Magic Johnson had 25 points and 10 rebounds Saturday night as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Washington Bullets 87-72 to snap a three-game losing streak.
The 72 points was a season-low for the Bullets, who did not score in the final 5:40 of the game, and did not have a field goal in the final seven minutes.The loss was the Bullets' ninth straight. They have lost their last six home games, matching a franchise record set by the then-Baltimore Bullets in the the 1967-68 season.
Washington has lost its last eight, and 10 of its last 11, against Western Conference teams.
The one win in that span came against Orlando, which is spending this season in the Midwest Division.
The Bullets jumped out to a 14-3 lead, but Johnson led the Lakers to a 22-18 advantage at the end of the quarter. He had 10 points - including a 3-pointer in the final minute - five rebounds and five assists in the opening period.
The Lakers continued to dominate in the second quarter, and built a 40-27 lead before Washington trimmed the margin to 48-38 at halftime.
Washington got no closer than eight points in the third period, and trailed 69-58.
But with Johnson on the bench, Washington outscored the Lakers 12-4 over the first five minutes of the fourth period, cutting the lead to 73-70.
The Lakers kept the ball in Johnson's hands after he returned, and helped by his five free throws Los Angeles built the lead to 83-72 with 2:52 remaining, and was not challenged again.
James Worthy had 14 points for the Lakers, and Vlade Divac and Terry Teagle each added 10. Washington was led by Haywoode Workman, who scored 17.
Pistons 114, Pacers 112
At Indianapolis, Joe Dumars hit a baseline jumper with 2.4 seconds to play to give the Detroit Pistons a 114-112 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
Baskets by Vinnie Johnson and James Edwards gave Detroit a 110-109 lead with 1:07 remaining. Reggie Miller's layup put Indiana back on top, but John Salley's slam restored the Pistons' lead.
Rockets 97, 76ers 80
At Houston, Kenny Smith scored 19, Akeem Olajuwon had 17 and the Houston Rockets held Charles Barkley to 11 in winning their fourth straight game, a triumph over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Vernon Maxwell had 15, Otis Thorpe 14 and Buck Johnson 12 for the Rockets, who won have won 16 of their last 20 and swept a season series from Philadelphia for the first time in their history.
Spurs 112, SuperSonics 99
At San Antonio, Texas, David Robinson put on a typically overpowering performance Saturday night, scoring 30 points, helping San Antonio to a 40-point first period and sending the Spurs rolling past the Seattle SuperSonics, 112-99.
San Antonio built a 17-point lead after one quarter and coasted the rest of the way, allowing the Sonics no closer than the 10-point deficit they faced at halftime.
Hornets 107, Bucks 98
At Milwaukee, Johnny Newman scored 8 of his 27 points in the final 3:40 and the Charlotte Hornets ended a four-game losing streak with a victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
The win was Charlotte's first in Milwaukee in franchise history. The Hornets had lost their first four games at the Bradley Center.
Newman grabbed a key offensive rebound with 1:08 to go and knocked in a 15-footer with 52 seconds left to extend the Hornets' lead to 102-96. He then sank two free throws with 44 seconds to go to make it 104-96.