NBA roundup: Kings spoil Mavs’ Doncic-Irving debut
Kings 133, Mavericks 128 (OT)
De’Aaron Fox scored 14 of his 36 points in overtime to lead the Sacramento Kings to a 133-128 victory in the NBA over the visiting Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night and gain a split of a back-to-back set.
Kyrie Irving had 28 points and seven assists for Dallas and Luka Doncic added 27 points and nine rebounds in the first contest of their highly anticipated pairing. Irving was acquired from the Brooklyn Nets earlier this week and Doncic missed the previous four games — including Irving’s first two — due to a heel injury.
76ers 101, Nets 98
Joel Embiid scored 37 points and hit a pair of go-ahead free throws with 5.2 seconds remaining as Philadelphia rallied down the stretch for a victory over Brooklyn in New York.
James Harden added 29 points in a hostile return to Brooklyn, getting booed every time he touched the ball after he was granted a trade from the Nets to the Sixers last year. Mikal Bridges scored 23 points in his Nets debut after being obtained from the Phoenix Suns on Thursday for Kevin Durant.
Nuggets 119, Hornets 105
Nikola Jokic turned in a NBA league-leading triple-double with 30 points in another big game against Charlotte as visiting Denver won.
Jokic shot 11-for-22 from the field, collected 16 rebounds and distributed 10 assists. He also blocked two shots. The Hornets’ losing streak reached seven games despite LaMelo Ball coming within a rebound of a triple-double. He finished with 18 points and 12 assists. Jokic, who pulled in seven offensive rebounds, scored 40 points in a mid-December home victory against the Hornets.
Heat 107, Magic 103 (OT)
Tyler Herro scored 23 points and Jimmy Butler collected 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists to fuel visiting Miami to an overtime victory over Orlando.
Gabe Vincent scored 20 points and Bam Adebayo recorded 13 points and 17 rebounds for the Heat, who overcame a 17-point deficit to secure their ninth win in a row in their home state.
Markelle Fultz scored 17 points and rookie Paolo Banchero contributed 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Magic. Wendell Carter Jr. scored all 14 of his points in the first half, while Jalen Suggs and Moritz Wagner each finished with 14.
Lakers 109, Warriors 103
Rui Hachimura hit two key hoops down the stretch, joining fellow newcomers D’Angelo Russell and Jarred Vanderbilt in double-figure scoring as Los Angeles held off host Golden State in San Francisco.
Dennis Schroder had a team-high 26 points and Anthony Davis put up a 13-point, 16-rebound double-double with three blocks for the Lakers, who snapped a three-game losing streak. The Lakers moved within 2 1/2 games of the ninth-seeded Warriors in the tightly bunched Western Conference playoff race.
LeBron James sat out his second straight game with a sore left foot. Stephen Curry missed his third in a row with an injured left knee. Jordan Poole totaled 29 points for the Warriors, including the team’s first 17 in the fourth quarter.
Hawks 125, Spurs 106
Trae Young produced 24 points and a season-high 17 assists to lead a balanced offensive attack as Atlanta turned it on in the second half for a win over visiting San Antonio.
The Hawks rallied from six points down in the second period to take a one-point advantage at halftime. Atlanta put the game away in the third period, when it outscored the Spurs by 15 points, and cruised to its fourth win in six games.
Keldon Johnson led all scorers with 25 points while Jeremy Sochan added 18 points and Malaki Branham had 10 for the Spurs.
Knicks 126, Jazz 120
Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle became the first pair of New York teammates to score 30 points in consecutive NBA games in almost 36 years, when the duo combined to lead the Knicks past visiting Utah.
Brunson finished with 38 points, including the tiebreaking 3-pointer that gave the Knicks the lead for good with 4:17 left. Randle had 31 points, including a 3-pointer to cap the 9-0 run sparked by Brunson’s 3-pointer. They are the first Knicks teammates to score 30 points in back-to-back games since Patrick Ewing (30 points, 31 points) and Gerald Wilkins (41 points, 33 points) on March 4 and 6, 1987.
Lauri Markkanen scored 29 points to lead five players in double figures for the Jazz, who have lost four of five. Jordan Clarkson had 24 points while Talen Horton-Tucker scored 23 off the bench.
Wizards 127, Pacers 113
Bradley Beal led seven scorers in double figures with 32 points, and Washington rolled at home for its eighth win in the past 11 games with a rout of Indiana.
Beal shot 13 of 18 from the floor, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, to pace an offense that finished 48 of 75 from the floor and 12 of 26 from deep.
The loss marked the fourth straight for Indiana and 15th in the last 17 NBA games. Tyrese Haliburton scored a team-high 21 points and notched for a game-high seven assists in the loss, Myles Turner added 20 points and both Buddy Hield and Bennedict Mathurin chipped in 16 points.
Cavaliers 97, Bulls 89
Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points and Jarrett Allen had 23 to help host Cleveland rally for a win against Chicago to extend its winning streak to six games.
Cleveland outscored Chicago 28-15 in the fourth quarter as the Bulls slumped to their third straight loss. The Bulls squandered a 13-point, third-quarter lead, losing their grip as the Cavs heated up midway through the second half.
Chicago didn’t register its first points of the fourth until Coby White tied the game with a layup one minute later, but Cleveland responded with another 7-0 run. The Cavs swept the season series from the Bulls 4-0. Zach LaVine scored 23 points to lead the Bulls. DeMar DeRozan followed with 16 points, and Nikola Vucevic notched a double-double of 14 points and 14 rebounds.
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