Dirk Nowitzki moved past Shaquille O'Neal into sixth place on the NBA's career scoring list, then made the go-ahead basket with 19.2 seconds left in overtime to give the Dallas Mavericks a 119-118 victory over the Brooklyn Nets Wednesday. Nowitzki will have plenty of time to think about what it means to pass O'Neal, a longtime rival who beat him in the 2006 NBA Finals. But Wednesday, the most important thing for the German was getting a win. "That's what I play for, is to compete at the highest level for this franchise, for this team," Nowitzki said. "No. 6 in the bigger picture is a lot bigger than this win in Brooklyn in December, but when you're out there you don't think about that. You want to get this win bad and fight out there against a talented team." Nowitzki came in needing 10 points to pass the 28,596 O'Neal scored in a career that could be capped with an induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame next year. Nowitzki is sure to get there someday, too, whenever he ends a career that saw him redefine the power forward position. Nowitzki is eighth on the combined NBA-ABA scoring list, behind No. 6 Julius Erving and No. 7 Moses Malone. Cavaliers 91, Knicks 84 Kevin Love had 23 points and 13 rebounds, and LeBron James added 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists to lead Cleveland past New York. The Knicks were playing without Carmelo Anthony (sprained right ankle), but they still nearly pulled off the upset thanks to 23 points and 13 rebounds from rookie Kristaps Porzingis. Cleveland's Kyrie Irving had five points and four assists on 1-of-7 shooting from the field in 20 minutes. It marked his second game back from a fractured kneecap. Celtics 102, Hornets 89 Kelly Olynyk scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and Jae Crowder had 19 points and 11 rebounds as Boston beat Charlotte. The Celtics never trailed and they led by as many as 20 points in the second half. They were on top by seven at halftime, then blew the game open by going on a 23-10 run to open the third quarter. Magic 104, Rockets 101 Nikola Vucevic scored 21 points and grabbed six rebounds, leading Orlando past Houston. The Magic won for the fifth time in six games, and they snapped the Rockets' three-game winning streak. James Harden finished with 31 points and seven assists, and Dwight Howard had 12 points and seven rebounds for the Rockets. Kings 108, Pacers 106 DeMarcus Cousins (25 points, 16 rebounds) sank two free throws with 1:05 remaining, and Sacramento defeated Indiana. A Monta Ellis three-pointer with 2:05 remaining gave Indiana a 106-104 lead after the Pacers trailing by 15 at halftime, but a Rudy Gay jumper with 1:31 left tied it at 106, and the Kings won it on Cousins' free throws. Wizards 100, Grizzlies 91 Garrett Temple continued his surprising scoring surge with 20 points, John Wall had 14 points and 14 assists, and Washington won its third consecutive game. Marcin Gortat had 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Wizards, who swept their three-game homestand. Hawks 107, Pistons 100 The Hawks' strategy of repeatedly fouling Detroit center Andre Drummond worked, forcing Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy to take his big man off the floor for stretches and changing the flow of the game. Jeff Teague scored 23 points and handed out nine assists, and the Hawks used a big second-quarter run with Drummond on the bench to take command in a win over the Pistons. Drummond finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds, but he hit just seven of 18 foul shots. In other games it was: Pelicans 115, Trail Blazers 89; Spurs 108, Timberwolves 83; Bucks 113, 76ers 100; Nuggets 104, Suns 96; Warriors 103, Jazz 85; Thunder 120, Lakers 85.
