PHOENIX – Leandro Barbosa scored 14 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and the Phoenix Suns held off the pesky Boston Celtics 118-108 on Wednesday night.

Amare Stoudemire had 32 points and 12 rebounds, but scored only two points in the fourth quarter as the Suns struggled to avoid a fourth consecutive home loss.

Barbosa was 6-of-7 on 3-pointers, all in the second half. Raja Bell added 20 points and Shawn Marion 17, nine in the fourth quarter when the Suns finally pulled away.

Three players topped 20 points for the Celtics, who lost their 10th in a row on the road and 20th in 21 games overall. Paul Pierce scored 24, Al Jefferson 23 and Ryan Gomes 21. Delonte West added 17 points for Boston.

The Celtics, meanwhile, became the second team in the NBA to lose 40 games this season. Memphis was the first.

Spurs 103, Hawks 96

ATLANTA – Manu Ginobili scored a season-high 40 points, including 24 straight for San Antonio in the first half, and Tim Duncan had 30 to help the Spurs beat the Atlanta Hawks 103-96 on Wednesday night.

The Spurs, who are 81/2 games behind Dallas in the Southwest Division, have won four straight after losing four of five.

Entering the game late in the first quarter, Ginobili missed his first two shots before hitting eight in a row from the field and all seven attempts on free throws.

Cavaliers 86, Raptors 85

TORONTO – LeBron James scored 29 points, and Anderson Varejao dunked teammate Sasha Pavlovic’s missed shot with 16 seconds left to lift Cleveland over Toronto.

Varejao had 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who moved three games ahead of Toronto in the Eastern Conference standings.

Hornets 111, Nets 107

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – David West scored a season-high 32 points and Chris Paul added 19 points and 11 assists to lead New Orleans over New Jersey.

The Hornets overcame a season-high 46 points from Vince Carter, who along with teammate Jason Kidd has been the subject of persistent trade rumors as Thursday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline approaches.

Kidd struggled from the field in what could have been his final game with the Nets, missing nine of his first 10 shots and finishing 2-for-14 in one of his worst outings this year.

Two of his misses came on 3-pointers in the final minute with New Jersey trailing 105-101.

New Orleans won for the fifth time in seven games. New Jersey dropped its third straight but remained a game ahead of New York for the ninth spot in the East.

Pistons 110, Magic 88

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Chris Webber and Richard Hamilton each scored 18 points, and Detroit beat Orlando for its ninth win in 10 games.

Darko Milicic, picked No. 2 overall by the Pistons in 2003 over Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, was loudly booed in his return to the Palace. Milicic was traded to Orlando last season.

after averaging fewer than two points in two-plus seasons in Detroit.

Webber, limited to 22 minutes by a first-quarter eye injury, went 8-for-10 from the floor, while Hamilton and Chauncey Billups combined for 35 points on 21 shots.

Dwight Howard had 26 points and 15 rebounds for the Magic, but only two other players reached double figures in Orlando’s sixth straight road loss.

76ers 104, Knicks 84

PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Kyle Korver made six 3-pointers and matched a career high with 31 points to lead Philadelphia.

Andre Miller scored 19 points, Joe Smith had 14 and Steven Hunter 11 for the Sixers, who finished 3-4 on their season-high, seven-game homestand.

Eddy Curry had 22 points and Jamal Crawford 14 for the Knicks, who beat Orlando a night earlier.

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AP-ES-02-21-07 2231EST