PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid had 30 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists to help the Philadelphia 76ers rout LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers 138-94 on Monday night.
The reigning NBA MVP, Embiid notched his sixth career triple-double with 2 minutes left in the third quarter. It was Embiid’s first of the season and his seventh career game with 10-plus assists.
Embiid’s anticipated showdown with James never really materialized. James scored 18 points in 29 minutes but nothing he did could make a dent in the 76ers’ lead. He has now played more minutes than any player in NBA history, with playoff time included.
Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points for the 76ers. Anthony Davis had 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers.
Embiid sat out the entire fourth quarter and the 76ers still outscored the Lakers 40-14.
NUGGETS 113, CLIPPERS 104
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Reggie Jackson scored 35 points, DeAndre Jordan had 21 points and 13 rebounds, and Denver rallied in the fourth quarter to beat Los Angeles without Nikola Jokic.
Former Clippers Jackson and Jordan combined for 20 points in the fourth, when the Nuggets trailed by 11 to start. Jackson began and ended a 22-6 spurt with 3-pointers that put the Nuggets ahead 99-94. In between, he fed Jordan for two vicious dunks.
The Nuggets were missing starters Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon, who average a combined 58.2 points. Jokic sat out the second game of a back-to-back because of low back pain. Murray has a right hamstring strain and Gordon has a right heel strain.
Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 31 points and Ivica Zubac had 23 points and 14 rebounds. Paul George picked up his fourth and fifth fouls early in the fourth. He finished with six points on 2-of-13 shooting.
WIZARDS 126, PISTONS 107
DETROIT (AP) — Kyle Kuzma had 32 points and 12 rebounds as Washington ended a nine-game losing streak with a rout of Detroit in a matchup of the NBA’s worst teams.
Washington (3-14) won for the first time since a 132-116 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Nov. 8. The Pistons (2-15) have lost 14 straight after beating the Chicago Bulls 118-102 on Oct. 28.
Kuzma, playing in his home state, added eight assists while committing two turnovers. Deni Avdija and Danilo Gallinari scored 16 for the Wizards.
Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 26 points and seven assists. Jalen Duren had 12 points and 14 rebounds.
TRAIL BLAZERS 114, PACERS 110
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Jerami Grant scored 34 points and Deandre Ayton had 22 points and 13 rebounds to power Portland past Indiana.
Malcolm Brogdon added 24 points for the Trail Blazers, including a game-sealing basket in the closing seconds.
Tyrese Haliburton led Indiana with 33 points. Bruce Brown, Myles Turner and Bennedict Mathurin each had 11, but the Pacers were slowed by 20 turnovers and 8-for-33 shooting from 3-point range.
JAZZ 114, PELICANS 112
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Rookie Keyonte George scored a season-high 19 points to lead Utah over New Orleans for a sweep of their two-game series.
Jordan Clarkson chipped in 16 points and 10 assists for the Jazz. Walker Kessler added 14 points and eight rebounds off the bench. Simone Fontecchio scored 14 points.
Utah beat New Orleans for the fifth straight time and second time in three days after making 17 3-pointers, including six in the fourth quarter.
Zion Williamson scored 26 points for New Orleans, which lost despite shooting 50% from the field. Williamson, who did not play in the Pelicans’ 105-100 loss on Saturday, shot 9 of 16 from the field and added seven assists.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
The Associated Press
