NEW YORK (AP) - Linsanity started against the New Jersey Nets, but this time All-Star guard Deron Williams was determined not to be embarrassed by the Harvard guy again.
Williams scored a season-high 38 points, outplaying Jeremy Lin and leading the Nets to a 100-92 victory over the New York Knicks on Monday night.
Lin began his remarkable run against the Nets about two weeks ago, but Williams and the Nets were ready for him this time.
Lin finished with 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, but Williams outscored him 36-11 through three quarters, when the Nets led by 18. Lin shot only 7 of 18 and the Knicks lost for the second time in 10 games since his emergence against the Nets on Feb. 4.
Carmelo Anthony, clearly rusty in his return from a seven-game absence with a strained right groin, shot 4 of 11 and scored 11 points.
SPURS 106, JAZZ 102
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Tony Parker scored 23 points, Matt Bonner hit five 3-pointers and San Antonio defeated Utah for its 11th consecutive victory.
Richard Jefferson's 3-pointer with 6.5 seconds left sealed the victory for the Spurs, who have not lost on the road since Jan. 29 in Dallas. Tim Duncan had 20 points for San Antonio.
Al Jefferson led the Jazz with 20 points and Paul Millsap added 16.
The loss was Utah's fifth straight against the Spurs. The Jazz fell below .500 for the first time since Jan. 2.
The Spurs kept the NBA's longest win streak alive despite injuries to Manu Ginobili and Tiago Splitter, both expected to miss two weeks. San Antonio trailed by 10 in the third quarter before rallying.
BULLS 90, HAWKS 79
CHICAGO (AP) - Derrick Rose scored 23 points in his return from a five-game absence because of back pain to lead Chicago over struggling Atlanta.
Rose looked sharp to help the Bulls play more like championship contenders after a brutal loss to New Jersey two days earlier. They led by 18 through the first quarter and were up 55-37 at halftime, but found themselves hanging on in the end after a big push by Atlanta.
Rose also had six assists and five rebounds. Carlos Boozer added 16 points, Ronnie Brewer had 13, and Deng and John Lucas 10 apiece. Joakim Noah chipped in with 16 rebounds.
Pargo had 19 points, and Josh Smith added 17 points and 12 rebounds for Atlanta.
THUNDER 101, HORNETS 93
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook scored 31 points apiece to lead Oklahoma City over New Orleans for its 10th straight home win.
One night after a historic performance featuring big scoring nights from All-Stars Durant and Westbrook and a triple-double from Serge Ibaka, the Thunder built a 26-point lead and then had to scrap it out at the end.
Jarrett Jack scored 18 points to lead New Orleans, which had a surprising three-game winning streak after losing 23 of 25.
New Orleans was within six before Westbrook hit four free throws in the final 48 seconds.
LAKERS 103, TRAIL BLAZERS 92
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Kobe Bryant scored 28 points, Andrew Bynum had 14 points and 19 rebounds, and Los Angeles roared to a 30-point lead early in the second quarter before holding off Portland.
Pau Gasol had 16 points and 12 rebounds in his first game since Bryant criticized the Lakers' front office for allowing Gasol to dangle amid trade rumors.
Neither star appeared distracted by the team's latest off-court saga as Los Angeles reeled off a 37-4 run after Raymond Felton's game-opening 3-pointer for Portland.
LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum scored 18 points apiece but the Blazers couldn't quite recover from the lowest-scoring first quarter in club history.
The Lakers scored 21 consecutive points during that opening surge and went on to their 14th victory in the last 15 home games.
MAVERICKS 89, CELTICS 73
DALLAS (AP) - Dirk Nowitzki had 26 points and moved into the top 20 on the NBA career scoring list as Dallas beat short-handed Boston.
Nowitzki, who also had a season-high 16 rebounds, scored all of Dallas' points in a 10-2 run midway through the second quarter that pushed the Mavericks ahead by 14. They led by double digits the rest of the way.
The Celtics were without suspended Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett and injured Brandon Bass. They also lost starters Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Wilcox to injuries in the third quarter.
Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 20 points. Ray Allen added 15 and Avery Bradley 12.
WARRIORS 104, CLIPPERS 97
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Monta Ellis scored 32 points and Ekpe Udoh had a season-high 19 points and eight rebounds in place of ill center Andris Biedrins to lead Golden State past Los Angeles.
Udoh had a layup and a tying dunk with 4:05 remaining that started an 11-2 run to end the game for the Warriors. Golden State snapped a three-game skid and avenged a Christmas night blowout loss to the Clippers. Biedrins missed the game with flulike symptoms.
Chris Paul had 25 points, six assists and five rebounds, and Mo Williams made his first six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points in Los Angeles' second straight loss. The Clippers had 18 turnovers and shot just 42 percent.
MAGIC 93, BUCKS 90
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Dwight Howard had 28 points and 16 rebounds, and Jameer Nelson added 15 points to lead Orlando to its third win over Milwaukee in 10 days.
Brandon Jennings had 22 points and Mike Dunleavy added 18 for the Bucks. Ersan Ilyaosova, coming off 29 points and 25 rebounds Sunday against New Jersey, had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
It was the Bucks' sixth straight loss at home, the first time Milwaukee has lost six straight at the Bradley Center since a seven-game slide from Feb. 5-25, 2000.
Ryan Anderson hit a 3-pointer with 18.1 seconds remaining to put Orlando up 91-90 before Nelson was fouled with 10.8 seconds to go and hit both free throws for the final margin.
ROCKETS 97, GRIZZLIES 93
HOUSTON (AP) - Kyle Lowry scored 24 points, Kevin Martin added 22 and Courtney Lee hit four key free throws down the stretch to lead Houston over Memphis.
Houston led by seven before Memphis went on a 5-0 run to pull to 91-89 with 27.4 seconds left. O.J. Mayo got a rebound, took it down the court and finished with a layup to cap the run.
Lee made a pair of free throws before Rudy Gay's layup with 19 seconds remaining got Memphis back within two points. Lee hit two more free throws and Quincy Pondexter's layup cut it to two again before two free throws by Lowry secured the win.
Gay led the Grizzlies with 23 points and Mike Conley had 16.
NUGGETS 103, TIMBERWOLVES 101, OT
DENVER (AP) - Arron Afflalo hit a tiebreaking floater in the lane with 33.7 seconds remaining in overtime and reserve Al Harrington scored a season-high 31 points as the short-handed Denver Nuggets beat Minnesota.
Afflalo spun past defender Luke Ridnour and swished his shot to put Denver ahead. From there, the Nuggets closed the game out at the foul line and snapped a three-game skid.
Afflalo finished with 20 points and rookie Kenneth Faried added 14 rebounds as the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves for the 17th time in 18 games.
Kevin Love had 22 points and 13 rebounds for Minnesota, which had its three-game winning streak snapped.
SUNS 104, WIZARDS 88
PHOENIX (AP) - Marcin Gortat scored 20 points, Steve Nash had 12 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds in three quarters, and Phoenix beat Washington for its 10th straight win over the Wizards.
Phoenix, coming off a 102-90 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, won on consecutive nights for the first time this season. Washington hasn't beaten the Suns in six years.
Channing Frye added 19 points and 11 rebounds and Michael Redd scored 14 for the Suns, who topped 100 points against Washington for the 18th time in a row, the longest active streak of its kind in the NBA.
Jordan Crawford scored 20 points for the Wizards, who finished a five-game trip with three losses after winning the first two. The Suns outscored Washington 31-6 after the Wizards took their only lead of the game early in the third quarter.