The Cleveland Cavaliers will continue their play-off push without one of their top playmakers.

Donovan Mitchell underwent a medical procedure on his nose on Tuesday and will be re-evaluated in about one week.

The injury timeline given by the Cavaliers means he'll likely miss two games against the Miami Heat, as well as contests against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Charlotte Hornets.

Depending on his recovery, the five-time All-Star has a chance to return for the second part of a home-and-home with the Hornets, next Wednesday at Charlotte.

Mitchell suffered a nasal fracture in Saturday's 117-103 loss to the Houston Rockets when he was accidentally hit by team-mate Tristan Thompson, and subsequently sat out Monday's 108-103 win over the Indiana Pacers.

With the victory, the Cavs improved to 10-9 without Mitchell, who has missed time lately with a bone bruise in his left knee.

They are 33-16 in games he plays.

Mitchell, 27, is one of the NBA's top scorers, ranking sixth at 27.4 points per game, while also averaging career highs with 6.1 assists and 5.3 rebounds.

His play is a big reason why Cleveland is in the mix for one of the top seeds in the Eastern Conference.

The Cavs entered play Tuesday in third place in the East, one game behind the Milwaukee Bucks for first place in the Central Division.

They are also just two games ahead of the New York Knicks, and three up on the Orlando Magic.

This is the latest significant injury for Cleveland, which has also seen starters Evan Mobley (ankle) and Max Strus (knee) both miss time lately.

Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, Miles McBride added a career-high 29, and the New York Knicks ran their winning streak to four games with Monday's 119-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors.

McBride, who entered the contest averaging just 6.5 points per game, buried 6 of 9 attempts from 3-point range and totalled 11 first-quarter points in a game the Knicks never trailed. New York also received a 10-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple-double from Josh Hart to extend their lead on fifth-place Orlando in the Eastern Conference to one game.

The Knicks opened the game on an 18-4 run and led by as many as 15 points in the first half, though Golden State closed out the second quarter on a 12-3 spurt to cut its deficit to 62-56 at the break.

Despite 15 second-half points from Klay Thompson, the Warriors never got closer than four points behind over the final two quarters as the Knicks continued to keep them at arm's length mainly due to the shot-making of Brunson, who recorded 20 points in the second half.

Golden State lost for the fourth time in six games despite 27 points from Stephen Curry and 18 from Thompson, who added a team-high eight assists. Rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis finished 9 of 9 from the field while compiling 19 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Warriors. 

76ers fend off Heat to gain ground in standings

Tyrese Maxey tallied 30 points and 10 assists to lead the way as the Philadelphia 76ers earned an important win by holding off the Miami Heat for a 98-91 victory.

The 76ers' second straight win, coupled with Indiana's loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday, moved Philadelphia a half game ahead of the Pacers for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The top six teams in both conferences are guaranteed to avoid the play-in round and are assured of a quarterfinals series.

Kelly Oubre Jr. also posted a double-double for Philadelphia with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Kyle Lowry chipped in 16 points in his first meeting with the Heat since being traded by his former team in January.

The Heat took the court again without injured stars Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro but kept the game close until the Sixers began to pull away over the final seven minutes.

Buddy Hield's 3-pointer with 6:34 left snapped an 85-85 tie and ignited an 8-2 Philadelphia run that Oubre finished with a layup to give his team a 93-87 edge with 2:28 remaining.

The Heat missed nine of their final 10 field goal attempts and had their two-game winning streak snapped when the 76ers made three free throws in the final 18.3 seconds.

Philadelphia was clinging to a 53-51 lead early in the second half before ripping off 15 consecutive points - seven of which came courtesy of Maxey - to go up by double digits. 

Miami responded in the fourth, however, by outscoring the Sixers by a 17-4 margin over a 3 1/2-minute stretch. Terry Rozier had eight points during the run along with a steal that led to Caleb Martin's dunk that tied the game at 85-85 with 6:54 left.

Rozier and Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 20 points each, with Adebayo adding 13 rebounds and six assists and Rozier recording eight rebounds.

Resilient Cavaliers pin key loss on Pacers

The Indiana Pacers were leap-frogged by the 76ers in the standings after being dealt a 108-103 loss by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who received big performances from Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen to overcome the absence of several missing pivotal players.

