National Basketball Association News Blog @newzblogz.com

Satellite broadband company WildBlue Communications Inc. said Tuesday it turned on for the first time its own satellite, greatly expanding its capacity.

The Denver-based company provides broadband Internet access to rural U.S. homes and businesses, using available capacity on a Canadian TV satellite to beam to dishes similar to those used for TV service.

WildBlue had filled up all available subscriber slots in many parts of the country, particularly in coastal states. The new satellite, WildBlue-1, will let the company accept new subscribers in those areas.

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What a day it was at Richards High School in Oak Lawn on Monday. There on a stage in the school's gym speaking to an assembly of students was Academy Award-winning singer Jennifer Hudson ("Dreamgirls"). That was followed by a performance by Grammy Award-winning recording artist Kanye West.

But the biggest star of the show, both literally and figuratively, was a 2000 graduate of Richards who's made quite a name for himself since leaving the school. That person is Dwyane Wade, a star in the National Basketball Association who led the Miami Heat to the league's championship last season and was named most valuable player in the championship series.

Wade couldn't be at the festivities. He's recovering from a severe shoulder injury. But through the wonders of electronics, the students could see Wade on a 200-inch video screen set up in the gym. From Florida, he could see what was going on at his old school.

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Baltimore vs St. Louis at Jupiter, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Boston vs Pittsburgh at Bradenton, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Cincinnati vs Minnesota at Fort Myers, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

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Dwyane Wade's fame and fortune in the National Basketball Association,

coupled with his association with a major cellular telephone service provider,

paid big dividends for his high school alma mater Monday.

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Dwyane Wade's fame and fortune in the National Basketball Association, coupled with his association with a major cellular telephone service provider, paid big dividends for his high school alma mater Monday.

Wade, in his fourth season with the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat, joined T-Mobile USA Inc. representatives in announcing plans to remodel the gymnasium at Richards High School in Oak Lawn.

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SEATTLE — A bid by the city's oldest major pro sports team for taxpayer funding to build a new arena has hit a snag over gay politics.

The SuperSonics, celebrating 40 years in the NBA this year, have asked the Legislature for a $300 million tax subsidy for a new home in suburban Renton. Team officials have threatened to move the Sonics, and the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association, if public financing is denied.

A subsidy bill faced an uncertain fate even before reports surfaced last month, first in The Seattle Times, that two of the teams' out-of-state minority owners have been big contributors to a national group that opposes same-sex marriage.

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Ticketmaster is announcing a deal today to purchase Echomusic, a Nashville-based entertainment marketing company that powers fan Web sites for more than 300 clients, including Kelly Clarkson, Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban.The two companies said they plan to keep Echomusic's management in place, including CEO Mark Montgomery and Chief Operating Officer Neil Einstman, who together co-founded the company in 1999, as well as add about 13 or 14 staff positions over the next nine months.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed."At Ticketmaster, we've been very interested in expanding the offerings we provide to our clients," said Sean Moriarty, president and CEO of West Hollywood, Calif.-based Ticketmaster, part of Barry Diller's InterActiveCorp, which also owns online services such as Match.com and Citysearch."There's no question that there will be a broad application of what Echomusic does within Ticketmaster and across the rest of InterActiveCorp," Moriarty said, expla...

Artists, fans to benefit

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San Jose Vice Mayor Dave Cortese thought he was enjoying a nice, private dinner with some Vietnamese community leaders about a week ago when he made a little statement about his future.

Cortese let slip that he plans to run for the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors next year. The second-generation politician confirmed that to IA - but said he wasn't planning to make a formal announcement for a week or so.

Cortese aims to run in District 3, the spot currently held by Pete McHugh, whose term ends next year.

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Ohio State University needs to ensure that more of its majorsport athletes graduate. So, the university neednt apologize for spending generously to tutor athletes and guide them through their schedules. Athletics Director Gene Smith rightly wants to channel some of the millions the athletes efforts generate for Ohio State into services that can help them leave the university with academic degrees. The stereotype of the coddled athlete, his homework done by others and his grades inflated to keep ...

