Hawks Break 23-Game Road Losing Streak

The Atlanta Hawks’ road woes are over. For the first time since Dec. 10, they won away from home. Tyronn Lue had a season-high 29 points and Al Harrington scored 28 as the Hawks ended their 23-game road losing streak with a 116-112 overtime win over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.

The Hawks also ended their overall losing streak at 13 games.

“Twenty-three and 13 is a lot losses,” Harrington said. “Guys can start to believe they can’t win. This is huge for us.”

Lue and Harrington combined for 14 of their team’s 15 points in overtime to lead Atlanta to its first win since Feb 7 against the Los Angeles Lakers.

“We have the worst record in the league but we still like to win,” Lue said.

In other games, it was Houston 127, Phoenix 107; Sacramento 113, L.A. Clippers 112; Boston 115, Detroit 113, 2OT; Dallas 112, Milwaukee 110; Indiana 101, Golden State 83; Philadelphia 112, Charlotte 80; Minnesota 101, Orlando 96; Memphis 94, Utah 82; and Chicago 100, Seattle 97.

The Raptors had a chance to ice the game late in the fourth quarter, but Jalen Rose and Rafer Alston missed crucial free throws. Lue’s jumper tied it at 101 with 6.1 seconds left, and Rose missed a 20-foot jumper at the buzzer to send the game into overtime.

Lue’s two jumpers and two free throws gave Atlanta a 112-110 lead with 1:05 left. Rose tied it with a jumper, but Harrington made a layup and Lue made two free throws with 4 seconds left.

Atlanta’s bench erupted in cheers after Lue made the free throws.

“We’ve been knocking on the door the last three or four games,” Atlanta coach Mike Woodson said. “Our guys came out and played tremendous, from beginning to end.”

Rockets 127, Suns 107

At Phoenix, Tracy McGrady scored 38 points and Yao Ming had 27 points and a career-high 22 rebounds, helping the Houston Rockets rally from a 14-point third-quarter deficit.

The victory was the third straight for the Rockets over an elite Western Conference team following wins over Dallas and Seattle in their two previous games. The loss prevented the Suns (47-15) from becoming the winnings team in the NBA and dropped them one-half game behind the idle San Antonio Spurs (47-14) in the race for home court advantage in the playoffs.

Kings 113, Clippers 112

At Sacramento, Mike Bibby hit a last-second jumper for the second straight game to give the Kings the win – their 14th straight home victory over the Clippers.

Bibby finished with 28 points and 12 assists – and yet another example of his incredible cool under pressure. Three nights earlier, Bibby beat the Memphis Grizzlies by banking in a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Celtics 115, Pistons 113, 2OT

At Boston, Paul Pierce scored 38 points, hit the game-winning jumper with 23 seconds left and deflected Tayshaun Prince’s 3-point attempt on the Pistons’ last possession.

The Celtics gained their sixth win in seven games since trading for Antoine Walker and maintained a three-game lead over Philadelphia for the Atlantic Division lead.

The Celtics snapped a five-game losing skid against Detroit, while the Pistons lost their fourth consecutive road game and have dropped four of their last five overall.

Mavericks 112, Bucks 110

At Milwaukee, Dirk Nowitzki, in his second game back from a knee injury, had 29 points and nine rebounds, while Jason Terry tied his season high with 28 points.

Michael Redd led Milwaukee with 33 points, but missed a fadeaway jumper with 2 seconds left that would have tied the game.

Pacers 101, Warriors 83

At Indianapolis, Stephen Jackson, scratched from the starting lineup because he missed a morning shootaround, came off the bench late in the first quarter, hit his first four shots and finished with 22 points.

Reggie Miller added 19 points, including 11 in the opening period, and Jeff Foster had 14 points and 17 rebounds.

76ers 112, Bobcats 80

At Philadelphia, Allen Iverson had 25 points and 12 assists and Chris Webber played one of his best games for the Sixers, contributing 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Samuel Dalembert added 15 for the Sixers, who led 91-59 after three quarters en route to their largest margin of victory this season.

Timberwolves 101, Magic 96

At Orlando, Kevin Garnett scored five of his 25 points in the final minute, including a three-point play with 52.9 seconds left that broke a 95-95 tie. Hedo Turkoglu had 32 points for Orlando, but he missed a free throw and a driving layup in the final 25 seconds.

Grizzlies 94, Jazz 82

At Salt Lake City, Mike Miller shot 9-of-13 and scored 24 points, and the Grizzlies shot 68 percent from the field in the second half and made 10 of 19 3-pointers.

Bulls 100, SuperSonics 97

At Seattle, Ben Gordon scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, including a runner with 12.1 seconds left that put Chicago ahead for good. The Sonics lost their third in a row for the first time all season.