Miami too hot for Knicks

Brain Grant was the star for Miami with 24 points

Brian Grant lifted the Miami Heat out of their worst slump in nearly five years with 24 points and nine rebounds to hand the Florida side a badly needed 84-81 victory over the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

Grant scored Miami's last basket and drew a foul to chalk up his second three-point play of the period to give the Heat some breathing room at 77-72.

Two more free throws pushed the advantage to 81-73 with 2:26 to play.

Chris Childs missed a three-pointer with two seconds remaining as a late Knicks charge fell short.

Tim Hardaway scored 16 points and Eddie Jones added 15 for the Heat.

Charlotte 103-79 Toronto

Lamar Odom lead the Clippers' charge

In Charlotte, David Wesley scored a season-high 32 points and Baron Davis added 14 and 11 assists, leading the Charlotte Hornets to a rout of the injury-ravaged Toronto Raptors.

Jamal Mashburn added 18 points for the Hornets, who went on a 9-0 run early in the first quarter, built a double-digit lead in the second period and easily held off any threats by the Raptors in the second half.

Detroit 97-76 New Jersey

In Auburn Hills, Jerry Stackhouse scored six of his 31 points in an 11-1 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters as the Detroit Pistons pulled away for a victory over the New Jersey Nets.

The third period featured six ties before Detroit finally went ahead for good with 3:07 to play.

But the Pistons did not begin to break open the game until Stackhouse made two free throws with 48 seconds remaining in the third period.

Stephon Marbury had 20 points and seven assists for New Jersey.

Clippers 106-83 Warriors

In Los Angeles, in a battle between the worst teams in the Western Conference, Lamar Odom and the Los Angeles Clippers made the Golden State Warriors look even worse than usual.

Odom posted his fourth career triple-double with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists and rookie Quentin Richardson added 18 points and eight boards in his first career start as the Clippers embarrassed the Warriors.

Denver 107-100 Minnesota

Nick van Exel was on song for the Nuggets

In Minneapolis, Nick Van Exel scored 30 points and sunk a clutch three-pointer down the stretch as the Denver Nuggets used a 10-2 closing run to pull away for a victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Van Exel hit 11-of-20 shots, including five three-pointers, and handed out seven assists for Denver, which had lost five of its first six road contests.

But Van Exel responded immediately, drilling a 25-footer before Raef LaFrentz knocked down four straight free throws, the last of which gave Denver a 104-98 lead with 1:15 remaining.

Utah 88-86 Orlando

In Orlando, Karl Malone scored 27 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Danny Manning chipped in 11 points off the bench as the Utah Jazz continued their strong play on the road.

Malone had 16 points in the second half, including 11 in the third quarter.

Tracy McGrady had 12 points in the quarter for the Magic, including eight straight early in the period. McGrady finished with 28 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

Philadelphia 93-87 Washington

Allen Iverson got the 76ers running

In Philadelphia, Allen Iverson had 29 points as the Philadelphia 76ers survived a serious fourth-quarter scare and outlasted the last-place Washington Wizards, 93-87.

Iverson landed all of his eight free throws, grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists in 41 minutes.

Mitch Richmond scored 26 points for the Wizards, who have lost nine of their last 11 games.

San Antonio 82-79 Kings

In San Antonio, the Spurs needed an 8-4 rally, started by three points from Tim Duncan and a steal by Derek Anderson, to hold off the surging Kings.

Duncan finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds, Sean Elliott scored 15 points and Anderson finished with 14 for the Spurs, who won their second straight after alternating wins and losses for four games.

Vancouver 109-106 (OT) Phoenix

In Vancouver, after giving up a three-point lead with 26 seconds left in regulation and a six-point lead with 42 seconds to go in the first overtime, the Vancouver Grizzlies rallied from a four-point deficit in the second overtime to pull out a win over the Phoenix Suns.

Damon Jones hit a three-pointer with 44 seconds to go in the second overtime, putting the Grizzlies ahead to stay, 107-106, and Grant Long made two free throws with 9.1 seconds left, to secure the victory.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored a season-high 33 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for Vancouver, which also got 16 and 14 from Othella Harrington. Grant Long had 16 points.

Jason Kidd scored nine of his 34 points in the first overtime, helping the Suns rally to force double OT.