ATLANTA - Bob Sura had 23 points and a career-high 15 rebounds Thursday night, and the Hawks took advantage of the absence of Baron Davis to defeat the Hornets 84-76.
Davis, who leads the team with an average of 23 points, had a sprained left ankle. His status for today's game against Phoenix was uncertain.
Chris Crawford and Jason Collier each scored 16 for Atlanta, which limited New Orleans to 30 second-half points.
Without Davis, the Hornets turned to David Wesley, who scored 32 the last time the teams met. Using his quick first step to create open shots, Wesley scored 10 of New Orleans' first 16 and had 14 in the first half. He did not score again until 5:41 remained in the fourth and finished with 16.
After coming back from a 12-point deficit, the Hawks took their first lead, 47-46, on Jason Terry's 3-pointer as part of a 10-0 run to open the second half. Terry finished with 14 points, 11 in the second half.
Terry and Stephen Jackson each were held to three first-half points for Atlanta, which relied on the scoring of Crawford and Sura. Jackson finished with seven points.
SPURS 84, PISTONS 75: Manu Ginobili scored 14 of his 17 in the second half, and host San Antonio pulled away after the late ejection of Ben Wallace.
Detroit trailed 71-64 when Wallace was called for a loose ball foul with 6:07 remaining. Referee Steve Javie ejected Wallace for heatedly complaining.
Malik Rose hit the free throw, and Hedo Turkoglu followed with a 3-pointer as part of a 6-0 run that put the Spurs ahead by 13. A basket by Tony Parker with 3:55 remaining completed an 18-4 run and gave San Antonio an 82-66 lead.
WIZARDS 103, CLIPPERS 94: Larry Hughes scored 24 of his 30 in the first half, and Washington ended a five-game road losing streak.
Hughes, playing his third game since coming off the injured list, shot 11-for-20 and tied a career high with 12 rebounds to help the Wizards win for the third time in 13 games. They've swept the Clippers in consecutive seasons.
BULLS: Forward Marcus Fizer was activated and forward Paul Shirley was placed on the injured list with a bruised kidney. Chicago signed Shirley and guard Jannero Pargo for the rest of the season.
WILLIAMS TRIAL: A defense firearms expert claimed on the shotgun police say Jayson Williams used to kill his limo driver was tampered with months after the shooting.
"I found evidence that someone had been in the shotgun," Richard Ernest testified at the former All-Star's manslaughter trial in Somerville, N.J.
Ernest said "bright, fresh toolmarks" he found on a bolt in the weapon's butt stock on Nov.19, 2002, convinced him the gun had been "opened up recently" and "had been tampered with."
Ernest accused the prosecution's chief firearms expert of unethical behavior during a second examination June 18, 2003, for supposedly tainting woodchips and other debris that had been recovered from the gun's internal mechanisms.
Ernest said he thought the debris found inside Williams' 10-year-old gun could have caused it to malfunction and discharge without the trigger being pulled.
He added that key internal parts had suffered substantial wear and tear, "making it easier and easier for a malfunction to occur."
The testimony was essential to the defense position that Williams' gun discharged accidentally in his master bedroom Feb.14, 2002, killing driver Costas (Gus) Christofi.
WNBA TRADE: The Connecticut Sun completed a three-way trade with the Washington Mystics and Phoenix Mercury that will bring former UConn star Asjha Jones back to the state. Washington will trade Jones to Connecticut and get Phoenix guard Tamicha Jackson. Phoenix gets the Sun's eighth pick in next month's draft.
