NBA Roundup

Published 12:00 am Sunday, March 8, 2009

Associated Press
BOSTON ó Dwight Howard scored 18 points with 15 rebounds, making a pair of free throws with 13.9 seconds left to ice an 86-79 win over Boston after the Celtics cut a 22-point deficit to three. With the win, Orlando moved two games behind Boston and three behind first-place Cleveland in the East.
Rashard Lewis scored 15 and Rafer Alston had 10 points and eight assists for Orlando, which won its fourth straight. One game after turning back Cleveland to grab the tiebreaker edge in the Eastern Conference, the Celtics offered a feeble start on their home court against third-place Orlando.
Ray Allen had 17 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, scoring nine straight to make it 82-79 with 1:22 to play. But he hit the back of the rim on a 3-point attempt from the left side that would have tied it with 41 seconds to play.
Jazz 109, Raptors 101
TORONTO ó Deron Williams had 25 points and nine assists, Mehmet Okur had 19 points and 11 rebounds, and the Utah Jazz beat the Toronto Raptors 109-101 on Sunday for their 11th straight win.
Utah matched its longest winning streak since an 11-game run from April 1-18, 1999.
Chris Bosh had 30 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors, with Andrea Bargnani scoring 20 and Jose Calderon adding 10 points and 11 assists. Anthony Parker scored 16 points, but Toronto still lost its fifth straight.
Spurs 103, Suns 98
SAN ANTONIO ó Putting away the Suns with 12 points in the fourth quarter, Tony Parker notched his fourth 30-point performance in his last seven games and the Spurs sent Phoenix home 0-for-4 on its road swing. Averaging 25.6 points since the All-Star break, Parker sealed San Antonio’s third win this season over the slumping Suns.