76ers hand Bobcats 15th consecutive loss

Charlotte, North Carolina—Lou Williams scored 23 points off the bench as the Philadelphia 76ers built an early lead and held on to send the Charlotte Bobcats to their 15th straight defeat, 98-89 Monday.

Thaddeus Young added 20 points on 6 of 9 shooting, and Jrue Holiday chipped in with 19 points for the 76ers (20-9).

Williams was averaging 19 points over the previous four games. He stayed hot Monday night, making several big shots including a 3-pointer with 6:11 remaining after the Bobcats had pulled within 71-69.

Corey Maggette scored a season-high 22 points for Charlotte, which fell to 3-25 on the season.

Heat 114, Bucks  96

At Milwaukee, LeBron James scored 35 points as Miami used a third-quarter surge to finally beat Milwaukee.

Dwyane Wade scored 22 and Mario Chalmers added 13 for the Heat, who were 0-2 against the Bucks coming into Monday night’s game.

James scored 16 of his points in the third quarter as the Heat outscored the Bucks 35-24 to take control of the game.

Carlos Delfino scored 24 for the Bucks, who were coming off a loss to Orlando on Saturday night.

Magic  102, Timberwolves  89

At Orlando, Florida, Jason Richardson scored 17 points, and Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu each added 14 as Orlando used a big second half to beat Minnesota.

Richardson, coming off a season-high 31 points, was strong early against Minnesota but sat out the fourth quarter.

The Magic didn’t need him, though, hitting 12 of 30 3-pointers for the game and with all five starters reaching double figures. Orlando has won two of its last three games and earned its seventh straight victory over the Timberwolves.

Kevin Love led Minnesota with 19 points and 15 rebounds, but the Timberwolves lost their fourth straight game.

Hornets  86, Jazz 80

At New Orleans, Chris Kaman scored a season-high 27 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as New Orleans snapped an eight-game losing streak with a victory over Utah.

Marco Belinelli and Gustavo Ayon each added 13 points for New Orleans, which led by as many as 20 in the third quarter before holding on for only its third victory in 26 games.

Al Jefferson had 14 points and 12 rebounds for Utah.  OTHER RESULTS: Mavs 96, Clippers 92; Warriors 102, Suns  96. /ap