LeVert compiled 23 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds and Allen also had 23 points along with nine rebounds as Cleveland prevailed despite again playing without All-Star Donovan Mitchell and fellow starters Evan Mobley and Max Strus.

Indiana received 19 points and 12 rebounds from Pascal Siakam but had an off-shooting night as a team, as it connected on just 9 of 38 tries (23.7 per cent) from 3-point range.

Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers' top scorer this season, was held to 14 points on 4-of-14 shooting but did hand out 12 assists.

Indiana did shoot nearly 61 per cent from the field while building a 34-25 lead after one quarter, and was up by 15 points nearing the midway stage of the second before the Cavaliers roared back. 

Cleveland outscored the Pacers by a 22-7 count over the remainder of the first half to tie the game at 54-54 at intermission, and later took a 72-62 advantage in the third quarter behind an 18-6 run.

Indiana rallied in the fourth quarter to knot the score at 103-103 on Haliburton's floater with 2:05 left, but LeVert put the Cavs back ahead with a basket on the ensuing possession. 

The Pacers failed to score the rest of the way, and Isaac Okoro put Cleveland up by two possessions with a layup off a feed from Allen with 26.1 seconds remaining.

 

 

Kevin Durant scored 24 of his 37 points in the second half to help rally the Phoenix Suns to a 117-111 win over the hobbled Cleveland Cavaliers in a key inter-conference clash on Monday.

Durant added eight rebounds and six assists for Phoenix, which overcame a 19-point deficit in the second quarter while being boosted by All-Star Devin Booker's return from a sprained ankle.

Booker contributed 27 points on 11-of-22 shooting along with seven rebounds in 38 minutes after missing the Suns' last four games.

Darius Garland went 7 of 10 from 3-point range and finished with 30 points for the Cavaliers, who were again without three injured starters in All-Star Donovan Mitchell, forward Evan Mobley and guard Max Strus. Caris LeVert recorded 17 points and 11 assists in the loss. 

Cleveland has lost two straight and dropped a game behind the Milwaukee Bucks for first place in the Central Division.

Garland and the Cavs came out hot, as the standout guard put up 21 first-quarter points and Cleveland shot 66.7 per cent for the period to build a 41-32 lead. The margin grew in the second quarter, as Garland buried a 3-pointer to cap an 11-2 run that put the hosts up 63-44 with 4:50 left before half-time.

Phoenix closed the gap to 70-63 at the intermission before outscoring the Cavaliers by a 34-21 margin in the third quarter to pull ahead. Durant led the way with 19 points for the period on 6-of-8 shooting. 

Cleveland fought back to tie the game at 104-104 with under eight minutes left, but Booker and Durant led the Suns on a 9-3 flurry that the latter finished with a 3-pointer that gave the Suns a 113-107 lead with 3:43 remaining.

Doncic extends triple-doubles streak, but 30-point run ends

Luka Dončić posted his seventh consecutive triple-double, though his record run of six straight games of at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists came to an end in the Dallas Mavericks' 127-92 rout of the Chicago Bulls.

Doncic recorded 14 assists and 12 rebounds but failed to hit the 30-point mark after being removed from the blowout win midway through the fourth quarter. He finished with 27 points.

Dallas also dominated inside en route to its third consecutive victory, as post players Derrick Lively and Daniel Gafford combined for 44 points on 20-of-21 shooting. Lively missed just one of his 12 attempts while compiling a career-high 22 points, while Gafford was 9 of 9 from the field to end with 20 points.

Gafford is now a perfect 28 of 28 on field goal attempts over his last four games.

The Mavericks set the tone right from the start, as they outscored Chicago by a whopping 44-16 margin in the first quarter while shooting 64.3 per cent as a team. Doncic had 15 points and seven assists for the period and Lively chipped in 10 points in just six minutes.

Chicago never mounted a serious threat the rest of the way, as Dallas took a 62-42 lead into half-time and went ahead by as many as 34 points in the third quarter.

Onuralp Bitim led the Bulls with a career-high 17 points off the bench. Chicago has now lost two straight following a three-game winning streak on the road from March 4-7.

Jokic, Nuggets overcome 22-point deficit to top Raptors

Nikola Jokić compiled a 35-point, 17-rebound, 12-assist triple-double that helped spark a big second-half comeback which lifted the Denver Nuggets to a hard-earned 125-119 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Denver trailed by 21 points in the third quarter and as many as 22 in the game before rallying behind Jokic and Jamal Murray, who recorded 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and scored the go-ahead bucket with 6:48 left to play.

