Wizards claim first victory
Boston — Joe Johnson scored 18 points, Andray Blatche had 17 points and 13 rebounds, and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Boston Celtics 95-83 on Wednesday after Rajon Rondo was ejected following a fight.
The Celtics point guard was tossed after he shoved Kris Humphries to retaliate for the Nets forward’s hard foul against Kevin Garnett. Humphries and Brooklyn forward Gerald Wallace were also ejected for their roles in the second-quarter skirmish.
Garnett had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Paul Pierce added 14 points for Boston. Rondo had three assists before he was kicked out, ending his streak at 37 games with double-digits. That is tied for second-longest in NBA history.
The Nets led by 21 in the second half and never less than nine in the fourth quarter.
Wizards 84, Trail Blazers 82
In Washington, Washington earned its first victory after starting the season with 12 straight losses, getting 19 points from Jordan Crawford to beat Portland.
Washington survived a scoreless 6:47 in the fourth when Crawford hit on a 3-pointer with 2:06 to play, and the Wizards finally took the 84-82 lead on Emeka Okafor’s two free throws with 39.1 seconds remaining.
Damian Lillard was called for traveling with 28 seconds left. After Nene was called for an offensive foul, J.J. Hickson missed a jumper with 2.8 seconds to play. The Wizards lost the ball with 0.2 seconds to go, but held on to end the skid.
Nine teams started the season 0-13, and the Wizards were tired of the ridicule they’d been subjected to — locally and nationally — as they crept toward the Nets’ NBA record-worst start of 0-18.
Thunder 120, Rockets 98
In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant matched his season high with 37 points, and Oklahoma City beat Houston in James Harden’s first game back at Chesapeake Energy Arena since being traded by the Thunder before the season.
Harden scored 17 points, but was limited to 3-for-16 shooting. He had six shots blocked by the Thunder.
Patrick Patterson scored 27 points and Omer Asik had 17 points and 12 rebounds to lead the way for the Rockets, who began the day by attending the funeral of coach Kevin McHale’s daughter in Minnesota.
OTHER RESULTS: Bulls 101, Mavs 78; Grizzlies 103, Raptors 82; Knicks 102, Bucks 88; Pistons 117, Suns 77; Clippers 101, Timberwolves 95; Hawks 94, Bobcats 91; Sppurs 110, Magic 89; Jazz 96, Hornets 84. /ap