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TORONTO Call this the city of all seasons. And nowhere is that more apparent than spring in Toronto, where the chilly ice warriors meet the boys of summer.During April, three professional sports teams Blue Jays baseball, Maple Leafs hockey and Raptors basketball are at play in Toronto, all within a few blocks of each other.

Fill your other down time with a spa experience and shopping, both boosted by a beneficial exchange rate.Toronto has a mild late winter for Canada, since its climate is tempered along the Great Lakes on the same latitude as northern California.You'll be well-insulated, too, if you do as the 4.7 million Torontoans do by taking the underground walkway, The PATH, that leads to about 16 miles of subterranean shopping and services around the six-story Toronto Eaton Centre. You can also board heated buses by the Toronto Transit Commission or enclosed "red rocket" streetcars.

Catch baseball, basketball and hockey action

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Students of the Week are honored with certificates, T-shirts and a $30 gift certificate to Outback Steakhouse in College Station.

Daniel Hsieh

School: A&M Consolidated Middle School.

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In a dimly lit gymnasium, Adam Silver of Boca Raton steps up to the free throw line.

He bounces the basketball several times.  Then, he taps his feet in a quick, almost imperceptible motion.

He tosses the ball toward the hoop.  Swish.

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NBA star Jason Richardson will hit the greens while donating some greenbacks.

The Saginaw native and Golden State Warriors basketball player has agreed to underwrite the cost of a charity golf event that this year will bear his name -- saving the United Way of Saginaw County as much as $15,000.

The Jason Richardson Golf Classic tees off Wednesday, July 18, at The Fortress, 950 Flint in Frankenmuth. The cost is $400 per foursome or $125 for individuals. For information, call 755-0505.

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BALTIMORE ORIOLESAgreed to terms with 2B Brian Roberts on a two-year contract extension through 2009.

CHICAGO WHITE SOXAssigned C Cole Armstrong, LHP Lance Broadway, C Donny Lucy, LHP Corwin Malone, INF Junior Spivey and LHP Wes Whisler to their minor league camp. Optioned INF Andy Gonzalez, INF Pedro Lopez, LHP Heath Phillips, LHP Paulino Reynoso and INF Casey Rogowski to Charlotte of the IL and RHP Dewon Day, RHP Oneli Perez and LHP Carlos Vasquez to Birmingham of the SL.

NEW YORK YANKEESReassigned RHP Phil Hughes, RHP Matt DeSalvo and RHP Ross Ohlendorf to their minor league camp.

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Consumers of all ages will have a chance to express themselves and create some memories when national retailer Build-A-Bear Workshop opens its first El Paso store on May 4 at Cielo Vista Mall.

Build-A-Bear allows customers to create their own stuffed animal and equip it with accessories, clothes and other items that can express their personality.

"You can buy a stuffed animal from many other places, but at Build-A-Bear Workshop, children of all ages, whether you're 3 or 103, can put their creativity into it," company President Scott Seay said.

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The programs put together by the Mineral Wells Parks and Recreation Department offer more than an outlet for energetic youth; it?s a chance to be recognized as two local residents were honored recently for their basketball skills during last year?s season.

Parks and Recreation Superintendent Donnie Hoover told the department?s advisory board they had two individuals who excelled last year and received recognition from the Junior National Basketball Association and Junior Women?s National Basketball Association.

Seventh-grader Aaron Doyle ?started in our league when he was 8,? said Hoover. He noted that Aaron averaged 11 points per game, 10 rebounds per game and five assists per game.

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FORT COLLINS -- When the National Women's Basketball League put the skids on its organization last season, many thought the Fort Collins-based Colorado Chill team was put on ice indefinitely.

But Thursday, Dave King, owner of Triple Crown Sports and the Chill, announced he was bringing the team back.

Only this time around, as a Women's National Basketball Association team.

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GARYPost office hosts eBay seminarThe Gary Main Post Office, 1499 Martin Luther King Dr., will host an eBay day today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.The event will include seminars, demonstrations, handouts, CDs and information cards designed to help consumers aware of the shipping options the U.S. Postal Service offers to eBay users.There is no cost to attend.For more information, call Cynthia Norfolk at (219) 886-8016.INDIANAPOLISDaniels renews commitment to 'Buy Indiana'State government has made sweep...

