Tracy McGrady scored 44 points, and Mike James had 14 of his 16 in the second half to lead the Houston Rockets past the Utah Jazz 99-85.

McGrady's 44 points came on 15 of 21 shooting.

Mehmet Okur was the high scorer for the Jazz with 25 points.

The win comes after the Rockets lost to the Spurs on Sunday.

The Spurs went on a 21-2 run in the 4th quarter to defeat the in-state rival Houston Rockets 83-70 on Sunday afternoon.  San Antonio beat the redhot Rockets without their best player Tim Duncan who is on the IL.

``There is no one in the league that feels sorry for the Spurs,'' said Barry, who has made 10 of his last 15 3-point attempts. ``We have to be mentally strong ... We all pulled together and played with some emotions, and that carried us.''

Manu Ginobili led San Antonio with 18 points, while Barry had 17 and Robert Horry 12. Bruce Bowen and Tony Parker each scored 11 for the Spurs, who improved to 3-5 this season without Duncan,

``Our rotations were really good -- we were everywhere,'' said Ginobili. ``Then we got some rebounds. That makes you feel more confident when you go on offense.''

Houston Rockets general manager Carrol Dawson, the brains behind the Tracy McGrady trade and the drafting of Yao Ming, signed a multiyear contract extension last Friday.

"C.D. has been very loyal to the Rockets organization over the past 25 years,"  Rockets? owner Leslie Alexander said. "It is great for our organization to have someone of his experience when it comes to dealing in league matters. We signed him to a multiyear extension in order to ensure he remains a member of the Rockets family for years to come."

Tracy McGrady left early in the first quarter with a strained right hip, falling to the floor after colliding with Yao Ming while defending in the lane.

In his absence Bobby Sura scored 19 points and had 11 assists in an 81-68 victory over the Hornets.

``Obviously somebody had to step up, take the shots, and I was able to get in the lane, get penetration and make some plays for myself and my teammates,'' Sura said. ``The penetration really hurt them.''

``I'm just glad we came out of here with a win,'' Wesley said. ``We have a good inside game. Yao didn't play particularly well tonight, but we can go inside, we've got good shooters on the floor. Even though we didn't shoot the ball particularly well, our defense is going to give us a chance to make some mistakes and hopefully all those other things will work out.''

Houston Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson has gotten a two-year extension on his contract.

Owner Les Alexander has told a Houston radio station that he's also taken steps to make sure Dawson will be with the organization for as long as he chooses. Alexander says that Dawson will be a consultant to the Rockets for as long as he chooses whenever his GM tenure ends.

Monetary terms of the contract weren't disclosed.

Dawson is in his 25th year with the Rockets and his ninth as general manager.

Tracy McGrady scored 26 points and 4 important steals and the Houston Rockets ended the Miami Heat's 12-game winning streak with an 84-82 victory Tuesday night.

Shaquille O'Neal dominated Yao Ming down low, scoring 23 points and grabbing 16 rebounds, compared to the Houston center's 12 points and 9 rebounds.  Dikembe Mutombo played as many minutes as Yao and was more effective, grabbing 15 rebounds.

Everyone has been psychoanalyzing the problems of the Minnesota Timberwolves, but perhaps all along the answer has been as simple as Sam Cassell.

Cassell had one of his finest seasons last year, leading the Wolves to the best record in the west, but this sesaon he has played in just 44 games and now they might miss the playoffs.

The point guard had 18 points on a sharp 7-9 shooting as they beat the Rockets by a final score of 94-86.

``That's the first time we've seen Sam in awhile,'' the always keen Fred Hoiberg said. ``He was very aggressive. That's when we're at our best is when he's out there getting everybody fired up. Hopefully he can play out the rest of the season now.''

``We have to have a little run right now, an eight-game winning streak, something like that,'' Cassell said. ``I think this team has the capability of doing it, but I have to stay on the court.''

In a candid interview with ESPN, Tracy McGrady shared his feelings regarding his former general manager John Weisbrod.

Weisbrod traded McGrady last summer for Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato.

"Honestly, as long as John Weisbrod was the GM there was no way, no way I'd step another foot in a Magic uniform. It was just his whole demeanor and the whole way he goes about doing business and doing things. I don't know if I can say this, but I'm gonna say it, 'He's an (expletive).' "

Just one day before the trade became official, Weisbrod was asked if McGrady was his type of player and he responded by saying, "No!"

"I was so (expletive) because I was sitting back and listening to everything that was going on in the offseason," McGrady told ESPN. "He calls me up because I told him basically that I wanted out and he says, 'We're going to take the high road on this.' I was like, cool, because I'm not going to say anything bad. I'm going to be a professional about this and be quiet. I wake up a couple of mornings later, man, and he's just going off on me, straight blasting me."

The Celtics got a season high 22 points from Mark Blount to get their season-best sixth straight victory, a 103-92 win at Houston.

Boston has won 10 of its last 11. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for Houston.

Boston had six players in double figures. Antoine Walker had 18, Ricky Davis 15, Paul Pierce 12, Tony Allen 11 and Gary Payton 10.

Tracy McGrady led Houston with 22 points, followed by Yao Ming with 18, Jon Barry with 16 and David Wesley with 12.

David Wesley and Bob Sura scored 21 points each to lead the Houston Rockets to a their sixth straight win, 108-77 over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.

The Rockets' best two players Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming had quiet nights, scoring 19 and 13 points respectively.

This winning streak is the Rockets' second-longest of the season after winning eight consecutive games in February.

The Rockets won the game without Juwan Howard, who attended Wednesday's game on crutches, vowing to return in time for the playoffs. ``We don't need anything like this to happen now,'' Howard said. ``It's very frustrating and tough for me to deal with. But I'm going to work very hard to get back."