Hawks Stun Nets With Hot Finish

Henry James, who didn’t play until the fourth quarter, made seven three-point shots and scored 24 points as the Hawks totaled 48 points in the final period to stun New Jersey, 109-101, Tuesday night at Atlanta.

The victory gave Atlanta a one-game lead on the New York Knicks for third place in the Eastern Conference, which would ensure home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The two teams play tonight at New York.

The Hawks trailed, 80-61, at the end of the third quarter and seemed to be finished. But James then came in to tie the NBA record for three-pointers in a quarter, set this season by teammate Steve Smith, and in a half, even though he played only 10 minutes.

“I thought we needed some energy on the floor when I came in the game,” said James, who has played with six NBA teams during a vagabond career and began this season in the Continental Basketball Association. “I just tried to come out and make things happen. And obviously, the three-pointers were what was happening.”

Seattle 108, San Antonio 88--Gary Payton scored 24 points and Shawn Kemp had 22 points and 12 rebounds as the SuperSonics reclaimed first place in the Pacific Division at Seattle.

The Sonics (55-25) took a half-game lead over the idle Lakers.

Utah 127, Phoenix 122--Karl Malone had 31 points and 11 rebounds, and Jeff Hornacek and John Stockton made key three-point shots down the stretch as the Jazz set a franchise record for victories by beating the Suns at Phoenix.

The win was No. 61 for the Jazz, bettering the 60-22 mark of the 1994-95 team. Phoenix dropped a half-game behind Minnesota for sixth place in the Western Conference.

Jason Kidd led the Suns with 28 points and 11 assists.

Milwaukee 92, Toronto 85--Glenn Robinson scored 19 points and Vin Baker added 17 as the Bucks overcame a bad first half at Milwaukee in beating the Raptors to earn their third consecutive victory.