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The Colorado Chill could be making a comeback, this time playing in the big leagues as part of the Women's National Basketball Association.

Dave King, CEO of Triple Crown Sports, has secured $11 million of the $15 million required for WNBA franchise ownership and hopes to have the rest by September. If that happens, the Chill could begin play as soon as May 2008.

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Digital video recorders, which transformed television watching for millions of households, are undergoing a makeover as they become a major weapon wielded by cable, satellite and telephone companies in their battle for market share in the pay-TV business.

Telecom companies are adding a range of new features to the devices, which were originally launched in the late 1990s by TiVo Inc. and gained popularity for their ability to let people record and pause live TV. Users can now do such other things as program their DVR from afar by cellphone or computer to record a favorite show. Some recorders also now allow viewers to download content off the Internet or record a show in one room and watch it on a TV in another.

The competition is heating up thanks in part to technological advances that allow phone, TV and Internet features to be combined. The speed with which the DVR is morphing also reflects the growing importance of new technology in the pay-TV business as the market becomes saturated and telephone companies emerge as new competitors.

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Washington vs Cleveland at Winter Haven, Fla., 12:35 p.m.

Boston vs L.A. Dodgers at Vero Beach, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Minnesota vs Baltimore at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

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"The As If Body Loop," which opens this week at the Humana Festival of New American Plays, contrasts the ingrained American myth of the individual -- the "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps" view -- with the notion of sharing responsibility for each other.

Playwright Ken Weitzman attributes the idea for his comedy -- about a woman afflicted with a mysterious, icy illness whose family must save the world to save her -- to his wife, Amy Cook, a theater director and professor at Emory University.

Cook's area of study involves examining works of theater using neurobiological knowledge about how humans learn and use language and experience live performances. She told Weitzman about the "as if body loop" theory of neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, director of the Brain and Creativity Institute at the University of Southern California.

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The former owner of the Colorado Chill, the state’s last foray into women’s professional basketball, is in negotiations with the Women’s National Basketball Association to bring a pro franchise back to Colorado in 2008.

Colorado is not alone in its pursuit of a WNBA team, though.

Atlanta announced a couple weeks ago that it is pursuing a team, and when the Charlotte Sting folded its operations in January, another Charlotte group and an outside group sought unsuccessfully to buy that franchise.

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Foyle, who migrated at age 15 to the U.S. from the tiny Caribbean island of Canouan, said he wanted to become a citizen of the country in which he has invested so much, and which has invested so much in him.

"I come from humble beginnings. When you look back on that, and come to where we are now, it has been a truly amazing journey," said the soft-spoken, engaging 32-year-old.

Foyle, who may have a gift for understatement, said his journey to becoming an American was likely different from others attending the ceremony. It may, in fact, be a singularly unlikely story among the collection of unlikely stories that make up the American experience.

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SAN FRANCISCO, March 13 — Since it bought YouTube last October, Google has been chasing deals that would give it the right to put mainstream video programming on the site. Just a few weeks ago, Google’s chief executive, Eric E. Schmidt, seemed confident that this courtship of old-line media companies would prove fruitful.

“These things take time,” Mr. Schmidt said in an interview. “There is lots and lots of talking and we have not hit any walls.”

Now Google has hit a wall.

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Baltimore vs Minnesota at Fort Myers, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Cincinnati (ss) vs Pittsburgh (ss) at Bradenton, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Florida vs Houston at Kissimmee, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

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Tomasz Kwiatkowski, a 7-foot, 245-pound Polish native from Lee Academy in Maine, said he has committed to play basketball at SMU.

The first day he can sign a letter of intent is April 11.

Coach Matt Doherty signed five players during November's early signing period and still has one scholarship to give.

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Milwaukee Bucks management was grading Terry Stotts on a curve because he had to handle so many key injuries this season. That still wasn't enough for him to keep his job.

The Bucks fired Stotts on Wednesday after less than two full seasons with the team. Milwaukee is last in the Central Division at 23-41 and among the NBA's worst defensive teams.

"Terry has done the best he could in a difficult situation, especially with all of our injuries," general manager Larry Harris said. "I felt it was in the best interest of our organization to make the decision now and move forward, rather than wait until the end of the regular season."

