Los Angeles  - The "Big Shaqtus" is back, sticking it to his opponents again.

Shaquille O'Neal scored 33 points against his former team, and the Phoenix Suns withstood a 49-point effort by Kobe Bryant to burn the weary Los Angeles Lakers 118-111 on Sunday.

O'Neal followed up his season-high 45-point performance Friday against Toronto by hitting 13-of-18 field goals en route to his first back-to-back 30-point games since March 2004

"A lot of people are saying Shaq is back, but I never went anywhere, said O'Neal, who turns 37 on Friday. "The only time I'm not playing well is when I'm injured. When I'm fresh I can put up numbers.

"I've been doing the same thing since 1992," he added. "If you don't believe it, Google me."

Matt Barnes had 26 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, while Brazilian Leandro Barbosa scored 22 for the short-handed Suns (34-25) who beat the Lakers for the first time in four tries this season.

"Obviously it's a great win for us against what I think is still the best team in the league." Suns interim head coach Alvin Gentry said.

Spain's Pau Gasol helped out Bryant with 30 points for the league-best Lakers (48-12) losers of two straight for just the third time this season.

"It's that point in the season where everybody is tired a little bit," Bryant explained. "Everybody goes through it and we finally got hit.

"These two games we're playing lethargic. The key for us is to snap out of it and start playing with the energy on a consistent basis."

The Lakers iced the Suns 132-106 at home Thursday night, but they came out flat in desert rematch.

Without stars Steve Nash (ankle sprain) and Amare Stoudemire (eye surgery), the Suns ran their high octane offence through the 7-foot-1, 325-pound O'Neal, who dominated the much lighter 260-pound Gasol around the basket.

"Shaq is playing extremely well," Bryant said. "The thing is they're looking to go inside to him. Pau is giving up 250 pounds (65) so there's really not much you can do in that situation. Shaq took advantage of it."

O'Neal scored 19 by halftime and the Suns led 65-56, even though Bryant matched his former teammate.

Bryant fired in 17 in a 19-4 burst to start the third quarter, putting the Lakers ahead, 75-70. The Suns, however, closed on 21-6 run to regain the lead, 91-81.

Bryant's two free throws drew the Lakers within 107-103 with 2:48 to go. Barnes, however, scored seven consecutive points, opening up a 114-103 cushion with 1:26 left.

A late 8-1 surge pulled the Lakers within 115-111 with 16 seconds remaining as O'Neal fouled out during that run. But Barnes hit a free throw, and Barbosa added two more to seal the win.

Elsewhere: Detroit Pistons 105, Boston Celtics 95 Richard Hamilton scored 25 points, Tayshaun Prince added 15 - and each drained key three-pointers in the final 80 seconds - helping the Pistons become the first Eastern Conference opponent to beat the reigning NBA Champion Celtics at home.

Without All-Star guard Allen Iverson (stiff back) Detroit (29-29) ended a season-high eight-game slide with weekend road wins over powerhouses Orlando and Boston.

Paul Pierce scored 26 and Glen "Big Baby" Davis had 18 for Boston (47-14) which had won the last five meetings in the series.

New Orleans Hornets 99, New Jersey Nets 96 David West scored 32 points, and Chris Paul turned a steal into the go-ahead 19-foot jumper with 40 seconds left, rallying the Hornets to their fourth straight victory.

Devin Harris led the Nets (26-33) with 26 points and 14 assists, while Vince Carter also scored 26.

Indiana Pacers 100, Denver Nuggets 94 Jarrett Jack scored 28 points, Troy Murphy added 22 with 18 rebounds, leading the bottom-feeding Pacers over the Northwest Division-leading Nuggets.

Chauncey Billups netted 27 points for Denver, (39-21), outscored 32-19 in the final frame.

Houston Rockets 105, Minnesota Timberwolves 94 Ron Artest scored 23 points, Aaron Brooks had 22 with a career-high 10 assists and the Rockets utilized on a game-turning 17-0 third-quarter run to hand the host T-Wolves their 10th loss in the last 11 games.

Cleveland Cavaliers 88, Atlanta Hawks 87 LeBron James had 26 points, 11 assists and the game-winning free throw with 1.6 seconds left, giving the visiting Cavaliers their seventh win in the last eight games.

Portland Trail Blazers 102, San Antonio Spurs 84 Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge had 26 points apiece, and the Trail Blazers' ninth straight home victory spoiled Tim Duncan's return.

Sidelined the last three games with a stiff knee, Duncan scored 14 for San Antonio (39-19) before sitting out the final frame.

Dallas Mavericks 109, Toronto Raptors 98 Dirk Nowitzki had 24 points, and Jason Kidd handed out 15 assists to become the fourth player in NBA history to reach 10,000 for his career in the Mavs' home victory.

Utah Jazz 112, Golden State Warriors 104 Turkey's Mehmet Okur scored 23 points, Deron Williams handed out a season-high 20 assists and the visiting Jazz rolled to its eighth consecutive victory.

Corey Maggette scored 27 points for the Warriors (20-39) who rested leading scorer Stephen Jackson en route to its fourth loss in the last five games. (dpa)