USA - Kapono fires for Miami Heat

NEW YORK (NBA) - Jason Kapono scored 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter to lift the Miami Heat to an 86-81 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Asked to take on a bigger role after Dwyane Wade - the NBA Finals MVP and the Heat's best player - went down with a dislocated left shoulder Wednesday, Kapono responded in his second straight start.

Kapono, the winner of the Three-Point Shootout at All-Star Weekend, was just 2-of-12 from the field and missed all six of his attempts from three-point range in the first three quarters.

However, he found his stroke in the final period, making 4-of-6 shots and his only attempt from the arc.

Another player asked to pick up his game in Wade's absence is Shaquille O'Neal, a three-time Finals MVP who has been limited to 16 games this season due to a knee injury.

O'Neal turned in 29 active minutes, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds en route to his third double-double of the season.

Cavaliers superstar LeBron James had a big game but received very little help from his team-mates.

James scored 29 points on 10-of-22 shooting. The rest of his team-mates made just 21-of-64 shots from the floor as Cleveland finished at 36% (31-of-86) for the game.

Kevin Martin scored 35 points and Mike Bibby added 28 and six assists as the Sacramento Kings used a big third quarter to cruise to a 110-93 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

Indiana took a 50-47 lead into the half before Martin caught fire after the break.

Sacramento's shooting guard scored 21 points and Bibby chipped in 13 in the third as the Kings outscored the Pacers, 40-24, in the quarter to put the game away.

Maurice Evans scored a season-high 26 points as the Los Angeles Lakers broke open the game in the second quarter and breezed to a 102-85 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

Kobe Bryant also scored 26 points for Los Angeles, who improved to 7-0 against Pacific Division opponents and beat Golden State for the 12th time in 13 meetings.

Monta Ellis scored 22 points for the cold-shooting Warriors, who made just 2-of-19 from the arc and were a pitiful 9-of-21 at the free-throw line.

All-Star Vince Carter scored 40 points and came up one rebound and two assists shy of a triple-double as the New Jersey Nets beat the Atlantic Division rival New York Knicks, 101-92.

Carter hit five straight free throws over the last minute to seal the victory.

Jason Kidd continues to shrug off his cracked ribs, scoring 11 points and dishing out 14 assists.

Stephon Marbury led the Knicks with 22 points, 17 of which came in the first half.

With the loss, the Knicks missed an opportunity to pull even with the Nets for second place in the Atlantic standings.

Amare Stoudemire scored a season-high 43 points and pulled down 16 rebounds to lead the Phoenix Suns past the Atlanta Hawks, 115-106.

Shawn Marion scored 21 points and Steve Nash chipped in 14 and 13 assists as the Suns exacted their revenge for a Nash-less 120-111 home loss to Atlanta on February 9.

Joe Johnson led Atlanta with 28 points and Marvin Williams added 23 and 10 boards.

Anthony Johnson, acquired from the Dallas Mavericks at the trade deadline, made his Hawks debut, scoring 17 points and dishing out five assists in 34 minutes.

Phoenix has won four straight since the return of Nash.

Kevin Garnett scored 26 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 98-94 triumph over the Washington Wizards.

Ricky Davis scored 27 points to pace Minnesota while rookie Randy Foye chipped in 13 for the Timberwolves, who snapped a three-game skid which began with Tuesday's 12-point loss in Washington.

Tracy McGrady gave the Orlando Magic and their fans a reminder of times gone by, scoring 34 points to lead the Houston Rockets to a 97-93 victory over the sliding Magic.

It was the 10th win in the last 14 games for the Rockets (35-20), who climbed within two games of the Utah Jazz (37-18) for fourth place in the Western Conference.

Rafer Alston scored 20 points, Luther Head added 15 off the bench and Shane Battier chipped in 14 for Houston, who built a 12-point half-time lead before staving off a furious comeback after the break.

Grant Hill scored 21 points while All-Star Dwight Howard collected 18 points and 16 rebounds for Orlando, who have lost four consecutive games.

Chris Webber converted a follow shot with 2.2 seconds remaining to lift the Detroit Pistons to a 95-93 victory over the Chicago Bulls and spoil Ben Wallace's return to the Palace of Auburn Hills.

The battle of Central Division rivals featured Wallace's return to Detroit, where he spent the previous six seasons and was a member of the 2003-04 championship squad and captured the Defensive Player of the Year Award four times.

However, the 6ft 9in Wallace left Motown in the off-season, signing a four-year deal to become the anchor in the middle of the Chicago defence.

Wallace received a rude welcome to his former home as he was booed each time he touched the ball. His biggest cheers came after he was whistled for a technical foul in the third quarter.

Wallace finished with six points, eight rebounds and two blocks in 40 minutes.

Jon Fisher
FIBA