Bryant sinks Suns with buzzer shot

LOS ANGELES -- Kobe Bryant's 17-foot jumper as time expired in overtime gave the Lakers an improbable 99-98 victory Sunday and a 3-1 lead in their first-round Western Conference playoff series with the Phoenix Suns.

Steve Nash made a 3-pointer with 50 seconds left in overtime to give the Suns a 98-95 lead. Bryant's layup with 11.7 seconds to go drew the Lakers within one point, and Luke Walton tied Nash up with 6.1 seconds remaining.

Walton won the tip, with Bryant chasing the ball down near the scorer's table and then dribbling to the right corner of the key, where his ninth field goal in 14 tries swished through cleanly. Game 5 is Tuesday night in Phoenix.

Lamar Odom led the Lakers with 25 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Bryant had 24 points and eight assists.

Nash led the Suns with 22 points and 11 assists,.

The Lakers forced overtime on Bryant's fast-break basket with 0.7 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.

Bulls 93, Heat 87

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Bulls aren't just refusing to go quietly. They're threatening to eliminate the Miami Heat.

Kirk Hinrich scored 21 points and hit a key 3-pointer with 1:09 left to lead Chicago to a victory over the Miami Heat and even their first-round Eastern Conference series at 2-2.

With Shaquille O'Neal in foul trouble for much of the game, the Bulls built a 13-point lead in the third quarter, only to fall behind in the fourth before pulling the game out.

Wizards 106, Cavaliers 96

WASHINGTON -- With LeBron James suddenly, stunningly, quiet after a tremendous first half, Gilbert Arenas scored 20 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Wizards' comeback and tie the first-round Eastern Conferenceseries at 2-2.

As dominant as James was early, setting franchise playoff records for points in a quarter (18) and half (25), he was nowhere to be found at times in the second half. He took three shots in the third quarter, missed all, and ended with 38 points.

And, in a perfect mirror image, Arenas made up for his 1-for-9, six-point first half in a big way down the stretch.

-- The Associated Press