|
 Rockets 105, Cavaliers 103 (OT)
LeBron James capped a nightmare performance at the free-throw line
with a pair of misses in the closing seconds of overtime as the
Houston Rockets held on for a win.
James finished 3-for-11 at the charity stripe, with his final
failures coming with the Cavaliers (37-24) trailing by one. James
still finished with a game-high 37 points plus eight rebounds, three
steals and three blocks.
Rockets guard James Harden finished with 33 points, eight rebounds,
five assists and three steals as Houston (41-18) claimed its fifth
consecutive win.
Cavaliers forward Kevin Love added 21 but the battle was between MVP
candidates James and Harden. The two players were tangled up late
resulting in Harden kicking James near the groin and earning a
technical foul.
- - -
Warriors 106, Celtics 101
The Golden State Warriors, the team with the best record in the NBA,
spotted the Boston Celtics a 26-point first-half lead but roared
from behind and ended the Celtics' three-game winning streak.
The Warriors (46-11) out-scored Boston by 16 in the fourth quarter
to complete the comeback.
Stephen Curry had 37 points but it was driving layups by forward
Harrison Barnes and guard Andre Iguodala that brought the visitors
from a point down to a three-point lead with 26.2 seconds left.
Isaiah Thomas finished with 20 for Boston.
- - -
Clippers 96, Bulls 86
Chris Paul scored 28 points with 12 assists to lead the Los Angeles
Clippers to victory over the Chicago Bulls.
Jamal Crawford added 16 points for the Clippers (39-21), who earned
their sixth win in the past eight games. Center DeAndre Jordan
scored nine points and pulled down 26 rebounds.
Rookie forward Nikola Mirotic came off the bench to lead Chicago
with a career-high 29 points.
But injury woes continue for the Bulls (37-23) as All-Star guard
Jimmy Butler sprained his left elbow in the third quarter.
- - -
Trail Blazers 110, Kings 99
Damian Lillard scored 31 points and LaMarcus Aldridge had 26,
leading the Portland Trail Blazers to a victory against the
Sacramento Kings.
Aldridge added 15 rebounds for his 30th double-double of the season
for Portland (39-19).
Rudy Gay led the Kings with 24 points.
The Kings were without All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins, their
leading scorer and rebounder, who missed his second straight game
with a sprained left ankle and left hip contusion.
- - -
[to top of second column] |
Thunder 108, Lakers 101
Despite playing without injured All-Stars Kevin Durant and Russell
Westbrook, the Oklahoma City Thunder had little trouble with the Los
Angeles Lakers.
D.J. Augustin and Serge Ibaka scored 18 points apiece, and the
Thunder (33-27) snapped a two-game skid.
Jeremy Lin came off the bench to score 20 points and dished out
eight assists to lead the Lakers (16-42), who lost for the first
time in four games.
Westbrook missed his first game since undergoing surgery on a
fractured right cheekbone sustained in Friday's loss at Portland.
His return is unknown. Durant, whose status also is up in the air,
was out again with a sore right foot.
- - -
Pacers 94, 76ers 74
George Hill scored 17 points, and center Roy Hibbert contributed 14
points, a season-best-tying 15 rebounds and five blocked shots in
the Indiana Pacers' victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
Indiana, which won for the eighth time in 10 games, finished on a
13-0 run.
- - -
Hornets 98, Magic 83
Mo Williams scored 23 points and added a game-high 11 assists to
lead the Charlotte Hornets to victory over the Orlando Magic.
The Bobcats (24-33), who are battling to stay in playoff contention,
had a well-balanced attack with all five starters scoring at least
11 points.
Victor Oladipo led the Magic attack with 21 points and five assists.
- - -
Pelicans 99, Nuggets 92
Tyreke Evans had 22 points, guard Eric Gordon scored 16 of his 18
points in the second half and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the
Denver Nuggets.
The Pelicans (32-27) have been winning despite the absence of three
of their top four scorers -- forward Anthony Davis, center Ryan
Anderson and guard Jrue Holiday.
Evans, Gordon and forward Quincy Pondexter have picked up the
scoring slack the last four games.
Danilo Gallinari scored 21 points and guard Randy Foye had 19 for
the Nuggets, who have lost 19-of-21 overall. (Compiled Jahmal
Corner; Editing by John O'Brien)
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