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IN AND AROUND THE National Basketball Association, Adonal Foyle is know as one of the true class guys. The 6-foot-10-inch center for the Golden State Warriors is bright, articulate, interested in -- and knowledgeable about -- world affairs and has a passion for charity.

But now he is something else: an American citizen. On Tuesday, Foyle was one of 1,151 people who took the oath as new citizens. It clearly was one of his proudest moments.

It was a long and unlikely road from the tiny Caribbean island of Canuoan that had 500 people and no running water or electricity to the bright lights of the NBA and, finally, to the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco.

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Note: Split-squad games count in the standings; games against non-major league teams do not.

Wednesday's results

N.Y. Yankees 4, TWINS 1

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YouTube.com as it is to find a pair of ladies' shoes at Nordstrom.

Millions of Internet users regularly turn to YouTube to catch the latest

political riff from Stephen Colbert or a memorable yet vile song from "South

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Baltimore vs Florida at Jupiter, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Boston vs Toronto at Dunedin, Fla., 1:05 p.m.

Detroit vs L.A. Dodgers at Vero Beach, Fla.,, 1:05 p.m.

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St. Louis 3, Atlanta 1 F

Pittsburgh 6, Cleveland 1 F

Detroit 3, Tampa Bay 2 F

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National Basketball Association Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson and his partner, Canyon Capital Realty Advisors, will provide $12.4 million in financing for 130 condominiums in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.

Green Street Development is building the six-story project with a pool, library and gym at 110 Green Street, two blocks from the East River separating Brooklyn from Manhattan. The Bank of New York is providing a $41 million senior loan for the project, according to a statement from Johnson's Los Angeles-based joint venture, the Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund.

The project is Canyon-Johnson's fifth in New York, bringing its total investment in the city to $105 million. The fund has $1 billion in equity invested in real estate.

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HOUSTON (82): Battier 3-4 0-0 7, Hayes 5-8 3-4 13, Yao 1-9 8-9 10, McGrady 8-28 2-5 19, Alston 3-14 0-0 7, Head 5-13 0-0 12, Howard 7-7 0-0 14, Mutombo 0-0 0-0 0, Lucas 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 32-83 13-18 82.

PHOENIX (103): Diaw 7-12 1-2 15, Marion 6-13 1-2 14, Stoudemire 6-15 0-0 12, Bell 2-8 2-2 7, Nash 4-7 1-2 10, Barbosa 12-18 3-3 32, Thomas 1-4 0-0 2, Ja.Jones 5-7 0-0 11, Piatkowski 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 43-86 8-11 103.

Houston 20 22 24 16 - 82

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An Indianapolis Colts plaque, a San Francisco 49ers football, dozens of autographed pictures. Now it all has to go.

An auction will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Paramount Theatre Centre to help the Good family of Anderson raise funds to pay for a seizure-alert dog, training and veterinarian bills. Daniel Good, 7, suffers from a life-threatening seizure disorder.

“We have an autographed picture of Jermaine O’Neal with a letter of authenticity,” said Edward Good, adding they also will be auctioning much more sports memorabilia including movie passes, restaurant gift certificates and sporting events.

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BASEBALL American League LOS ANGELES ANGELS-Assigned C Brenton Del Chiaro, RHP Tommy Mendoza and RHP Robert Mosebach to their minor league camp. National League CINCINNATI REDS-Agreed to terms with RHP Matt Belisle, RHP Todd Coffey, LHP Bobby Livingston and RHP Gary Majewski on one-year contracts. Renewed the contract of 2B Brandon Phillips. MILWAUKEE BREWERS-Returned RHP Luis Pena and RHP Vince Perkins to their minor league camp. Optioned RHP Marino Salas to Nashville of the PCL and RHP Mike Jo...

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State and local officials are scrambling to meet this week with Penguins team owners -- even as the NHL franchise starts making good on a promise to aggressively look for a new hometown.

Gov. Ed Rendell's office reached out Tuesday to team owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, seeking to set up his first face-to-face meeting with them since Jan. 18. The two sides tentatively agreed to meet Thursday in Philadelphia.

The state has put an "extremely attractive offer on the table," said Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo. Later, Rendell told reporters he would seek help from the National Hockey League if needed.

