Carter Scorches Heat for 51

Vince Carter tied a career high with 51 points, 37 in the second half, and the New Jersey Nets extended their season-high winning streak to five games with a 95-88 victory over the Heat in Miami on Friday night.

Carter was 13 of 25 from the field and 23 of 24 from the free-throw line -- including 12 straight free throws to secure the win. Jason Kidd added 12 points for the Nets, who beat Miami for the first time in 11 meetings, including a four-game sweep in last season’s playoffs.

Shaquille O’Neal had 24 points and 14 rebounds, and Dwyane Wade added 17 points -- on only four-for-20 shooting -- for Miami, which plays host to the Lakers on Sunday in a much-anticipated Christmas matchup.

Atlanta 111, Philadelphia 108 -- Allen Iverson scored 53 points, the fifth-highest total of his career, but Joe Johnson had 24 to lead Atlanta Hawks at home over the 76ers.

Iverson, who entered with a league-best 33.5 scoring average, had 21 points and six rebounds in the first half. He made 17 of 31 shots from the field and 19 of 21 free throws.

San Antonio 95, Toronto 90 -- Tim Duncan made all four of his fourth-quarter shots and nearly finished with a triple-double to lead the Spurs in San Antonio.

Duncan scored nine of his 27 points in the final quarter and added 10 rebounds and eight assists. Jalen Rose led Toronto with 19 points. Chris Bosh had 18.

Cleveland 94, Indiana 89 -- LeBron James scored a season-low 14 points, but added nine assists and eight rebounds at home as the Cavaliers won their fifth straight game

Drew Gooden added a season-high 21 points and 12 rebounds on a tender ankle for the Cavaliers. Indiana’s Jermaine O’Neal scored a season-high 34 points with 11 rebounds and five blocks.

Detroit 97, Golden State 85 -- Richard Hamilton scored 28 points and Ben Wallace added 15 points and 14 rebounds to help the Pistons in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Rasheed Wallace, whose cousin was killed in a shootout with Philadelphia police Thursday night, had 18 points for Detroit, which won its sixth in a row.

Rookie Ike Diogu had a career-best 27 points for Golden State.

Denver 108, Houston 86 -- Carmelo Anthony scored 25 points and the Nuggets held Tracy McGrady to a single basket over the first three quarters in a victory at Denver that ended a four-game losing streak.

McGrady finished the game with 17 points on four-of-11 shooting.

Dallas 101, Seattle 98 -- Jason Terry made two three-pointers in the final two minutes and the Mavericks rallied from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the SuperSonics in Seattle.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 34 points and 13 rebounds. Terry, a Seattle native, finished with 19 points.

Vladimir Radmanovic led the SuperSonics with 20 off the bench. Ray Allen added 19.

New York 98, Utah 90 -- Jamal Crawford scored 28 points and Stephon Marbury had 22 points and seven assists as the New York Knicks ended a season-high seven-game losing streak with a 98-90 victory in New York.

Gordan Giricek had 19 points and Matt Harpring added 15 for Utah.

Portland 91, Minnesota 83 -- Zach Randolph had 21 points and 10 rebounds, Ruben Patterson added a season-high 23 points and the Trail Blazers earned a victory at Minneapolis.

Portland Coach Nate McMillan was ejected in the third quarter after picking up his second technical foul for arguing offensive foul calls on center Joel Przybilla.

Wally Szczerbiak scored 26 points and Kevin Garnett added 24 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Timberwolves, who scored only 13 points in the final quarter.

Washington 112, Phoenix 111 -- Gilbert Arenas scored 41 points to help the Wizards win at Phoenix.

Steve Nash had 27 points and nine assists for the Suns.

Memphis 95, Chicago 77 -- Mike Miller scored 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Pau Gasol added 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Grizzlies at home.

Andres Nocioni led the Bulls with 14 points.

Milwaukee 101, New Orleans 94 -- Michael Redd scored 14 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Bucks at Milwaukee.

Andrew Bogut added 14 points, T.J. Ford had 12 and Mo Williams 11 for the Bucks. David West led the Hornets with 27 points and a season-high 18 rebounds. Rookie Chris Paul added 24 points.

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Holiday hot shots

NBA players who have scored 50 or more points in a game this month:

62 Kobe Bryant

Dec. 20, Lakers defeated Dallas, 112-90

53 Allen Iverson

Dec. 23, Philadelphia lost at Atlanta, 111-108

52 LeBron James

Dec. 10, Cleveland lost at Milwaukee, 111-106

51 Vince Carter

Dec. 23, New Jersey won at Miami, 95-88