Jokic also had a season-high six steals in addition to his 21st triple-double of the season.

The Nuggets moved to 9-1 since the All-Star break, though the underdog Raptors gave the defending NBA champions all they could handle for much of the night.

Toronto opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run to build a 45-32 lead and extended the margin to 68-51 at the break behind 15 points from RJ Barrett and 13 from rookie Gradey Dick.

The Nuggets began chipping away late in the third quarter, as they closed out the period on a 16-5 spurt to trim the deficit to 98-93 entering the fourth. Jokic had 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting for the quarter.

Murray's floater midway through the fourth quarter gave Denver a 108-107 lead, though the Raptors continued to keep it close until Michael Porter Jr.'s 3-pointer with 1:02 left to play proved to be too much to overcome as the Nuggets took a 124-119 edge into the final minute.

Barrett finished with 26 points, seven rebounds and nine assists for Toronto, which also received 24 points from Kelly Olynyk but lost for a fourth consecutive time.

 

 

Rudy Gobert has acknowledged the gesture which landed him a costly technical in the Minnesota Timberwolves' defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday was "immature", though he refused to back down on his claim sports betting is influencing NBA officials.

The Timberwolves led the short-handed Cavs with just 27.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse when Gobert was pulled up for his sixth and disqualifying foul. 

The three-time All-Star responded by rubbing his fingers together in an apparent money gesture towards referee Scott Foster. 

Fellow official Natalie Sago spotted the gesture and hit Gobert with a technical, sending Cleveland's Darius Garland to the free-throw line to tie the game up at 97 apiece.

Garland finished with 34 points and Jarrett Allen added a career-high 33 including 10 in overtime, as the Cavs took full advantage of Gobert's loss of discipline to claim a 113-104 win.

Gobert is now facing the prospect of further punishment from the NBA, having told reporters that gambling is influencing the way games are being officiated.  

"I'll bite the bullet again," Gobert said. "I'll be the bad guy. I'll take the fine, but I think it's hurting our game. 

"I know the betting and all that is becoming bigger and bigger, but it shouldn't feel that way.

"It's not just one call. Everyone makes mistakes, but when it's over and over and over again, of course it's frustrating."

The Frenchman did concede that he was wrong to make the gesture at such a pivotal moment, adding: "My reaction, I think it was the truth, but it wasn't the time to react that way. 

"It cost my team the game. It was an immature reaction."

Minnesota coach Chris Finch missed the game after feeling unwell prior to tipoff, with assistant Micah Nori taking his place on the bench.

Nori was furious with Gobert for the timing of his technical, saying: "A technical foul with 27 seconds in the game, to be honest, is unacceptable. 

"That's who Rudy is, but you've got to be smart. He made a visual that was automatic. He was obviously frustrated, both teams were, but we have to be smarter."

The Timberwolves, who sit second in the Western Conference at 44-20, now head to Los Angeles to face the Lakers and the Clippers, while the Cavs host the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.

D’Angelo Russell scored 21 of his season-high 44 points in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead jumper with 5.9 seconds left, and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame LeBron James’ absence in a 123-122 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.

After Russell’s basket put the Lakers up one, Spencer Dinwiddie blocked Damian Lillared’s step-back jumper before the buzzer to preserve a stirring win for the Lakers.

Russell matched his career high with nine 3-pointers, handed out nine assists and scored the Lakers’ final eight points in the final 1:13 to help them rally from a late deficit.

Anthony Davis had 22 points and 13 rebounds and Austin Reaves added 18 points as the Lakers won without James, who sat out to rest his sore left ankle.

Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 34 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists for his 43rd career triple-double and Lillard scored 28 points, but Milwaukee lost its second in a row after coming out of the All-Star break with six consecutive wins.

Depleted Cavaliers outlast Timberwolves

Darius Garland scored 34 points and Jarrett Allen scored 10 of his career-high 33 in overtime and also grabbed 18 rebounds to lead the injury-thinned Cleveland Cavaliers to a 113-104 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Allen made a career-best 15 free throws, 14 after halftime and his dunk early in overtime put the Cavaliers ahead for good.

Georges Niang had 16 points and Caris LeVert added 15 and eight assists to help Cleveland win despite missing starters Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Max Strus.

