Mavericks rout Bobcats as embattled owner watches

Source: Agencies  |   2008-11-19  |     ONLINE EDITION

DIRK Nowitzki scored 32 points as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Charlotte Bobcats 100-83 in the NBA on Tuesday, delighting owner Mark Cuban a day after he was charged with insider trading.

With Cuban sitting along the baseline and as animated as usual, the Mavericks toyed with the lifeless, undermanned Bobcats. Josh Howard added 21.

A career-high 21 points from rookie D.J. Augustin was nowhere near enough for Charlotte, which fell behind 15-0 while playing again without injured top scorer Jason Richardson. The Bobcats didn't score until nearly 7 minutes had elapsed in a woeful performance that kept them winless all-time against Dallas.¤

Cavaliers 106, Nets 82

At East Rutherford, New Jersey, LeBron James scored 31 points in showing the New York metropolitan area what might be on the free agency market in 2010, and Cleveland rolled to its eighth straight win with a decision over New Jersey.

James added eight rebounds, four assists and a remarkable blocked shot on a play late in the third quarter when he chased down Nets point guard Devin Harris on a fastbreak and prevented a dunk.

Harris, who was looking for his fourth straight 30-point game, had 23 points to lead New Jersey.¤

Heat 94, Wizards 87

At Washington, Dwyane Wade had 19 points, 10 assists and six rebounds, and Miami caught a couple of breaks in the final minutes to beat struggling Washington.

Wade, who played despite rolling his ankle in a loss at Toronto on Sunday, led six players in double figures as the Heat beat the Wizards for the second time in five days and celebrated a rare road victory. Miami entered the game 4-1 at home and 1-4 on the road.

The Wizards sank to 1-7, the franchise's worst start since 1999.¤

Magic 103, Raptors 90

At Orlando, Florida, Jameer Nelson scored a season-high 22 points to lead Orlando to a win over Toronto, overcoming a season-high 40-point effort by Chris Bosh.

Bosh also had 18 rebounds, but the Raptors had 24 turnovers.

Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu each added 22 points for the Magic.

Orlando built a 13-point third quarter before hanging on for its eighth win in nine games.¤

Pacers 113, Hawks 96

At Indianapolis, Danny Granger scored 34 points to lead Indiana past slumping Atlanta.

Rasho Nesterovic scored 21 points and Troy Murphy added 10 points and 19 rebounds for the Pacers.

Joe Johnson finished with 25 points for the Hawks who, after a 6-0 start, have lost four straight.¤

Celtics 110, Knicks 101

At Boston, Brian Scalabrine, in the starting lineup while Kevin Garnett served a one-game suspension, hit a 3-pointer with 1:14 left to help Boston recover after its 15-point, fourth-quarter lead was trimmed to four, as the Celtics beat New York.

Paul Pierce scored 22, Kendrick Perkins had 16 points and eight rebounds and Rajon Rondo had 15 points, eight boards and seven assists for the Celtics, who were playing without Garnett for the first time this season.

Wilson Chandler scored 23, and Zach Randolph had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Knicks.¤

Grizzlies 109, Kings 94

At Memphis, Tennessee, Rudy Gay scored 22 points and Memphis shot a season-high 54 percent to help the Grizzlies snap a four-game losing streak with a victory over the Kings.

Hakim Warrick added 21 points and 10 rebounds and Marc Gasol scored 16.

Memphis shot above 60 percent for the better part of the game, and built its double-digit lead in the second quarter. The Kings never threatened after halftime, dropping their fourth game out of the last five. Memphis also dominated the boards, outrebounding Sacramento 46-33.

John Salmons led the Kings with 18 points, while Spencer Hawes scored 14, hitting all seven of his shots.¤

Nuggets 114, Bucks 105

At Denver, Linas Kleiza scored 25 points and Carmelo Anthony had 17 as the Nuggets beat Milwaukee.

The Nuggets got double-digit scoring from all their starters, plus Kleiza and Renaldo Balkman, and they beat their season high in total points.

The Bucks, who got 25 points from Charlie Bell, played their eighth straight game without star Michael Redd (ankle).