Nets’ interim coach successful in debut
By The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA – Richard Jefferson and the New Jersey Nets made Lawrence Frank’s first game as interim coach a success.

Jefferson scored 30 points to lead the Nets to a 94-76 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Frank, the 33-year-old former assistant promoted to interim coach after Byron Scott was fired Monday, paced the sideline down to midcourt, flapped his arms and shouted direction the entire game, but he had had little to worry about.

Jason Kidd, whose mid-December screaming match with Scott weakened the coach’s standing in the locker room, had 13 points and 10 assists. Kenyon Martin also scored 13 points.

The Nets opened on a 26-6 run, getting easy alley-oops, reverse layups and fast-break dunks off 11 first-quarter turnovers by the Sixers. Kidd, Martin and Jefferson combined for 22 points in the quarter.

The Sixers had four straight turnovers late in the first quarter, including two straight steals in the backcourt by Kerry Kittles. The Nets had 17 assists on their 18 first-half field goals.

Spurs 77, Knicks 67

NEW YORK – Charlie Ward returned to Madison Square Garden and put the Spurs ahead for good on a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter, and San Antonio avoided another tight finish in a 77-67 victory over New York.

After losing two straight close games – one on a buzzer-beater, the other on a dunk by Tim Duncan that didn’t beat the buzzer in Milwaukee on Monday night, the Spurs controlled the fourth quarter and held the Knicks to a season-low point total.

Duncan had 30 points and 19 rebounds but did little in the fourth quarter, failing to score until 1:01 remained. By then, however, Ward, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili had hit enough timely shots to put the Spurs comfortably ahead.

Suns 89, Hawks 85

ATLANTA – Shawn Marion scored 18 of his 22 points in the second half and the Phoenix Suns snapped a three-game losing streak with an 89-85 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

The Hawks, coming off a 91-82 victory at Detroit on Sunday, have not won consecutive games this season.

Joe Johnson added 20 points for the Suns, Casey Jacobsen had 13, and Howard Eisley scored all of his seven points in the final 3:15. Stephen Jackson led the Hawks with 19 points, and Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Theo Ratliff each had 16 points.

With the score tied at 67, Jacobsen scored on a layup with 6:58 to go to give the Suns the lead for good, although Atlanta got within two points on several occasions.

Leading 75-73, Phoenix got two free throws from Eisley with 3:15 remaining.

After a dunk by Marion made it 79-73, Eisley connected on a 3-pointer with 1:50 left and then added two free throws 23 seconds later. Marion made two free throws with 10.3 seconds left to give the Suns an 87-83 lead.

The Suns, who trailed 42-36 at the half, rallied in the third period. Marion scored 11 of his points in a 22-4 run capped by Jacobsen’s basket for a 60-50 lead with 3:55 left in the third.

Marion, the Suns’ leading scorer and rebounder, had only four points in the opening half, going 1-of-8 from the field. He was 7-of-11 in the second half.

Notes: The Suns shot only 21 percent (4-19) in the first period and trailed 22-14. … The Hawks, 8-13 at home, play their next four games at Philips Arena. … Suns F Amare Stoudemire, averaging 16 points a game, missed his fifth straight game because of a sore left ankle and sore left big toe. … Glover returned after missing the Detroit game Sunday because of a migraine headache. … Hawks coach Terry Stotts became the Eastern Conference coach with the longest tenure when Boston’s Jim O’Brien quit earlier Tuesday. Stotts has been Atlanta’s head coach for 13 months.

AP-ES-01-27-04 2226EST