Los Angeles - Seven proved to be a lucky number for the undefeated Los Angeles Lakers, but not for the previously unbeaten Atlanta Hawks. Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher scored 20 points apiece, and Lakers held off the New Orleans Hornets 93-86 on Wednesday night, to become the only unblemished team left in the league.
Spain's Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum added 14 points apiece for the Lakers, whose 7-0 start matches their fastest since the 2001-02 season.
The Lakers built a 23-point cushion that was trimmed to 83-80. However, Bryant buried his only 3-pointer over closely-guarded James Posey with 1:08 remaining that doubled the score.
"I just wanted to shoot it in his face," Bryant said. "I knew I was due."
Fisher and Bryant followed with two free throws apiece to open up a 91-81 advantage with 30 seconds left. Posey's 3-pointer pulled the Hornets within seven. But Bryant sank two more free throws to seal the road win against their Western Conference rivals.
Chris Paul stretched his NBA record streak of 20-point, 10-assist games to start a season to seven, with 30 points and 13 assists for New Orleans (4-3) David West finished with 21 points with 12 rebounds.
Elsewhere:
Boston Celtics 103, Atlanta Hawks 102
Paul Pierce nailed the game-winning jumper with five-tenths of a second left to cap a 34-point performance, and the reigning NBA Champion Celtics handed the Hawks their first loss of the season after six wins.
The Celtics trailed 102-101 after Marvin Williams drilled a 3-pointer from the right corner with 7.4 seconds left.
Following a timeout, Pierce got the ball on the right side and launched his jumper over Al Horford. The Hawks had a final shot to pull out the win, but Mike Bibby bobbled Williams' inbound pass as time expired.
Kevin Garnett collected 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Celtics (8-1) who climbed out of a 16-point second-quarter hole en-route to their sixth straight victory.
Joe Johnson scored 28 points for the Hawks (6-1) who were off to their fastest start since opening the 1997-98 campaign at 11-0.
Washington Wizards 95, Utah Jazz 87
Caron Butler scored 27 points, including the game-sealing 3- pointer with 30 seconds left, giving the host Wizards their first win of the season after five straight losses.
Carlos Boozer topped Utah (6-2) with 20 points.
New York Knicks 132, Memphis Grizzlies 103
Wilson Chandler poured in a career-high 27 points, Jamal Crawford had 25 and the visiting Knicks (5-3) hit a franchise-record 19 3-pointers for their fourth win in the last five games.
Rudy Gay led the Grizzlies (3-6) with 20 points.
Philadelphia 76ers 106, Toronto Raptors 96
Elton Brand scored 25 points and the visiting 76ers snapped their losing streak at three.
Chris Bosh had 30 points with 12 rebounds for Toronto (4-4) which lost Spanish point guard Jose Calderon in the fourth quarter to a left hamstring injury.
Indiana Pacers 98, New Jersey Nets 87
T.J. Ford had 18 points with eight rebounds and nine assists as the visiting Pacers clipped the Nets for their third straight victory.
Vince Carter had 28 points for New Jersey (2-5) which lost its third in a row.
Milwaukee Bucks 82, San Antonio Spurs 78
Richard Jefferson scored 19 points and Australian Andrew Bogut pulled down 17 rebounds as the Bucks beat the short-handed Spurs to break a three-game slide.
Tim Duncan scored 24 points but missed a potential game-tying jumper with five seconds left as San Antonio (2-5) struggles without injured All-Stars Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.
Orlando Magic 109, Oklahoma City 92
Dwight Howard recorded his first career triple-double with 30 points, 19 rebounds and a career-high 10 blocks, as the visiting Magic sent the short-handed Thunder to their fourth straight loss.
Jeff Green had 25 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma City (1-7) which played without its leading scorer Kevin Durant (sore ankle).
Portland Trail Blazers 104, Miami Heat 96
Spanish rookie Rookie Rudy Fernandez fired in 14 of his career- high 25 points in the final quarter, and Brandon Roy added 22 as the visiting Trail Blazers beat the Heat for their fourth straight win.
Dwyane Wade led Miami (4-4) with 36 points.
Houston Rockets 94, Phoenix Suns 82
Tracy McGrady erupted for 22 of his 27 points in the second half, China's Yao Ming had 17 points with 15 rebounds and the Rockets ruined a milestone moment for Shaquille O'Neal.
The Suns centre had 18 points to move past Boston's John Havlicek into 10th place on the NBA all-time scoring list.
Sacramento Kings 103, LA Clippers 98
Beno Udrih scored a career-high 30 points, including a key jumper with 63 seconds left, and the visiting Kings edged the slumping Clippers for their fourth win in five games.
Al Thornton led the Clippers (1-7) with 20 points.
