Friday’s NBA action.
HOUSTON ROCKETS 102 OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER 99
OKLAHOMA CITY – Former Thunder guard James Harden finished just shy of a triple-double with 21 points, 12 assists, and nine rebounds to help give the Rockets (16-7) their fifth straight win. Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson added 17 and 14 points, respectively. Russell Westbrook notched his seventh straight triple-double with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Thunder (14-9), tying the great Michael Jordan for the most consecutive triple-doubles since 1989. Wilt Chamberlain holds the all-time record with nine in a row as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers in 1968.
CHARLOTTE HORNETS 109 ORLANDO MAGIC 88
CHARLOTTE – Nicolas Batum helped the Hornets (14-9) win six of their last eight games with 16 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker added 16 and 15 points, respectively. Treveon Graham (VCU) chipped in with five points in four minutes. Evan Fournier led the Magic (10-14) with 14 points.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS 114 MIAMI HEAT 84
CLEVELAND – LeBron James carried the Cavs (16-5) with 27 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists to give his team a blowout victory against his former team. Kevin Love added game-highs of 28 points and 15 boards. Kyrie Irving chipped in with 23 points. Derrick Williams scored a team-high 17 points off the bench for the Heat (7-16).
TORONTO RAPTORS 101 BOSTON CELTICS 94
BOSTON – Kyle Lowry scored 21 of his season-high 34 points in the second half to help the Raptors (16-7) erase an eight-point halftime deficit and come away with the victory. DeMar DeRozan added 24 points. Al Horford finished with a well-rounded effort of 19 points, seven rebounds, and six assists for the Celtics (13-10).
ATLANTA HAWKS 114 MILWAUKEE BUCKS 110
MILWAUKEE – Dennis Schroder helped bring the Hawks (12-12) back from a 20-point deficit at the half with a career-high 33 points. Paul Millsap added a double-double – 23 points and 14 rebounds. Mike Muscala (Bucknell) scored 11 points. Jabari Parked finished with a team-high 27 points for the Bucks (11-10).
DETROIT PISTONS 117 MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES 90
MINNEAPOLIS – Andre Drummond led the Pistons (13-12) with 22 points and 22 rebounds. The former UConn Huskies’ center posted his second straight 20-20 game. Jon Leuer added 17 points off the bench. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 14 points and grabbed 12 boards for the Wolves (6-17).
DALLAS MAVERICKS 111 INDIANA PACERS 103
DALLAS – Wesley Matthews and Harrison Barnes paced the Mavs (5-17) with 26 and 25 points, respectively. Barnes added eight rebounds. Deron Williams finished with 16 points and six assists. Paul George had 22 points and seven boards for the Pacers (11-12).
PHOENIX SUNS 119 LOS ANGELES LAKERS 115
LOS ANGELES – Eric Bledsoe scored 30 points and dished out nine assists to help the Suns (7-16) snap their three-game losing streak. Leandro Barbosa came off the bench to score 21 points. Alex Len added a double-double – 14 points and 13 rebounds. Lou Williams led the Lakers (10-15) with 35 points off the pine.
NEW YORK KNICKS 103 SACRAMENTO KINGS 100
SACRAMENTO – Carmelo Anthony dropped 33 points and hauled in seven rebounds to help the Knicks (13-10) get the season-series sweep over the Kings (8-14). Kristaps Porzingis posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 boards. DeMarcus Cousins finished with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists for Sacramento.
Leave a Reply