LOS, ANGELES – Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss loved to win. He especially relished beating the Boston Celtics.
Playing their first game since Buss died, the Lakers earned an emotional 113-99 victory over their greatest rivals on Wednesday night.
Dwight Howard had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Kobe Bryant added 16 points, Steve Nash and Earl Clark had 14 apiece, and Metta World Peace 12 in a game that surely would have delighted Buss.
“It was very fitting,” Bryant said. “You look at all the trophies, parades and support this team has — that all came from one man. The impact is a global one.”
The Lakers won their most recent NBA championship — and last under Buss — in 2010, beating the Celtics 4-3 in the finals. Buss died Monday at 80 after an 18-month struggle with cancer that had forced him to watch his team’s games on TV or an iPad instead of from his suite above the Staples Center court.
His empty seat was illuminated and “R.I.P. Dr. Buss” was written on the board inside the Lakers locker room.
“We got to continue to carry on what he built,” Bryant said.
Paul Pierce scored 26 points for the Celtics, who fell to 8-17 on the road and lost their third in a row away from home. Courtney Lee added 20 points and Kevin Garnett had 12 on 6-of-14 shooting.
“We’ve been in that situation with Red Auerbach, and so many other emotional games — teams are very dangerous, especially in their home building,” Pierce said. “You take a lot of pride in protecting that and going out and getting that first win. You could see it in their eyes. I saw it in Kobe’s eyes. He was really emotional coming out and he wanted this game bad. We understood that.”
Howard’s performance in the Lakers’ first game since the All-Star break came on the eve of the NBA trade deadline. He has been the subject of rumors, but general manager Mitch Kupchak said this week that Howard wouldn’t be going anywhere.
“I was thinking about it all day, getting this win for Dr. Buss,” Howard said. “We came out with a lot of energy, a lot of intensity. We have to keep working every day in practice to get better and hopefully this season can happen for us.”
Pacers 125, Knicks 91
In Indianapolis, Paul George scored 27 points and Indiana powered their way closer to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference by beating New York.
David West had 18 points and nine rebounds, and Lance Stephenson added 14 points for Indiana, which pulled within a half-game of the Knicks for second place in the East.
Rockets 122, Thunder 119
In Houston, James Harden scored a career-high 46 points and Jeremy Lin added 29 as the Rockets mounted a furious fourth-quarter comeback.
Houston was down by 14 points with about seven minutes left. The Rockets used a 21-4 run to erase the deficit and take a 114-111 lead with 1:46 remaining.
Heat 103, Hawks 90
In Atlanta, Miami scored the first 13 points of the fourth quarter to erase the Hawks’ 10-point lead and the Heat, led by LeBron James’ 24 points, extended their season-best winning streak to eight games.
Dwyane Wade scored 20 points and Shane Battier had 17, hitting three 3-pointers in the final period.
Nets 97, Bucks 94
In Milwaukee, Deron Williams scored 23 points and Brooklyn escaped after Monta Ellis missed on a chance to tie the game with three foul shots in the final seconds.
The Nets swept the home-and-home with Milwaukee, with both games being decided in the final seconds.
Grizzlies 88, Raptors 82
In Toronto, Zach Randolph had 17 points and 18 rebounds, Mike Conley scored 17 points and Memphis won its fifth straight.
Toronto’s Rudy Gay came up short against his former team as the Raptors had their five-game winning streak ended.
Cavaliers 105, Hornets 100
In Cleveland, Kyrie Irving scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Cavaliers.
The game featured a matchup between the past two No. 1 overall draft picks — Irving and Hornets center Anthony Davis. Irving made 13 of 22 shots and all seven of his free throws while having seven assists. Davis had 12 points and four rebounds.
Mavericks 11, Magic 96
In Dallas, Shawn Marion and Elton Brand scored 17 apiece, Vince Carter again provided a spark off the bench and Mavericks beat Orlando.
The victory snapped a nine-game winning streak for the road team in the series, and the Magic lost for the 26th time in 29 games despite a third-quarter surge that put them in front.
Timberwolves 94, 76ers 87
In Minneapolis, Nikola Pekovic had 27 points and tied a career high with 18 rebounds to power Minnesota.
Derrick Williams had 17 points and eight rebounds and Andrei Kirilenko added 15 points and five assists in his return from a thigh injury for the Timberwolves, who won for the fourth time in their last 20 games.
Pistons 105, Bobcats 99
In Charlotte, Greg Monroe scored 10 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, stepping up with Brandon Knight on the bench nursing a hyperextended right knee, to lead Detroit.
Kemba Walker led Charlotte with 24 points, and Ramon Sessions had 18 points and eight assists. Byron Mullens added 15 points for the Bobcats, who have the worst record in the NBA.
Warriora 108, Suns 98
In Oakland, Klay Thompson had 28 points and eight rebounds, David Lee finished with 19 points and 11 boards and the Golden State Warriors snapped a season-high, six-game losing streak.
Jarrett Jack added 21 points off the bench and Stephen Curry scored 20, with both making some key shots late to secure Golden State’s first victory in almost three weeks.
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