NBA round up
Kobe Bryant scored 39 points, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to reach 20,000, and the visiting Los Angeles Lakers held off New York Knicks.
Bryant added 11 rebounds and 8 assists in his first game at the Garden in nearly two years. His 3-pointer in the opening minute of the third quarter allowed him to reach the milestone at 29 years, 122 days.
"I always like playing here, period," Bryant said. "Last year I didn't have an opportunity to play and I was upset about it. This is my favorite arena to play in so I'm just happy and relieved that I was able to play tonight."
Before Bryant, who was suspended last year when the Lakers came to New York, only Wilt Chamberlain (29 years, 134 days) and Michael Jordan (29, 326) had gotten to 20,000 points before turning 30.
Bryant's last basket came in the final minute after the Knicks had trimmed a 25-point deficit to one.
Jamal Crawford scored 31 points for the Knicks.
The Knicks staged a fourth-quarter comeback, and Crawford scored 9 straight points for New York. Two free throws by David Lee cut the Lakers' lead to 91-90 with 1:55 remaining. Crawford later missed with a chance to give New York what would have been its first lead, and Bryant's soft jumper fell in with 57 seconds left.
Nuggets 106, Kings 105
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- Linas Kleiza recovered the ball in a scramble and hit a jumper just before the final buzzer sounded, lifting Denver to a thrilling victory over Sacramento.
The Kings kept giving Denver extra chances, like when Brad Miller bricked two free throws with 16.5 seconds left. After Allen Iverson missed from close, Marcus Camby tipped the ball and Kleiza got possession and nailed the shot while falling away under pressure from the left wing.
Carmelo Anthony had 30 points and 12 rebounds, Camby added 19 points and 14 boards, and Iverson had his streak of four straight 30-point performances end, finishing with 21.
Ron Artest scored 24 points and a key basket with 2:29 remaining, and also had nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals. Miller added 22 points, eight boards and four assists, but the Kings couldn't overcome their errors in crunch time.
Pistons 94, Rockets 82
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- Richard Hamilton scored 17 points and Antonio McDyess and Rasheed Wallace added double-doubles, helping Detroit beat short-handed Houston.
The Rockets started the night near full strength, but Tracy McGrady didn't come out for the second half after aggravating a sore knee, and Yao Ming missed most of the second half after needing four stitches to close a facial cut.
Detroit (20-7) has won five straight and 12 of 14, and joins Boston as the only teams with 20 victories. Houston has lost four of its last five.
McDyess finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Wallace had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Jason Maxiell added 14 points off the bench for Detroit.
Luis Scola led Houston with 18 points. McGrady scored 14 and Yao had 12.
Celtics 103, Magic 91
BOSTON (AP) -- Paul Pierce had 24 points to lead balanced scoring, and Boston avenged its first loss of the season on Nov. 18 by beating Orlando.
Rajon Rondo added 23 points and Ray Allen 22 for the Celtics (22-3), who have the best record in the NBA. Kevin Garnett had 21 points to go along with 12 rebounds.
The Celtics led by as many as 20 in the third quarter. The Magic twice cut the lead to fewer than 10 in the fourth quarter, but Allen responded both times with 3-pointers.
Dwight Howard led the Magic with 23 points and 14 rebounds for his 25th double-double of the season. Hedo Turkoglu scored 19 points and Rashard Lewis added 15 for Orlando, which has dropped seven of its last nine games.
Warriors 105, Cavaliers 96
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Stephen Jackson scored 29 points and Baron Davis added 27 to help Golden State hand Cleveland its 10th loss in 13 games.
The Warriors, playing the finale of a five-game trip, never trailed and built an 89-61 lead late in the third quarter. The Cavaliers outscored the Warriors 29-14 in the fourth to make the final score appear more respectable.
The Cavaliers were booed by the home crowd throughout the game. The defending Eastern Conference champions fell to 12-16 despite 25 points from LeBron James.
Monta Ellis scored 19 and Al Harrington added 16 for Golden State.