NBA roundup: Thursday
Spencer Dinwiddie scored a season-high 36 points as the visiting Dallas Mavericks overcame an early injury to star Luka Doncic to beat the Phoenix Suns 99-95 on Thursday night.
Dorian Finney-Smith had 18 points and 12 rebounds, Dwight Powell added 15 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 11 and Reggie Bullock had 10 for Dallas, which won for just the third time in 10 games.
Doncic, who entered the night as the NBA’s leading scorer at 33.8 points per game, exited early in the first quarter due to a sprained left ankle and did not return. X-rays were negative.
Chris Paul and Cameron Johnson led Phoenix with 22 points apiece, while Deandre Ayton had 19 points and 20 rebounds after missing the past three games due to a non-COVID illness. Paul also tallied 10 assists as the Suns saw their four-game winning streak end.
Knicks 120, Celtics 117 (OT)
Julius Randle scored 37 points and Jalen Brunson added 29 as New York came back to win in overtime in Boston.
Randle and R.J. Barrett each hit 3-pointers to flip the score after the Celtics opened overtime on a 5-0 run. Brunson added four rebounds, seven assists and two blocks, rejecting Malcolm Brogdon’s potential game-tying 3 at the buzzer.
Jayson Tatum had 35 points and 14 rebounds while Jaylen Brown added 22 points in Boston’s third straight loss.
Hornets 111, Bulls 96
Terry Rozier poured in 28 points and LaMelo Ball, who hadn’t played in more than a week, scored five of his 15 points during a key late-game stretch as host Charlotte beat Chicago.
Rozier sank four of Charlotte’s seven 3-pointers and helped the Hornets — who outscored the Bulls in 34-17 in the fourth quarter — snap a two-game skid. Mason Plumlee scored 21 points, aided by 9-for-9 shooting from the field, and grabbed 12 rebounds, Gordon Hayward had 17 points and reserve Mark Williams added 10 points on 5-for-5 shooting.
DeMar DeRozan’s 28 points led the Bulls, who have dropped back-to-back games following a three-game winning streak. Zach LaVine had 18 points and nine rebounds, Patrick Williams posted 15 points in his hometown, and Nikola Vucevic (nine rebounds) and Ayo Dosunmu each had 12 points.
Pistons 130, Nets 122
Saddiq Bey scored 15 of his 25 points in the third quarter as Detroit took control in a victory over Brooklyn in New York. The Pistons snapped a four-game losing streak, and they scored 43 points in the third, marking their highest-scoring quarter this season.
Alec Burks added 10 of his 20 points in the fourth. Rookie Jalen Duren scored 17 and Killian Hayes and rookie Jaden Ivey chipped in 16 apiece as Detroit withstood a quiet showing from Bojan Bogdanovic, who was held to 11 points on 4-of-15 shooting.
Kyrie Irving tried to will the Nets back down the stretch with 12 of his 40 points in the fourth, but Brooklyn fell to 2-6 since Kevin Durant suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee on Jan. 8. Nic Claxton added a career-high 27 points and 13 rebounds while Edmond Sumner contributed a career-best 24 points.
Cavaliers 113, Rockets 95
Darius Garland scored a game-high 26 points while Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen recorded double-doubles as Cleveland routed host Houston.
Garland shot 9 of 16 from the floor, connected on five 3-pointers, and added nine assists and four steals to his ledger. Mobley posted 21 points and 10 rebounds while Allen chipped in 14 points and 10 boards for the Cavaliers, who led by as many as 32 despite playing without All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, sidelined for the fourth time in five games with a left groin strain.
Missing three of their primary ball handlers — Kevin Porter Jr. (foot), Eric Gordon (knee) and Jae’Sean Tate (ankle) — the Rockets were a rudderless ship offensively. Houston committed 22 turnovers that yielded 40 points for the Cavaliers and were paced in assists by second-year center Alperen Sengun, who paired 14 points with seven assists in 30 minutes.
Clippers 138, Spurs 100
Paul George scored 35 points and Kawhi Leonard added 27 in just three quarters of play as Los Angeles swamped — and swept — visiting San Antonio.
Norman Powell added 15 points for Los Angeles, with Robert Covington scoring 13 and Reggie Jackson and Ivica Zubac contributing 12 and 11 points, respectively. The Clippers have won four straight.
Keldon Johnson hit for 19 points for the Spurs, Isaiah Roby had a season-high 14, Keita Bates-Diop scored 13, Doug McDermott added 11 and Jakob Poeltl tallied 10. The contest was the second of a road back-to-back for the Spurs (although both games were in Los Angeles). They finished the season 0-8 against the Lakers and Clippers.
–Field Level Media
