Philadelphia 76ers' Allen Iverson, left, tries to get by Atlanta Hawks' Jacque Vaughn (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        PHILADELPHIA — Aaron McKie returned from a one-game absence and had 20 points, seven assists and six rebounds and Allen Iverson added 19, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to a 98-78 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night.

        After losing five straight to open the season, the defending Eastern Conference champions have won four in a row since Iverson returned from elbow surgery. McKie, who missed the last game because of a right foot sprain, shot 9-of-13, including two 3-pointers.

        Jason Terry scored 15 points and Shareef Abdur-Rahim had 12 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta, which lost for the seventh time in nine games.

       Jazz 101, Wizards 92

WASHINGTON — Michael Jordan scored a season-high 44 points in his best game of his comeback, but he also matched the longest losing streak of his NBA career as Utah beat Washington 101-92 Friday night.

        Jordan made more shots than the rest of his team combined, but Karl Malone scored 30 points and Donyell Marshall had 28 — both season highs — as the Jazz sent the Wizards to their sixth straight loss.

        The Wizards overcame a 10-point deficit in the fourth, tying the game at 87 on Jordan's 16- footer. The Jazz outscored the Wizards 14-5 the rest of the way, with Jordan missing three straight shots before getting a late basket and a free throw.

       Nets 109, Knicks 83

        EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Jason Kidd had 12 points and a season-high 15 assists and the New Jersey Nets continued their best start, winning their fifth straight.

        Kenyon Martin had 21 points, Kerry Kittles added 18, Todd MacCulloch had 16 and Keith Van Horn 14 as the Nets showed how the balance of power is changing in the area by winning for the seventh time in eight games.

        Latrell Sprewell had 25 points for the Knicks, who made the game interesting in the third quarter, wiping out all but two points of a 23-point halftime deficit.

       Hornets 96, Heat 87

MIAMI — Baron Davis scored 23 points and David Wesley added 21 as Charlotte handed the Heat their fifth straight loss.

        The teams were tied at 73 after three quarters, and Charlotte outscored Miami 23-14 in the fourth. Wesley had seven points during a 12-4 fourth-quarter run.

        Davis was 9-for-13 from the field and Wesley was 7-of-16. Elden Campbell had 18 points and 10 rebounds for Charlotte, which won for just the second time in six games. Jamal Mashburn added 12 points.

        Eddie Jones led the Heat with 22 points.

       Timberwolves 120, Pacers 113, 2OT

INDIANAPOLIS — Kevin Garnett scored 24 points, including a tying basket at the end of the first overtime and four points in the second extra period.

        The Timberwolves, winning in Indianapolis for the first time in eight years, rallied from a 12-point deficit in the first half and again from five points down with just over two minutes left in the first overtime.

        Wally Szczerbiak and Terrell Brandon each added 22 points for Minnesota, whose 7-1 start is the best in franchise history.

        The loss was the third straight for the Pacers.

       Spurs 105, Cavaliers 91

SAN ANTONIO — Tim Duncan scored 27 points and Steve Smith made all six of his 3-point attempts and finished with 22 points.

        Lamond Murray paced the Cavaliers with 18 points and shot 4-for-5 from behind the 3-point arc. Andre Miller had 16 points and 10 assists, and Chris Mihm scored 15.

        San Antonio built a 17-point lead late in the first half before the Cavs made a move. Smith, who went 8-for-8 from 3-point range in a game against Portland earlier this season, hit two 3-pointers to start an 11-2 fourth-quarter run that clinched the game.

       Suns 95, Lakers 83

PHOENIX — Penny Hardaway scored 20 points and Stephon Marbury had 18 to lead five Phoenix players in double figures as the Suns handed the Los Angles Lakers their first loss of the season.

        Rodney Rogers, pressed into duty playing center at times, added 17 points. Shawn Marion had 14 and Tom Gugliotta 10 for the Suns, who got big contributions from newcomer Bo Outlaw and Dan Majerle, in his first game off the injured list after surgery on his right ring finger.

        Shaquille O'Neal, in a simmering rift with coach Phil Jackson, scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Kobe Bryant scored 18 but shot just 5-for-15 for the Lakers, who started the season with seven straight victories.

       Kings 105, Bulls 71

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Peja Stojakovic scored 21 points as Sacramento humbled the slumping Bulls.

        After trailing by 15 points at the half, it got even worse for the Bulls in the third period as their turnovers and missed shots helped the Kings take a 74-47 lead with 3:47 left.

        Hedo Turkoglu and Mike Bibby added 16 points each for the Kings. Vlade Divac had 11 points, while both Doug Christie and Lawrence Funderburke scored 10.

        Ron Mercer scored all 14 of his points in the first half for Chicago, which committed 26 turnovers and lost its fifth straight game.

        SuperSonics 100, Warriors 91

SEATTLE — Gary Payton scored 30 points and rookie Earl Watson had nine of his career-high 13 points in the fourth quarter as the SuperSonics beat the Warriors for the 12th consecutive time in Seattle.

        Watson, a second-round draft pick from UCLA, had five steals and four assists in 25 minutes.

        Rashard Lewis scored eight of his 18 points in the final 3:14 for the Sonics, who haven't lost to the Warriors in Seattle since March 6, 1995.

        The Warriors got 16 points each from Antawn Jamison and Larry Hughes.

       Raptors 94, Clippers 85

LOS ANGELES — Vince Carter scored 21 of his 29 points in the first half and Morris Peterson scored 10 of his 20 points in the final eight minutes.

        Toronto has won five of its last six games against the Clippers, who were led by Corey Maggette's career-high 28 points and 22 from Elton Brand.

        Playing before a sellout crowd of 18,964, their second at Staples Center this season, the Clippers overcame a 13-point second-quarter deficit. But they couldn't sustain their momentum and lost for the second time in six games since forward Lamar Odom was suspended by the NBA for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

Sports Stories

Buckeyes' Bellisari suspended Coming up this week Hampton stuns Tar Heels 77-69 Knight wins debut at Texas Tech Local college notebook Miami: Shorts, Davis and . . . Mumme's the word NBA roundup NHL roundup NKU men top Ferris St. RedHawks regroup in Hawaii SULLIVAN: She'll run this race standing still UK: Rebounds to beat Marshall UK thinking upset vs. UT

Doesn't get better than this
Is this state title game?
St. X vs. Elder: Tension high for game
CovCath upsets Lexington Catholic
McNick comes up just short
N. College Hill just misses
NewCath too much for Beechwood
Plymouth trying to become least likely of champs
Ohio football playoffs
Kentucky football playoffs
Indiana football playoffs
Bengals plan on facing McNair
Bengals soft? Titans say no
Bengals notebook
NFL notebook
NFL picks
NFL previews
Bearcats win at Dayton
No. 18 Oklahoma St. 69, Cincinnati 62
Oklahoma State tops Bearcats in opener
UC notebook
Short on depth, long on ambition
XU beats ISU in opener
Reds add 2 pitchers to 40-man roster