Barbosa, Suns have a blast against Rockets

With Houston’s Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming struggling, Leandro Barbosa matched his career best with his second 32-point effort in three games and the Suns improved to 10-1 since the All-Star break with a 103-82 victory over the Rockets on Monday night at Phoenix.

Shawn Marion had 14 points, 15 rebounds, three blocked shots and two steals for the Suns, who beat Houston for the sixth time in a row, third this season.

Barbosa made 12 of 18 shots, including five of six three-point attempts.

Suns Coach Mike D’Antoni wasn’t around for the end of his 200th NBA career victory. He drew two quick technical fouls from referee Ron Olesiak with 5:28 left in the third quarter for his first ejection in two seasons.

McGrady, defended mostly by Marion, scored 19 points on eight-for-28 shooting. Yao, who usually struggles against the fast-paced Suns, had 10 points on one-for-nine shooting.

Toronto 108, Milwaukee 93 -- The Raptors took a 20-point first-half lead at Milwaukee en route to winning the season series, 3-1, for the first time.

Chris Bosh scored 25 points and T.J. Ford had 19 points and nine assists in his second game in Milwaukee since being traded to Toronto in the off-season.

Michael Redd had 29 points for the Bucks.

New Jersey 113, Memphis 102 -- The Nets led by as many as 18 points in the second half at Memphis, Tenn., in ending a five-game losing streak.

Vince Carter scored 30 points and Mikki Moore had a career-high 24 for New Jersey, which is 1-4 on a six-game trip. Pau Gasol scored 19 points for Memphis, which remained the only team in the league without consecutive wins.

Charlotte 119, Orlando 108 -- The Bobcats ended an eight-game losing streak by finishing with a team-record 14 three-pointers and 39 assists.

Derek Anderson had 24 points and 10 assists for Charlotte. Dwight Howard had 26 points for the Magic, which has lost 10 of its last 12 and is 16-32 since a 13-4 start.

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Isiah Thomas, the New York Knicks’ coach and president, received a multiyear contract extension, nine months after he was warned by Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan that the team needed to show “evident progress” this season for him to keep his job.

Contract terms were not disclosed. The Knicks, 23-59 last season under Larry Brown, are 29-34 and in the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot.