A new-look starting five did the job for the struggling Toronto Raptors.

Chris Bosh scored 21 points and T.J. Ford had 13 points and nine assists in his return to the starting lineup as the Raptors beat the Detroit Pistons 89-82 on Wednesday night. Bosh said Ford was "more comfortable" as a starter. "It was business as usual," Bosh said. "It was back to how we're used to playing."

Rasho Nesterovic had 15 points and Jose Calderon 13 as Toronto won for just the fourth time in 15 games. The Raptors avoided falling below .500 for the first time since a loss at Cleveland on Nov. 24 dropped them to 6-7.

"It's only one game, but it gives us a different sense of confidence," Nesterovic said.

Toronto coach Sam Mitchell called it "a great win."

"Our defence for 48 minutes was as good as it could have been," Mitchell said.

Trying to change his luck after a slide that saw the Raptors drop from fifth to seventh in the Eastern Conference, Mitchell put Ford and Nesterovic into the starting lineup in place of Calderon and Andrea Bargnani.

Ford started slowly, scoring just two points in the first half, but teamed up with Jamario Moon for two spectacular baskets in the third, feeding the athletic Moon for a dunk and then a one-handed alley-oop.

Ford's last start came Dec. 11 at Atlanta, but he was injured that night and missed the next 24 games. He had served as Calderon's backup since returning Feb. 4 at Miami.

Elsewhere in the NBA, it was: Boston 117 Phoenix 97; New Orleans 100 Cleveland 99; Atlanta 115 Milwaukee 96; New York 103 Miami 96 (OT); Philadelphia 121 Chicago 99; New Jersey 124 Indiana 117; Houston 97 Minnesota 86; San Antonio 97 Los Angeles Clippers 88; Washington 104 Seattle 99; Sacramento 107 Memphis 106 (OT); and Charlotte 108 Los Angeles Lakers 95.

At Toronto, Calderon, who volunteered to give up his starting spot, was happy to see Ford succeed.

"Sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself for the team," Calderon said. "I think that was best for the Toronto Raptors and it worked."

Bosh saluted Calderon for surrendering his starting role.

"That's big for us. We need more guys like that," Bosh said. "Both him and T.J. have been very unselfish with their starting position and they want what's best for the team."

Ford and Calderon were on the court together as Toronto held off Detroit charge in the final minutes.

"It worked out great for us in a stretch where we both were playing well," Ford said. "Whenever you have both of us on the court, it's a big factor because I'm more of a penetrator and with his shooting ability, he's a big threat. It worked out in our favour."

Chauncey Billups scored 24 points, and Rodney Stuckey tied a career high with 16, including 14 in the fourth.

"We're coming down the home stretch now, 11 games left," Billups said. "You want to start playing with some consistency."

Cleveland's loss to New Orleans guarantees Detroit at least a tie for the Central Division title, but Billups wasn't interested.

"Our thing is not the division or the East," Billups said. "Our thing is the whole thing. That's the way we think."

Detroit, which has lost three of four, made 15 turnovers, leaving coach Flip Saunders fuming.

"If we turn the ball over 15 times, we're not going to beat anybody," Saunders said. "We were able to make some runs and cut it down, but they continued to make some plays every time we got close."

Celtics 117 Suns 97

At Boston, Kevin Garnett scored 30 points, sinking the final two to an "M-V-P!" chant echoing through the new Boston Garden, and Paul Pierce had 12 of his 27 in the fourth quarter to lead the Celtics to a victory over Phoenix.

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Hornets 100 Cavaliers 99

At Cleveland, David West's 17-foot jumper, coming on Chris Paul's 20th assist, with less than a second left gave the New Orleans Hornets their fifth straight win.

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Hawks 115 Bucks 96

At Atlanta, Joe Johnson scored 28 points, Josh Childress added 20 and the Atlanta Hawks maintained the eighth and final playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

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Knicks 103 Heat 96 (OT)

At New York, Jamal Crawford scored 24 points, including the go-ahead jumper with about 2 1/2 minutes left in overtime, and the New York Knicks ended their longest home losing streak in nearly 45 years.

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76ers 121 Bulls 99

At Philadelphia, Lou Williams scored 23 points and Andre Miller had a season-high 18 assists for the 76ers.

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Nets 124 Pacers 117

At East Rutherford, N.J., Devin Harris had 22 points and a career-best 15 assists and the New Jersey Nets kept pace with Atlanta for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.

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Rockets 97 Timberwolves 86

At Houston, Tracy McGrady scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and Luis Scola had 18 points and a career-high 18 rebounds for the Rockets.

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Spurs 97 Clippers 88

At San Antonio, Tim Duncan had 26 points and 12 rebounds and the San Antonio Spurs withstood a late rally from the Los Angeles Clippers.

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Wizards 104 SuperSonics 99

At Seattle, reserve Roger Mason pumped in five three-pointers in the fourth quarter in leading the Wizards.

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Kings 107 Grizzlies 106 (OT)

At Sacramento, Calif., Kevin Martin scored 36 points and made two free throws in the closing seconds of overtime as the Kings beat Memphis.

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Bobcats 108 Lakers 95

At Los Angeles, Jason Richardson had 34 points and 10 rebounds, and Charlotte stunned the Lakers in a game where Kobe Bryant drew two technical fouls in a span of 29 seconds late in the fourth quarter and was ejected.

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