Hot-Shooting Grizzlies Finally Defeat the Jazz

If Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Mike Bibby continue to shoot the way they did Wednesday night, the Vancouver Grizzlies might never lose again to the Utah Jazz.

Abdur-Rahim scored 30 points and Bibby added 28 at Salt Lake City as the Grizzlies snapped a six-game losing streak and won, 116-99, for their first victory over the Jazz in 18 tries.

“This is the first night we really got it going on the same night,” Abdur-Rahim said. “With a team like the Jazz, we knew we had to get it going early and keep it going all night long.”

Abdur-Rahim made 13 of 23 shots and Bibby was 11 for 15, adding 11 assists.

The game was tied 26-26 at the end of the first quarter before Abdur-Rahim led a second-quarter charge.

His breakaway dunk with 1:50 remaining in the half helped Vancouver to a 55-43 lead at the break. Vancouver continued to pour it on in the second half and finished at 57% (45 of 79) from the field.

Utah’s Karl Malone battled foul trouble and was held to three points in the first half and finished with 13. Bryon Russell led the Jazz with 16 points.

Seattle 95, New Jersey 92--Chuck Person inbounded the ball, got it back and made a three-point shot--all in the final 1.7 seconds--to give the SuperSonics a victory at Seattle.

Person got the return pass from Emanual Davis and score on his only shot.

Vin Baker led the SuperSonics with 23 points.

Kendall Gill tied the game for New Jersey on a 23-foot jumper with 34.9 seconds left.

Stephon Marbury scored 24 points for the Nets, but had two costly late turnovers.

Milwaukee 112, Sacramento 104--Ray Allen had 22 points as the Bucks used a 24-7 run spanning the second and third quarters to stop the Kings at Milwaukee.

Chris Webber was ejected in the third quarter for cursing referee Bill Spooner after a series of calls went against the Kings.

Nick Anderson led the Kings with 24 points.

Orlando 111, Boston 89--Tariq Abdul-Wahad scored 19 points to lead four starters in double figures at Orlando, Fla., as the Magic outscored the Celtics, 35-17, in the third quarter.

Orlando shot 60% from the field to win its third straight.

Boston’s Antoine Walker had a game-high 26 points as the Celtics played without Paul Pierce (sore hamstring).

Toronto 120, Washington 105--Vince Carter survived a hard foul by Juwan Howard and scored 26 points on his 23rd birthday as the Raptors won at Toronto.

Carter, who scored 12 points in the third quarter as the Raptors went on a 24-5 run, was clotheslined by Howard late in the run as he went up for an alley-oop dunk.

Carter later converted a spectacular alley-oop on a pass from Tracy McGrady to give the Raptors a 111-90 lead.

Howard led Washington with 22 points.

Phoenix 93, Philadelphia 87--Penny Hardaway, in his third game back from the injured list, had a season-high 27 points and Clifford Robinson scored six of his 19 points in the final two minutes of the Suns’ victory at Philadelphia.

Allen Iverson had 18 points, but missed his last nine shots, including seven in the final quarter.

Around the League

Michael Jordan made contact with the Milwaukee Bucks after his failed takeover of the Charlotte Hornets last year but before his recent appointment as part owner and president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. . . . San Antonio’s Sean Elliott moved closer to returning to the NBA when his doctors met with Spur Coach Gregg Popovich about the forward’s recovery from a kidney transplant. Elliott’s kidney specialists will keep meeting with doctors and coaches of the Spurs to work toward Elliott’s medical clearance for contact practices, possibly by Tuesday. . . . Cleveland Cavalier reserve forward Ryan Stack, sent home from the team’s recent West Coast trip after nearly fainting on the bench before a game in Portland, was activated. Stack said he is taking medication for a thyroid problem. Meanwhile, Cavalier center Zydrunas Ilgauskas had two screws inserted in his painful left foot and, as first announced last week, will miss the rest of the season.