Kidd Has Last Word for the Nets

Jason Kidd had the pass of the night, an off-the-backboard, alley-oop feed that Vince Carter dunked, and the New Jersey Nets defeated the New York Knicks and their self-proclaimed “best point guard in the NBA,” 93-87, on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.

“It was in college, against Duke, at home -- and I missed it,” Carter said of the last time he had seen such a pass. “I said the next time it ever happened again, I’d take care of it.”

Kidd didn’t outplay point guard counterpart Stephon Marbury, who had made his bold declaration the previous day at practice.

Marbury had 31 points, eight assists and four rebounds to Kidd’s 12 points, three assists and four rebounds, but the Nets led throughout the final three quarters and did what they usually do against their cross-river rivals, beating the Knicks for the 17th time in 20 meetings.

Carter, who assumed the playmaking duties for a large part of the fourth quarter, had 16 points, five assists and six rebounds.

Nazr Mohammed had 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who had their three-game winning streak end.

Marbury’s statement was the talk of Madison Square Garden before tipoff.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love Jason Kidd, he is a great point guard,” Marbury had said. “[But] how am I comparing myself to him when I think I’m the best point guard to play basketball? That makes no sense. I can’t compare myself to somebody when I already think I’m the best.

“I’m telling you what it is. I know I’m the best point guard in the NBA.”

Miami 113, Charlotte 90 -- Dwyane Wade used an array of dunks and a spectacular over-the-shoulder flip to score 26 points at Miami and lead the Heat to its 14th consecutive victory.

Wade made 11 of 16 shots and had nine assists for the Heat, which has the NBA’s longest winning streak this season. Miami (25-7) moved 6 1/2 games ahead of Cleveland for the Eastern Conference’s best record.

The Heat’s winning streak is the NBA’s longest since New Jersey won 14 in a row last season. The last team to win more consecutively was the Lakers, who had a 19-game run during the 1999-2000 season on the way to a championship.

Memphis 104, Minnesota 95 -- The Grizzlies led, 81-76, to start the fourth quarter at Minneapolis and were still ahead by five with 3:20 left when Earl Watson made it 98-90 with his third three-point basket of the quarter. Mike Miller’s three-pointer made it 101-94 with 1:39 left.

Kevin Garnett had 30 points and 10 rebounds for Minnesota, which has lost four of five. Wally Szczerbiak scored 22 points and Sam Cassell had 10 assists but only four points.

Chicago 105, Orlando 90 -- Rookie Luol Deng scored seven consecutive points late in the third quarter to give the Bulls their biggest lead, 82-49.

The Magic lost its third straight and fifth in a row on the road.

Portland 97, Golden State 88 -- Shareef Abdur-Rahim scored 26 points at Portland to help the Trail Blazers end the Warriors’ four-game winning streak.

Both teams were beset by injuries. Golden State guard Jason Richardson and Portland forward Zach Randolph and center Theo Ratliff sat out.