Kyrie Irving had 15 of his 32 points scored in the fourth quarter. The Brooklyn Nets overcame a slow start and won a nine-game winning streak with a 125–117 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Irving shot 11 of 19 baskets and made seven 3-pointers on the 11th anniversary of his NBA debut. Brooklyn then took two 19-point leads before overcoming Cleveland’s last attempt to comeback. Garland was able to make 14 of the 20 shots, and he finished his fourth 40-point season. Donovan Mitchell scored just 15 points.
Kevin Durant was able to score 32 points, but he fouled out six times in his career. He bumped Garland at 1:54. Durant moved up to 15th on the all-time scoring list, passing Tim Duncan. He ended the night with 26,516 career points.
Garland had 18 points, with a jumper and a free throw in the lane. It made the score 121-117 at 44 seconds. With 31.3 seconds left, Garland was stopped in his lane by Nic Claxton. T.J. Warren made two free shots to ice the game with 13.8 ticks remaining.
Clippers 142 (OT), Pistons 131.
Paul George had 32 points and 11 assists in Los Angeles’ win over Detroit.
Luke Kennard scored 18 points in Los Angeles. Norman Powell, Marcus Morris Sr. and John Wall each contributed 16 points.
Bojan Bogdanovic was the Pistons’ leading scorer with 23 points. Isaiah Stewart scored 21 points. Killian Hayes added 18 points with 10 assists, and Jalen Duren had 15 and 12 rebounds.
Heat 113, Timberwolves 110
Miami’s defense caused 22 turnovers. The last one was Kyle Lowry’s steal at the end of the final seconds. This allowed Minnesota to stay away.
Max Strus was the winner with 19 points. He also shot 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. Strus was among five Miami players who scored in the double figures. Lowry was able to finish the game with an impressive 18 points, and nine assists.
Anthony Edwards was the top scorer with 29 points. Edwards was responsible for eight of Minnesota’s 22 turnovers. The last one came when D’Angelo Russell dropped the ball, and Lowry came up to get it. This denied Minnesota the chance at an overtime-forced 3-pointer.
Pelicans 113, Pacers 93
Jonas Valanciunas scored 20 points with 12 rebounds, and New Orleans defeated Indiana in the shorthanded game for its third consecutive win.
Naji Marshall scored 22 points to make it a record-breaking season for the Pelicans. They were without Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram (toe), Herbert Jones Jr.(health and safety protocols), Trey Murphy III and Dyson Daniels (non-COVID illness).
Bennedict Mathurin scored 15 points, while Myles Turner had 14 to help the Pacers finish a 2-1 road trip.
Rockets 133 and Bulls 118
Kevin Porter Jr. had 15 of the 36 season-high points for Houston in the fourth quarter. Houston ended a five-game losing streak by beating Chicago.
The Bulls had trimmed their 19-point deficit to 109-102, but Porter responded by making back-to-back 3-pointers, and then a pull-up from the midrange that enabled the Rockets to take control. Alperen Sengun, Porter’s 25-point scorer, added 11 rebounds and provided six assists.
Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan was the star with 31 points and nine assists. The Bulls’ three-game winning streak was broken by Zach LaVine scoring 22 points, and Coby White adding 14 from the bench.
Spurs 126, Jazz 122
Devin Vassell had 24 points, while Tre Jones made two attempts in the lane to give San Antonio the victory over visiting Utah.
After being ahead by 20 points in the final quarter, and 14 going into the fourth, the Spurs held their ground. They had previously lost four of five previous games. Keldon Johnson scored 21 points for Spurs and Malaki Branham had a career-high 20.
Lauri Markkanen, who scored 32 points for the Jazz and grabbed 12 rebounds, led them. Utah’s two-game winning streak came to an abrupt halt with 25 points from Jordan Clarkson.
Trail Blazers, 124; Hornets, 113
Jerami Grant had 32 points and 10 boards, and Jusuf Nukic was a career-high with 28 points and 15 rebounds. Portland continues its dominance of Charlotte.
Portland’s three-game slide ended with Nurkic making a record five 3-pointers in seven attempts, and Grant scoring four. LaMelo ball scored 27 points and had seven rebounds as well as seven assists, before being fouled out by the Hornets who have lost their 10th consecutive game.
This was Charlotte’s 15th consecutive defeat in Portland, dating back to the 93-85 win on March 29, 2008. The franchise used the name “The Bobcats”.
