Hamilton leads way as Pistons shoot down New Jersey Nets

NEW YORK: Richard Hamilton scored 37 points as the Detroit Pistons out-scored the New Jersey Nets 13-3 in overtime, leading the Pistons to a 100-90 win in Auburn Hills on Monday.

Tayshaun Prince added 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Pistons, who spoiled the debut of Vince Carter in a Nets uniform. Carter scored 23 points in 42 minutes for the Nets in his first game in three weeks due to an Achilles injury, which he suffered at The Palace while playing for the Toronto Raptors.

Despite hobbling off during overtime with a left hamstring problem, he said he did not believe the latest injury would cause him to miss any games. Richard Jefferson scored 27 points to lead the Nets and also had seven rebounds, but Jason Kidd went 0-for-8 from the field and scored just two points in 36 minutes as he continues to rebound from off-season knee surgery.

Nenad Krstic had 13 points and nine rebounds for the Nets. Chauncey Billups had 13 points and nine assists for the Pistons, who got 18 rebounds and eight points from Ben Wallace. In other NBA games, Shaquille O’Neal scored 31 points despite playing with sore ribs as Miami Heat set a franchise-record with their 12th consecutive triumph, a 116-102 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

O’Neal played with padding to protect his ribs. Dwyane Wade added 27 points for Miami. Antoine Walker, Tony Delk and Predrag Drobnjak all scored 16 points for the Hawks, losers of six of their last seven games. In Orlando, Stephon Marbury had 34 points and seven assists to guide the New York Knicks to a 119-111 win over the Magic. Kurt Thomas, Allan Houston and Jerome Williams all added 15 points for the Knicks, who set a season-high in points.

Steve Francis had 25 points and Cuttino Mobley added 24 for Orlando. In Indianapolis, Reggie Miller contributed 24 points towards the Indiana Pacers 100-82 victory over the struggling New Orleans Hornets. Jermaine O’Neal added 16 points and 11 rebounds in just his second game back from suspension for the Pacers. Lee Nailon scored 28 points but could not prevent the Hornets (2-25) from suffering their sixth straight defeat.

In Washington, Larry Hughes scored 20 points as the Wizards beat the Charlotte Bobcats 106-87. Gilbert Arenas added 17 points for the Wizards, who shot a season-high 54.8 percent from the field. Emeka Okafor scored 18 points and had 11 rebounds for the Bobcats, his 16th consecutive double-double. In Memphis, Pau Gasol had 24 points and eight rebounds as the Grizzlies stopped the Los Angeles Clippers 96-76. reuters

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