Heat burn Kings, snap 11-game slide
For one night, it all worked. Half-court alley-oop passes, 3-pointers in transition, even the occasional lucky bounce off the glass.
The Miami Heat have the worst record in the NBA.
But they looked nothing like the league's worst team Tuesday night.
Shawn Marion scored 24 points on 10-of-14 shooting, Udonis Haslem added 17 and the Heat used a huge third quarter to beat the Sacramento Kings 107-86 and snap an 11-game losing streak.
"I know we've had it in us," a relieved Heat coach Pat Riley said. "I don't know where it's been. But tonight, we played extremely well. We just played a complete game for 48 minutes.
"I feel like a mosquito in a nudist colony. I know what to do. I just don't know where to start."
Dwyane Wade finished with 15 points and nine assists for the Heat, who won for just the second time in their last 28 games — and did so in style, with their largest margin of the season.
Miami held Sacramento to 10 percent shooting (2-for-20) in the third quarter, a Heat franchise record. The Heat held a 31-11 edge in that period, the first time in more than a year Miami outscored a foe by at least 20 points in a quarter, and went on to become the final NBA team this season to reach the 10-victory mark.
In other games
• Magic 102, Nets 92 — At East Rutherford, N.J., Hedo Turkoglu scored 17 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and Orlando won its third straight game.
Rashard Lewis added 25 points, and Dwight Howard had his 50th double-double of the season (17 points, 10 rebounds) as Orlando ran its streak of 100-point games to nine.
• Suns 127, Grizzlies 113 — Steve Nash had 25 points and 13 assists and Shaquille O'Neal added 13 points to go along with 11 rebounds, leading Phoenix to a win at Memphis.
Despite not playing the fourth quarter, O'Neal got his first double-double since joining the Phoenix lineup Feb. 20.
• Timberwolves 111, Jazz 100 — Al Jefferson and Rashad McCants scored 22 points, Randy Foye added 20, and Minnesota beat Utah in Minneapolis.
Minnesota forced 24 turnovers and held the Jazz to 6-for-21 shooting in the final quarter to snap a two-game losing streak and get its first win against the Northwest Division.
• Warriors 105, SuperSonics 99 — Monta Ellis scored 30 points, Austin Croshere added 14 in the decisive third quarter without missing a shot, and Golden State won at home in Oakland, Calif., for its fifth win in seven games.
• Lakers 96, Trail Blazers 83 — Kobe Bryant scored 11 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter while Portland was held to 36 percent field-goal shooting as host Los Angeles got its ninth straight victory.
[More at www.chron.com ]
