CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Evan Mobley scored a career-high 41 points, Donovan Mitchell added 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, and the Cleveland Cavaliers extended their strong start with a 116-102 victory over the injury-riddled Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.
Mobley scored 23 points as the Cavaliers built a 40-18 lead after the first quarter en route to their 21st victory in 24 games. The forward then had seven points in a late 12-2 surge as Cleveland held on.
Brandon Miller scored 24 points for Charlotte, which got as close as 104-100 with 5:05 left to play in its eighth straight loss.
WIZARDS 122, NUGGETS 113
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jordan Poole scored 39 points, and Washington overcame a career-high 56 by Nikola Jokic to beat Denver and snap their 16-game losing streak.
Jamal Murray (hamstring), Aaron Gordon (calf) and Dario Saric (ankle) were all out for Denver, which left Jokic as something of a one-man show for the Nuggets. He took 38 shots from the field — also a career high — and had 16 rebounds and eight assists.
But Washington always had an answer.
The Wizards (3-18) won for the first time since Oct. 30. Their 16-game skid tied a franchise record.
Poole made a career-high nine 3-pointers, and Washington as a team made 16. Denver went 5 of 24, which is why the Nuggets couldn’t fully take advantage of Jokic’s dominance.
THUNDER 119, PELICANS 109
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 16 of his 31 points in the first quarter and Jalen Williams added 27 to power Oklahoma City to a victory over New Orleans.
The Thunder built a 77-51 halftime lead by dominating New Orleans in the paint and in transition, and won for the seventh time in eight games.
Dejounte Murray scored 26 points and Herb Jones added 24 for the Pelicans, who committed 18 turnovers and lost for the 16th time in 18 games.
New Orleans cut its deficit to 99-80 with by outscoring the Thunder 29-22 in third quarter and got as close as 114-105 with 3:31 left. The Thunder scored five straight to pull away.
PISTONS 120, KNICKS 111
NEW YORK (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 29 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds, and Detroit beat New York.
Malik Beasley had 23 points off the bench and Jaden Ivey chipped in 16 for the Pistons, who snapped a three-game losing streak.
It was Cunningham’s fifth triple-double of the season, three behind league leader Nikola Jokic.
Jalen Brunson had 31 points and 10 assists, and Mi
NAVERICKS 125, RAPTORS 118
TORONTO (AP) — Luka Doncic had 30 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists for his second straight triple-double, Kyrie Irving scored 29 points and Dallas extended their winning streak to seven games with a win over Toronto.
Doncic’s second triple-double of the season was the 79th of his career, moving him past Wilt Chamberlain and James Harden and into sole possession of seventh on the all-time list.
Klay Thompson scored 20 points as the Mavericks extended the NBA’s longest active winning streak.
Doncic had 15 points, eight assists and six rebounds by halftime. He banked in a 35-foot 3-pointer at the second-quarter buzzer to give Dallas a 70-54 lead at the break.
GRIZZLIES 127, CELTICS 121
BOSTON (AP) — Ja Morant had 32 points, nine assists and nine rebounds and tMemphis snapped a 10-game road losing streak in Boston with a win over the Celtics.
Jaren Jackson Jr. added 27 points and nine rebounds for Memphis, which won in TD Garden for the first time since Nov. 27, 2013. The Grizzlies have won eight of their last nine.
Jrue Holiday had 23 points for the Celtics, who went 18 for 60 from the 3-point line. Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard each finished with 22 points.
The Celtics erased a 14-point third-quarter deficit, taking a 97-94 lead early in the fourth. Memphis rallied and led 117-115 with less than four minutes to play. The Grizzlies then scored seven straight to get it back up to 124-115 and were able to close it out.
HEAT 121, SUNS 111
MIAMI (AP) — Bam Adebayo scored 25 points, Jimmy Butler added 24 and Miami moved back over the .500 mark by beating Phoenix.
Adebayo finished with 12 rebounds and eight assists for the Heat (11-10). Duncan Robinson scored 19 and Tyler Herro added 17 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Miami, which outscored Phoenix 68-53 after halftime.
Royce O’Neale had 23 points for Phoenix (12-10), Devin Booker scored 21 and Grayson Allen finished with 16. Bradley Beal had 15 points for the Suns, who were outscored 62-32 in the paint.
The Associated Press
