Miami Heat off the mark

PHILADELPHIA (AP):

Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh have their first win with Miami, and the Big Three got help from some big threes in the Heat's 97-87 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night.

Playing with purpose a night after an 88-80 loss in a hyped showdown with Boston, the three looked as if they still needed some games to get used to playing with each other. Only Wade, with 30 points, looked particularly sharp against the Sixers. The Heat hit three straight three-pointers in the third quarter to bust open an eight-point half-time lead.

James scored 16 points and Bosh had 15.

James and the Heat just couldn't squash the Sixers, who went on a 15-3 run late in the fourth to make it surprisingly competitive.

Cavaliers 95 Celtics 87

CLEVELAND (AP):

Playing its first game in seven years without LeBron James, the Cleveland Cavaliers stunned the Celtics in their season opener, a win that at least for one night gave local fans reason to believe that life will be okay minus the two-time MVP.

J.J. Hickson scored 21 points, Daniel Gibson added 16 - all in the second half - and the Cavaliers made several big, clutch plays to hold off the Celtics, who defeated James and the Miami Heat on Tuesday night.

Rajon Rondo scored 18, Ray Allen 12 and Kevin Garnett had 15 rebounds for Boston, which led by 11 points in the third quarter.

Nets 101 Pistons 98

NEWARK, NJ (AP):

Anthony Morrow hit a go-ahead three-pointer with 26 seconds to play and New Jersey gave Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov a win in his first game as their owner with a victory over Detroit.

The Nets outscored the Pistons 13-3 in the final 1:40 to give Avery Johnson a win in his first game as coach - coming much quicker than last season, when they set an NBA record, losing their first 18 games.

Brook Lopez led the Nets with 25 points and nine rebounds, and Devin Harris added 22 points and nine assists. Morrow, who was signed a free agent in the offseason, added 13 points and Jordan Farmar and Terrence Williams each had 10.

Knicks 98 Raptors 93

TORONTO (AP):

Wilson Chandler scored 22 points, Amare Stoudemire had 19 points and 10 rebounds and the Knicks beat the Raptors.

Chandler scored eight points in the final quarter and Stoudemire added seven for New York, which led 74-72 through three.

Andrea Bargnani scored 18 points in the first half, but had just four in the second for Toronto, which had won eight of its previous nine home openers. The Raptors were playing their first game without star Chris Bosh, who signed with Miami in the offseason. He spent seven years in Toronto.

Jarrett Jack scored 16 points while Linas Kleiza and Leandro Barbosa each had 13 for the Raptors.

Other results:

Thunder 106 Bulls 95; Mavericks 101, Bobcats 86; Hornets 95 Bucks 91; Hawks 119 Grizzlies 104; Kings 117 Timberwolves 116; Nuggets 110 Jazz 88; Warriors 131 Rockets 128; Trail Blazers 98 Clippers 88.