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State and local officials are scrambling to meet this week with Penguins team owners -- even as the NHL franchise starts making good on a promise to aggressively look for a new hometown.

Gov. Ed Rendell's office reached out Tuesday to team owners Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, seeking to set up his first face-to-face meeting with them since Jan. 18. The two sides tentatively agreed to meet Thursday in Philadelphia.

The state has put an "extremely attractive offer on the table," said Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo. Later, Rendell told reporters he would seek help from the National Hockey League if needed.

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The calm of a country morning -- and a Hummer's windshield -- were shattered in rural Loomis on Monday in a wild incident that ended with the arrest of Sacramento Kings star Ron Artest on a domestic violence charge.

The allegation -- that Artest shoved a woman repeatedly to the floor and then used force to stop her from reporting the crime -- led to his being removed indefinitely from the team as the Kings fight for a spot in the National Basketball Association playoffs. He will continue to be paid his $7.15 million salary for this year.

Artest was released on $50,000 bail after spending several hours in the Placer County jail in Auburn. He will be arraigned at 8:30 a.m. March 22 in Placer Superior Court.

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WASHINGTON — In the few months since Google paid $1.65 billion to buy YouTube, both companies have tried to come up with a formula to turn the hugely popular online video site into a moneymaking venture.

Turns out, it's not easy.

Google moved some of its top executives to YouTube to reach deals with media companies to put their videos on the Web site and share ad revenue, but at least one major deal recently fell through.

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This week's column is a collection of odds and ends from a tech reporter's inbox. Let's start with the odd.

Everything iPod

The iPod continues to push our culture forward in significant ways. No longer is bringing reading material to the bathroom enough; now you can have a soundtrack.

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Bill Davidson knows only one way to run a business properly: Play to win. Compete vigorously every day. And don't take any nonsense from anybody.

For running his basketball teams, the Detroit Pistons and Detroit Shock, the way he built the glass manufacturer Guardian Industries Corp. -- with daring, competitive zeal and common sense instead of nonsense -- Davidson was nominated for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. If he wins at least 18 of 24 votes from the hall's electors, his selection will be announced April 2 and he'll be enshrined in September.

Advertisement

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Google Inc. may be frustrated in efforts to reach comprehensive deals with major media companies such as NBC or Viacom Inc. to put their videos on YouTube, but it is signing up hundreds of smaller media partners, The New York Times reported on Friday.

Without specifying how many of those deals have been signed since their site was acquired by Google last fall, YouTube officials say they are adding more than 200 mostly small media compamies or sites a quarter, according to the Times.

Some of the partnerships have been announced publicly. On Monday, for instance, YouTube said that it had teamed up with the National Basketball Association to create a channel where the league would show authorized clips and where fans could upload short videos showcasing their best moves.

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The following statement was released Thursday morning by Vulcan Inc., the company that owns the Portland Trail Blazers:

Vulcan Inc. announced today that Tod Leiweke will assume management oversight for Trail Blazers Inc., which operates the Portland Trail Blazers franchise in the National Basketball Association. It was also announced that Steve Patterson has resigned as President and General Manager of the Portland Trail Blazers, effective immediately. Mr. Leiweke announced that an immediate search would be conducted to name a team General Manager and find a new Pr...

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Philadelphia, PA -- (Sports Network) - Andre Iguodala finished with 24 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, as the Philadelphia 76ers kept Phoenix from an historic feat with a 99-94 win at the Wachovia Center. Willie Green scored 20 points and gathered six rebounds while Kyle Korver donated 16 points for the Sixers, who have won the first two installments of a six-game homestand. Amare Stoudemire had 31 points and 13 boards for the Suns, who were looking to become the ...

Final Score: Miami 92, Washington 83

Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Shaquille O'Neal scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Miami Heat held off the Washington Wizards, 92-83, at the Verizon Center. Jason Williams added 23 points for Miami, which has won two of its last three games. Udonis Haslem chipped in with 12 points and 16 boards for the Heat, who are 2-2 since Dwyane Wade's injury. DeShawn Stevenson deposited 19 points for Washington, which has lost four straight games. Gilbert Arenas s...

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