Kobe Bryant displayed his customary late-game heroics and newfound trust in his teammates to help the Los Angeles Lakers beat the visiting Boston Celtics 97-94 Sunday. In a fourth quarter slugfest that featured 11 lead changes, Bryant made a pull-up that put the home team ahead 95-94 with 42 seconds, then allowed Andrew Bynum to deliver the final basket as the Lakers scored the last eight points to triumph against their long-time NBA rivals. Bryant finished with 26 points and seven assists for Los Angeles (25-16). Andrew Bynum co-starred with 20 points and 14 rebounds while seizing his team's final possession during the critical final seconds that normally belong to Bryant. “Today was just another example of (Kobe) trusting Andrew,” Lakers veteran guard Derek Fisher said. “It's a part of the continued evolution in terms of him doing different things to get us over the top.” Sixers 106, Knicks 94: Lou Williams scored 28 points Sunday to lead Philadelphia to a 106-94 NBA victory over the lackluster New York Knicks, whose dull display sparked the ire of Madison Square Garden fans. After the sensational emergence of point guard Jeremy Lin energized the Knicks and their tough-to-please supporters last month, New York is again floundering. Its loss to the Sixers was its fifth straight defeat. The Knicks, trailing just 51-49 at halftime, gave up a whopping 38 points in the third quarter — which Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni acknowledged “doomed us”. Knicks star Carmelo Anthony started the game strong with 12 first-quarter points. He finished with 22 but ended the game on the bench with Amare Stoudemire. Cavaliers 118, Rockets 107: Antawn Jamison scored 28 points and the rookie Kyrie Irving scored 16 of his 21 points in the final 4:14 for host Cleveland. The Cavaliers, coming off impressive road victories over Denver and Oklahoma City, have moved back into the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference. Warriors 97, Clippers 93: Monta Ellis (21 points, 11 assists) and David Lee (18 points, 10 rebounds) had double-doubles as Golden State won in Los Angeles. Magic 107, Pacers 94: Dwight Howard had 30 points and 13 rebounds, and J. J. Redick added 18 points and a career-high 9 assists as Orlando won at home. The Magic played without starters Hedo Turkoglu and Jason Richardson, but seemed unfazed as they built a 20-point lead in the first half and got 30 points from their reserves. Elsewhere it was: Bucks 105, Raptors 99; Grizzlies 94, Nuggets 91; Hawks 106, Kings 99
