Spurs' Ginobili returns

Scores 12 points off bench in win

Manu Ginobili scored 12 points in his first game of the season to help the San Antonio Spurs beat the Memphis Grizzlies 94-81 on Monday night.

Ginobili missed San Antonio's first 12 games after off-season ankle surgery. He entered the game with 5:34 left in the first quarter and promptly made his first two shots, the first from outside the arc and the second on a dunk. He played 11 minutes.

Rookie George Hill scored 20 points and Tim Duncan added 14 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks for San Antonio, which has won five of its last six games.

O.J. Mayo scored 26 for host Memphis.

ALSO MONDAY

BOBCATS 93, 76ERS 84: D.J. Augustin scored 25 points and added a career-high 11 assists, backcourt mate Raymond Felton added 23 points, and host Charlotte used its new speedy and tiny lineup to beat Philadelphia.

The 6-foot Augustin and the 6-1 Felton had their best game together since coach Larry Brown inserted the rookie Augustin in the starting lineup three games ago. They helped the Bobcats snap a four-game losing streak despite another meek performance from Charlotte's front line that somehow the 76ers couldn't take advantage of.

ROCKETS 107, HEAT 98: Yao Ming scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, Ron Artest scored 20 and visiting Houston finished off a perfect three-game road trip against the Eastern Conference.

Rafer Alston added 14 points for Houston, which finished with six players in double figures and outrebounded Miami 51-35.

MAGIC 108, BUCKS 101: Dwight Howard had 24 points and 13 rebounds to lift host Orlando.

Richard Jefferson scored 25 points to lead Milwaukee, which lost Andrew Bogut to a left knee bruise in the third quarter.

The Magic saw point guard Jameer Nelson leave with a groin strain. Earlier in the day, the team announced Keith Bogans would miss four to six weeks because of a broken thumb on his non-shooting hand. J.J. Redick, getting more minutes because of the injuries, scored 10 points.

LATE SUNDAY

LAKERS 118, KINGS 108: At Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant scored 24 points, Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and the Lakers improved the NBA's best record to 11-1.

NUGGETS 114, BULLS 101: Carmelo Anthony scored 21 points and Denver rallied with a strong fourth quarter for its fifth straight win at home.

Anthony made a big 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter and also had 13 rebounds and a season-high eight assists.

NOTES

WIZARDS FIRE COACH: Eddie Jordan was fired as coach of the Washington Wizards on Monday after opening the season 1-10 without injured starters Gilbert Arenas and Brendan Haywood.

"We had to do something," team president Ernie Grunfeld said at a news conference to introduce director of player development Ed Tapscott as interim coach. "The way we're losing games was unacceptable."

The Wizards' record matches the worst start in franchise history; the only other time the team was 1-10 was in 1966, when it was called the Baltimore Bullets.

Jordan leaves as the Eastern Conference's longest-tenured coach and No. 3 in the NBA behind Jerry Sloan of the Utah Jazz and Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs.

Tapscott's debut will come tonight when Washington hosts the Golden State Warriors.

BOBCATS ADD CENTER: Charlotte has signed center Dwayne Jones less than a week after reaching a deal with the journeyman center.

The Bobcats hope the 6-foot-11 Jones can help with rebounding and bolster a thin frontcourt.

Jones has played in 74 games over three seasons with Boston and Cleveland. The former Saint Joseph's big man began this season playing in Turkey.