Deron Williams followed up his amazing effort from Friday night with a 17-point night Saturday, as the Brooklyn Nets snapped an eight-game road losing streak to the Atlanta Hawks with a 93-80 victory at Philips Arena. Williams' performance came one night after he buried an NBA- record nine 3-pointers in the first half and finishing 11-of-16 from beyond the arc overall, on the way to 42 points in a 95-78 home win over Washington. Brook Lopez ended with 18 points and nine rebounds, and Andray Blatche also scored 18 for the Nets, who won their third in a row. Al Horford had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Hawks, who lost for the fifth time in six games. Josh Smith finished with 12 points, two ahead of teammates Johan Petro and John Jenkins.
Final Score: New York 113, Utah 84
New York, NY (Sports Network) - J.R. Smith had 24 points on an efficient 10- for-18 shooting and without their two star players, the New York Knicks used a balanced attack to rout the Utah Jazz, 113-84, on Saturday at Madison Square Garden. Just prior to the contest, the Knicks announced Carmelo Anthony would miss a third straight game with a knee injury and had even more disconcerting news regarding forward Amar'e Stoudemire. After complaining of sore knees earlier on Saturday, an MRI confirmed that Stoudemire will be forced to undergo another knee debridement procedure, this time on his right knee. He had the same operation on his left knee back in October and is expected to miss about six weeks. The rest of the Knicks, however, came out resilient despite the dejecting news as Steve Novak buried five 3-pointers to score 20 points. Raymond Felton added 15 and Iman Shumpert and Kenyon Martin each scored 10 for New York, which shot 50.7 percent for the game. The Jazz fell for the fourth straight contest and were without Paul Millsap, who was ruled out just prior to the contest with knee inflammation. Alec Burks scored a team-high 14 points and Gordon Hayward followed with 13.
Final Score: Memphis 96, New Orleans 85
Memphis, TN (Sports Network) - Mike Conley led seven Memphis players in double-figures with 22 points to go along with eight assists and three steals as the Grizzlies downed the slumping New Orleans Hornets, 96-85, on Saturday. Tony Allen registered 14 points, six rebounds and four assists for the Grizzlies, who have won four straight and 12 of their last 13 games overall. Tayshaun Prince and Quincy Pondexter scored 13 points apiece in the victory, which was also the seventh straight at home. Anthony Davis paced New Orleans with 20 points and a career-high 18 rebounds, while Ryan Anderson followed with 17 points and seven boards for the Hornets, who have lost three straight and eight of their last 10.
Final Score: Washington 104, Charlotte 87
Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Trevor Ariza poured in 26 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the Washington Wizards to a 104-87 win over the Charlotte Bobcats at Verizon Center. Martell Webster chipped in with 20 points and Nene finished with 19 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who had lost four of their last five entering the contest. John Wall scored 13 points and dished out six assists in the triumph. Kemba Walker scored 29 points to go with six assists and Gerald Henderson had 17 points for the Bobcats, who have dropped 10 straight games.
Final Score: Denver 111, Minnesota 88
Denver, CO (Sports Network) - Ty Lawson scored 32 and the hot-shooting Nuggets surged past the Minnesota Timberwolves, 111-88, to clinch their longest home winning streak in 24 years. Lawson shot 12-for-17 from the field and Denver blew past the Timberwolves over the final 15 minutes, outscoring them 36-22, to record its 13th straight victory at the Pepsi Center. Corey Brewer added 15 points, while Andre Iguodala and Danilo Gallinari chipped in 11 apiece in helping the Nuggets attain their longest streak at home since a 19-game run from Jan. 28-April 20, 1989. Mickael Gelabale was the high-scorer for Minnesota, tallying 19 points. J.J. Barea followed with 15 and Derrick Williams donated 13 points for the Timberwolves, losers in 13 of their last 14 road games.
Final Score: Phoenix 107, Houston 105
Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Jared Dudley scored 22 points off the bench and the Phoenix Suns held off the Houston Rockets, 107-105, Saturday night. Goran Dragic scored 13 of his 18 points in the final quarter, and the Suns got 14 points from Markieff Morris. Michael Beasley ended with 10 points. Hamed Haddadi and P.J. Tucker had 11 and 10 rebounds, respectively, to help the Suns snap a two-game skid. James Harden scored 38 and Carlos Delfino tallied 21, but the Rockets lost for the second time in three games. Harden and Delfino combined for 24 points in the final quarter, and the duo finished 12-for-19 from 3-point range for the game.
Final Score: Milwaukee 103, Golden State 93
Oakland, CA (Sports Network) - Brandon Jennings posted 31 points and 10 assists to power the Milwaukee Bucks to a 103-93 win over the Golden State Warriors. Monta Ellis added 26 points and J.J. Redick scored 15 for the Bucks, who have won five of their last six games. The Warriors, losers of back-to- back contests, were without David Lee (knee). Carl Landry had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Klay Thompson also scored 18 and Stephen Curry finished with 16 points and 10 assists.
