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David West scored 37 points Saturday night and the Hornets rallied in the second half for a 113-106 victory over the Celtics, who were denied a perfect road trip.

 Foul-plagued Chris Paul had 19 points and seven assists for the Hornets (47-21), who have won three in a row and eight of 10 to climb to second place in the Western Conference.

 "David West single-handedly destroyed us," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, whose squad won the first four games of its five-game trip, including the first unbeaten march through all three Texas teams in over six years.

 An All-Star point guard, Paul is receiving strong consideration for Most Valuable Player. But West also made the West All-Stars this season and is averaging 19.8 points and 9.2 rebounds.

 The forward made 15-of-25 shots and 7-of-7 free throws. He scored eight points in the last six minutes of the third quarter to help get the Hornets back in the game, then had 13 points in the final period as New Orleans stormed to the win.

 "We're playing from behind just about the whole game, dealing with a team like Boston that we know is so good," West said. "Regardless of who we're playing, if we buckle down on defence at that crucial point, we'll be able to pull it out."

   "West knows he's my guy," Paul said. "I told him coming out in the second half that I'm going to him."

   Paul spent a chunk of the fourth quarter on the bench with his fifth foul but was picked up by reserve Jannero Pargo, who had 15 points and six assists.

 "I thought Pargo was their most important player," Rivers said. "They had their leader off the floor ... That's when we should have stretched the lead."

   Instead, the Celtics played one of their worst quarters of the season as they committed nine of their 21 turnovers in the period.

 "We threw the ball to them as much as we could," Rivers said. "When you turn the ball over like that, you're not gonna win."

   Three straight baskets by West gave the Hornets the lead for good at 99-93 with 3:53 remaining. The Celtics pulled within four points, but Paul beat the shot clock with a leaner from the corner and added a 3-pointer for a 107-101 bulge with 1:13 to go.

 "CP was struggling a little bit, but in the fourth quarter came back in there and again willed us to victory," Pargo said. "He has a will that only a couple players have in this league."

   Serbia's Peja Stojakovic scored 13 points and Bonzi Wells added 12 and eight steals for the Hornets, who shot 51 per cent (39-of-77).

 Paul Pierce scored 28 points, Rajon Rondo added 23 and seven assists and Kevin Garnett 19 and 12 rebounds for the Celtics (55-14), who shot 55 per cent (41-of-74) and held a 44-29 rebounding edge.

 After a 4-1 trip, league-leading Boston returns home for four games, including one against the Hornets on Friday.

 "It should be a great game," Rivers said. "We pretty much know now that David West is really good."

Phoenix 122, Houston 113

 Amare Stoudemire had 38 points and 13 rebounds and Shaquille O'Neal added 23 and 13 as host Phoenix (47-22) overpowered Houston (47-23) for its seventh straight win and hurdled the Rockets for third place in the West.

 "Brazilian Blur" Leandro Barbosa scored 21 points for the Suns, who shot 56.5 per cent (39-of-69) from the field and 38-of-40 from the line. Stoudemire made all 20 of his free throws.

 Tracy McGrady had 30 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for Houston, which has lost three of four since its historic 22-game winning streak.

Utah 115, Seattle 101

 Turkey's Mehmet Okur had 24 points and 10 boards as Utah won at home for the 20th time in 21 games. Seattle has lost 11 in a row.

Philadelphia 91, New Jersey 87

 Haiti's Samuel Dalembert had 11 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks as host Philadelphia (35-35) moved within one-half game of Toronto for sixth place in the East. New Jersey (29-41) fell into a tie with Indiana, 1 1/2 games out of the final playoff spot.

Atlanta 98, Orlando 90

 Joe Johnson scored 14 of his 32 points in the final period as the Hawks (30-39) solidified their hold on the last playoff spot. Turkey's Hedo Turkoglu scored 18 points for the visiting Magic.

Indiana 108, Chicago 101

 The visiting Pacers won their season-high fourth straight game and moved into a tie for ninth as Mike Dunleavy Jr. scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter. Sudan native Luol Deng scored 28 points for the Bulls (27-42), who are three games out of the playoff race.

Milwaukee 108, Cleveland 98

 Despite 29 points and 11 rebounds from LeBron James, Cleveland lost its fifth straight road game. Mo Williams scored 29 points for Milwaukee.

Portland 83, LA Clippers 72

 Joel Przybilla grabbed a career-high 25 rebounds as the visiting Trail Blazers wore down the Clippers, who dropped their seventh consecutive game.

 Memphis 117, Sacramento 111

 Spaniard Juan Carlos Navarro scored 11 of his 22 points in the final period as the host Grizzlies won consecutive games for the first time since November. Kevin Martin scored 29 points for Sacramento.

 Charlotte 94, Miami 82= Gerald Wallace scored 26 points for the Bobcats, who ended a five- game slide. Visiting Miami has lost 11 of 12.

 Minnesota 114, New York 93= Ryan Gomes scored 26 points as host Minnesota won for the sixth time in nine games. New York has lost 11 of 12.

By Paul Levine, dpa