Carmelo Anthony scored 24 points in his return from a knee injury, hitting consecutive 3-pointers midway through the fourth quarter to help quash any chance of another upset by Minnesota as the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves, 105-94, last night in Denver.
The All-Star forward, who is leading the NBA in scoring, missed the previous five games after suffering a right knee bruise Dec. 28 against Sacramento.
Corey Brewer had 25 points for the Timberwolves, who lost their fourth consecutive game on the road.
Al Jefferson [stats] added 22 points and 15 rebounds. Earlier in the day, the former Celtics [team stats] center brushed off rumors of a potential trade after a report by Yahoo! [YHOO] cited anonymous sources in saying Minnesota offered Jefferson to Indiana in exchange for Danny Granger.
Suns 105, Bucks 101 - Steve Nash had 30 points and 11 assists, helping host Phoenix rally after blowing a 24-point lead and beat Milwaukee for the 22nd consecutive time at home.
The Bucks were without coach Scott Skiles, who was hospitalized just before the game, and high-scoring guard Michael Redd, whose knee injury will keep him out the remainder of the season.
Jazz 118, Heat 89 - Deron Williams had 23 points and 10 assists and Carlos Boozer finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds as Utah beat road-weary Miami in Salt Lake City.
Mehmet Okur added 13 points and tied his career high with five blocks.
76ers 96, Hornets 92 - Andre Iguodala and Elton Brand scored 18 points each and Allen Iverson [stats] added 16 as Philadelphia snapped a four-game home losing streak by holding off New Orleans.
Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams added 12 points each for the Sixers, who had lost nine of 10 at home.
Pacers 105, Raptors 101 - At Indianapolis, Danny Granger scored 23 points and Indiana overcame a 23-point deficit against Toronto.
Troy Murphy had 20 points and 16 rebounds for the Pacers, who had lost two straight. It was Indiana’s first win since Granger’s return from a heel injury that had kept him out for a month.
Bulls 120, Pistons 87 - Luol Deng scored 27 points on 13-of-18 shooting and host Chicago handed Detroit its 13th consecutive loss.
Derrick Rose finished with 22 points on 11-of-13 shooting for the Bulls.
Thunder 106, Knicks 88 - Kevin Durant had 30 points and host Oklahoma City won for the eighth time in 10 games by beating New York.
Durant, who entered the game with a 28.7-point average, had 15 in the first quarter as Oklahoma City built a double-digit lead.
Elsewhere in the NBA - Three more members of the Washington Wizards have met with authorities concerning the Gilbert Arenas gun investigation. Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson had to miss practice to answer questions. . . .
Dallas acquired Eduardo Najera from New Jersey in exchange for forwards Kris Humphries and Shawne Williams.
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