ATLANTA - Stan Van Gundy's reward for closing out a lengthy trip with a victory?
Another lengthy trip.
With Friday's 106-96 victory over the Hawks, the Heat presented its coach with a trip to the Feb. 20 All-Star Game in Denver to coach the East.
Shandon Anderson scored a season-high 21 as an emergency fill-in for ailing forward Eddie Jones, and the Heat ended its three-game trip by closing out its first 4-0 season sweep of Atlanta.
"We have a lot better players than they do," was Van Gundy's simple summation of the dominance. "It would be a lot harder for them to beat us once, than for us to sweep them. That's just being honest."
SUNS 128, CELTICS 119: Amare Stoudemire scored 42, Quentin Richardson added 23 and Phoenix won its fourth straight. Paul Pierce had 34 for the Celtics, who had won five straight at home.
KNICKS 99, CAVALIERS 96: Penny Hardaway showed no rust in his first game in more than three weeks, making a key jumper with 36 seconds remaining to lead host New York. Activated from the injured list prior to the game, Hardaway scored 12 and was on the court for most of the fourth quarter as the Knicks held off the Cavs, who were without injured LeBron James.
BOBCATS 101, RAPTORS 94: Kareem Rush scored 21 and host Charlotte finally figured out how to make foul shots to snap a 10-game losing streak. Awful at the line during its skid, Charlotte made 17-of-19 in winning for the first time since Jan. 5. The Bobcats' only misses came in the final minute.
T'WOLVES 93, JAZZ 91: Kevin Garnett scored 25 and made a key steal in the final minute to help host Minnesota to its fifth straight victory. After trailing much of the game, the Wolves came alive late in the third quarter to erase a 16-point deficit.
HORNETS 99, 76ERS 95 (OT): P.J. Brown scored six of his season-high 20 in overtime and hit a pair of free throws in the final minute to seal New Orleans' fourth victory in five home games.
NUGGETS 106, BUCKS 100: George Karl made a triumphant return to the NBA, as Carmelo Anthony scored 25 and visiting Denver overcame a 14-point deficit to snap a three-game losing streak.
BLAZERS 90, CLIPPERS 86: Damon Stoudamire had 18 of his 22 in the second half, and host Portland won despite Darius Miles' suspension. Miles was suspended by the team for two games after a verbal clash with coach Maurice Cheeks.
KINGS 117, ROCKETS 111 (OT): Chris Webber scored 30 points, including a 3-pointer to force overtime, and Sacramento Kings beat host Houston. Mike Bibby added 28 points and 14 assists for the Kings.
