Sports News

NEW ORLEANS (AP) The Hornets' two rookies left the New Orleans Arena with bright-colored, glittery suitcases specially selected for them by veterans, Darren Collison's with a "Little Mermaid" theme and Marcus Thornton's emblazoned with Tinkerbell's smiling visage.

"It keeps us grounded, I'll tell you that much," Collison said.

The way Collison and Thornton are playing lately, the Hornets might want to think of other ways to keep their egos in check.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) No matter how bleak things look for the Knicks, they can take comfort knowing worse basketball is being played 10 miles away.

And if the Nets don't win soon, they could be the worst ever to start an NBA season. Read More...

CLEVELAND (AP) There's one thing - other than LeBron James, of course - that the Cleveland Cavaliers can always count on when things get tough.

In a pinch, they turn to their defense. Read More...

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Carlos Boozer scored 18 of his 22 points in the second half and overtime to lead the Utah Jazz to their fourth straight victory, 100-97 over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night.

Andrei Kirilenko scored 15 of his 22 points after halftime, including two free throws with 9.8 seconds remaining to provide the final margin. Read More...

DENVER (AP) Carmelo Anthony scored 30 points and Chauncey Billups had 21, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 112-93 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.

It was the 15th straight regular-season home win for the Nuggets, including all five this season as Denver bounced back from Friday night's loss in Los Angeles to the Clippers. Read More...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Rookie Brandon Jennings scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Memphis Grizzlies 103-98 on Saturday night for their third straight victory.

Charlie Bell added 19 for Milwaukee, which has won seven of its last eight. Ersan Ilyasova finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, and reserve Luke Ridnour contributed 13 points and 12 assists. Read More...

SAN ANTONIO (AP) Tony Parker scored 17 points and the San Antonio Spurs stopped a three-game losing streak with a 106-84 victory over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

Parker played for only the second time in six games, bothered by a bad ankle during what has been one of the worst starts for San Antonio in the Tim Duncan era. Read More...

NEW YORK (AP) Marv Albert said Saturday he was never involved in an altercation with 50 Cent, denying Internet reports of a fight on "Jimmy Kimmel Live."

According to the reports, punches were thrown after members of the rapper's entourage didn't recognize Albert, the longtime sports broadcaster who was appearing as a guest on the show on Wednesday night. Read More...

HOUSTON (AP) Luis Scola scored 22 points and grabbed key rebounds in the final minutes, and the Houston Rockets held off the Sacramento Kings 113-106 Saturday night.

The Rockets blew a 15-point, second-quarter lead and had to scrap in the final minutes of the fourth quarter before improving their record in the second game of back-to-backs to 4-0 this season. Read More...

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) The Oklahoma City Thunder have assigned rookie center Byron Mullens and guard Kyle Weaver to the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League.

Mullens was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the 24th pick in this year's draft before Oklahoma City acquired him that night in a trade. He has yet to play in a game this season. Read More...