Pistons Can’t Keep Pace With the Jazz

Mehmet Okur scored 19 points against his former team, and Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 13 rebounds, leading the Utah Jazz past the Detroit Pistons, 108-93, Saturday night at Salt Lake City.

Andrei Kirilenko scored 17 points and Gordan Giricek finished with 15 points for the Jazz, who scored more than 100 points for the fifth time in six games.

The Jazz, who won only three of their six 100-point games last season, won for the fifth time in six games.

Defending NBA champion Detroit was without center Ben Wallace, who missed the game because of a death in his family, and Chauncey Billups, who was sidelined because of a sprained ankle.

The Pistons couldn’t overcome Utah’s accurate shooting. The Jazz went 41 for 70 (59%).

Richard Hamilton scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half for the Pistons, who have split their first six games.

Sacramento 113, Phoenix 111 -- Chris Webber had a season-high 28 points and 10 rebounds at Phoenix, helping the Kings rebound from Wednesday night’s 30-point loss at Seattle that dropped them to 1-4.

But they looked more like the 55-win playoff team of last season this time, taking charge late in the third quarter and holding off Phoenix’s desperate rally in the fourth

San Antonio 103, Atlanta 88 -- Tim Duncan scored 26 points and grabbed 18 rebounds and Bruce Bowen scored a career-high 22 points to help the Spurs win at Atlanta.

After San Antonio built a 24-point lead -- 65-41 -- midway through the third quarter, the Hawks scored 11 consecutive points spanning the third and fourth quarters.

A three-point basket by Antoine Walker with 8:55 left pulled the Hawks to within 10 points at 81-71, but Beno Udrih made a three-pointer for the Spurs.

Dallas 94, New Jersey 78 -- Reserve Jerry Stackhouse made all five of his third-quarter shots and scored a season-high 28 points to lead the Mavericks at East Rutherford, N.J. Dirk Nowitzki had 31 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four of Dallas’ 12 steals in helping the Mavericks win for the sixth time in seven games.

Milwaukee 94, New Orleans 91 -- After Darrell Armstrong’s three-point basket pulled the Hornets to within 92-91, Keith Van Horn clinched the victory at Milwaukee by making two free throws with 5.8 seconds left. David Wesley missed a three-point shot at the buzzer for the Hornets, who fell to 0-6.

Indiana 103, New York 97 -- Jermaine O’Neal had 33 points and 12 rebounds, and Ron Artest marked his 25th birthday with 22 points as the Pacers fought off fatigue to win at Indianapolis. It was Indiana’s fourth game in five nights. Because of injuries, the Pacers had only 10 players available and used only eight. All five starters played at least 38 minutes.

Portland 105, Toronto 102 -- Lamond Murray’s three-point basket at the final buzzer appeared to tie the score at 105-105, but further review by officials showed that the shot was too late. Zack Randolph had 27 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Trail Blazers at Portland.

Cleveland 105, Washington 74 -- LeBron James scored 24 points and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 21 at Cleveland to help the Cavaliers win their third in a row after an 0-3 start. Ilgauskas scored eight points during a 16-4 run that gave them a 76-61 lead after three quarters. James scored nine of their first 11 points in the fourth.