Stoudemire's 42 points lead Suns past Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS: Amare Stoudemire scored 42 points to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 121-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday.
Stoudemire shot 15-for-24 from the field and 12-for-13 from the free throw line. He also had 13 rebounds.
Steve Nash had 18 points and 17 assists, and Shawn Marion added 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Suns (14-4), who have won three straight.
Jermaine O'Neal scored a season-high 30 points on 14-for-20 shooting for the Pacers (9-10). Mike Dunleavy scored 22 points and Jamaal Tinsley had 19 points and 12 assists.
At Minneapolis, Kobe Bryant scored 15 of his 20 points in the first half to help Los Angeles jump out to a big lead over Minnesota, and the Lakers cruised the rest of the way, winning 116-95 against the Timberwolves.
Trevor Ariza added 15 points and five rebounds, and Bryant also had five assists despite a bout with stomach flu for the Lakers, who dropped Minnesota to 2-14.
Al Jefferson had 12 points and 12 rebounds, but shot just 5-for-14 from the field. The Timberwolves have lost their last three games by a combined 65 points.
At Cleveland, Richard Jefferson scored a season-high 36 points, Vince Carter added 19 and New Jersey took advantage of LeBron James' absence to beat the Cavaliers 100-79.
Jason Kidd didn't even play the fourth quarter, finishing his night early with seven points, six assists and 10 rebounds.
Cleveland looked lost on both ends of the court without James, who missed his third straight game because of a sprained left index finger. The Cavaliers have lost four straight and are 0-3 without their superstar forward, falling to 9-10.
At Atlanta, Detroit scored 22 of the first 31 points in the third quarter to break open a close game, beating Atlanta 106-95 for its fourth straight victory.
Tayshaun Prince led the Pistons with 23 points. Atlanta native and former University of Georgia star Jarvis Hayes had 17 points in 17 minutes. Richard Hamilton had 14 and Jason Maxiell added 13.
Josh Childress scored 18 points for the Hawks, who were outscored 30-13 in the third quarter. Joe Johnson had five points, almost 17 below his average of 21.7.
In Sacramento, California, John Salmons took over the scoring load after Sacramento leading scorer Kevin Martin went down with an injury, scoring 13 straight points for the Kings in one stretch of a 117-107 victory over Utah.
Martin scored 25 points before leaving the game in the final minute of the third quarter with a pulled groin.
Salmons finished with 21 points and Ron Artest scored eight of his 23 in the fourth quarter to help Sacramento improve to 3-1 on its five-game homestand, with wins over San Antonio, Houston and now Utah.
Francisco Garcia hit a pair of big three-pointers in the final 2 minutes for the Kings, who made 11 of 14 shots in the fourth quarter.
Deron Williams scored 30 points and Carlos Boozer added 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Jazz.
Agencies
(China Daily 12/06/2007 page20)
