderson tied his season high with 24 points and Kemba Walker had 15 points for the Bobcats, who have lost four straight and 12 of 14. The NBA's worst team fell to 7-23 on the road.
Magic 98, 76ers 84
In Philadelphia, Arron Afflalo and Tobias Harris scored 16 points apiece, and Orlando snapped a 10-game road losing streak. Andrew Nicholson contributed 13 and Nikola Vucevic had 12 points and 19 rebounds for the Magic (16-41), who hadn't won on the road since Jan. 12 against the Los Angeles Clippers. E'Twaun Moore had 12 points and a career-high 10 assists, while Maurice Harkless had 10 points for the Magic.
The Magic won for just the seventh time all season on the road while also snapping a five-game skid overall.
The Sixers lost their sixth straight game, their longest streak in nearly three years.
Suns 84, Timberwolves 83, OT
In Phoenix, Marcin Gortat hit big shots at the end of regulation and overtime, helping Phoenix end a three-game losing streak. Gortat hit a runner with 13 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime and scored on a hard drive with 45 seconds left in the extra period. Gortat, Wesley Johnson and Markieff Morris had 14 points apiece. Jermaine O'Neal added 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Suns, who ended a four-game home losing streak. Derrick Williams had 21 points and 12 rebounds, Nikola Pekovic finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and J.J. Barea had 16 points for Minnesota, which rallied from a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime.
Mike Krzyzewski said on Tuesday his successor as coach of the gold-medal winning US Olympic basketball team will likely be named later this year, underlining his earlier decision to leave the job.
The Duke University coach, speaking to ESPN Radio, denied a report that he might stay on with the US national team after a seven-year run that included two Olympic gold medals and a world championship.
"My stance hasn't changed," Krzyzewski said in the telephone interview. "I've loved, loved, loved, and it's been an honor being with the USA Basketball team. "And to coach the team and work with (chairman and president Jerry Colangelo) these seven years have been marvelous."
According to Krzyzewski, whose US team beat Spain in consecutive Olympic finals, his successor will likely be named by mid-2013 in preparation for the 2014 world championship in Madrid. In conjunction with Colangelo, Krzyzewski helped turn around US basketball fortunes after the team's disappointing sixth-place finish at the 2002 world championship in Indianapolis and a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Krzyzewski continues to thrive on the collegiate scene with his Duke team boasting a 24-3 record so far this season.
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