Naz Reid scored a career-high 34 points and Anthony Edwards added 19 on 7-of-27 shooting for the Wolves, who entered with a league-best 21-11 road record.

Minnesota’s loss coupled with Oklahoma City’s win over Miami moved the Thunder into sole possession of the Western Conference lead.

Thunder win to move atop West

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 of his 37 points in the second half and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied for a 107-100 victory over the Miami Heat to move into sole possession of the Western Conference lead.

Jalen Williams added 15 points and Josh Giddey had 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists as the Thunder overcame a 14-point deficit to move into first place in the West, one-half game ahead of Minnesota.

Rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. scored 25 points and Jimmy Butler had 20, 10 boards and eight assists for Miami, which has lost consecutive games for the first time since a seven-game skid in January.

Jaylen Brown believes the Boston Celtics' defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers was a "mentality loss".

The NBA-leading Celtics threw away a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter of Tuesday's game, as they saw an 11-game winning streak come to an end with a 105-104 loss.

And Boston can only have themselves to blame, according to Brown, who finished with 21 points.

"I think we are a much better team than we showed today," Jaylen Brown said. "Today was just a mentality loss.

"We had the game and then we got comfortable, so it was more of a mindset thing than X's and O's.

"We've got to just be the more disciplined, the more militant team. We weren't that. Usually, we are that, and we felt that today and I think that's the reason why they were able to get back into the game.

"Our mindset was a little bit too lax, and we were too careless with the ball. We weren't intentional on offense.

"We kind of let guys get to tendencies that we were supposed to take away. We gave up offensive rebounds, stuff that all just comes with mindset."

Coach Joe Mazzulla echoed Brown's sentiment, citing defensive mistakes.

"We've given up offensive rebounds at the end of the shot clock when we were winning," he said.

"I think that, in situations like this, they just become a little bit more heightened and a little bit more attention to detail to them.

"They're the same situations that have been happening. They're just in more of a critical time. So it's a good heightened awareness to them."

Brown, meanwhile, asserted that the Celtics must learn from their mistakes.

"Today matters," Brown said. "Whether everybody wants to throw it away or not, we gotta look at the film and address some stuff, because that matters.

"Your habits are everything. Your mentality is everything. And every game, you can't waste possessions, you can't waste time out there on the floor.

"So, today matters. We need to look at that."

Dean Wade starred for the Cavs, going 5-for-5 from deep in their fourth-quarter revival, finishing with 23 points.

"Rank's pretty high. Pretty high," he said. "It felt good. The rim looked really big."

Dean Wade sank five 3-pointers and scored 20 of his career-high 23 points in the fourth quarter as the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied from a 22-point deficit in the final period to end the Boston Celtics’ 11-game winning streak, 105-104 on Tuesday.

Wade personally outscored the Celtics in the fourth quarter, 20-17, as he came to the rescue with his barrage of 3s and a putback dunk with 19.1 seconds left to put the Cavs up 105-104.

Boston’s Jayson Tatum appeared to draw a foul on Darius Garland while shooting a jumper with 0.7 seconds left, but Cleveland challenged the call, and following a review, officials said it was Tatum’s leg that caused the contact and not Garland.

Jarrett Allen scored 21 points and Garland had 16 with 11 assists for the Cavs, who made 8 of 11 3s in the final quarter, including two from reserve Georges Niang.

Tatum led Boston with 26 points and Kristaps Porzingis added 24 as the league-leading Celtics lost for the first time since Feb. 1.

 

Doncic extends triple-double streak in loss

Luka Doncic notched his fourth straight triple-double, but Tyrese Haliburton had 19 points and 11 assists to lead the Indiana Pacers to a 137-120 win over the Dallas Mavericks.

Doncic had 39 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for his 14th triple-double of the season. Russell Westbrook is the only player in NBA history with five consecutive 30-point triple-doubles and Oscar Robertson is the only other player with four.

Myles Turner scored 20 points to lead nine players in double figures for the Pacers, whose bench outscored the Mavericks’ 69-32.

 

Suns cool Nuggets with win in overtime

Kevin Durant scored eight of his 35 points in overtime and the Phoenix Suns recovered after blowing a 22-point lead to beat the Denver Nuggets, 117-107.

After being held to 12 points in the fourth quarter, the Suns erupted for 15 in overtime, with Durant and Beal combining for 13.

Beal finished with 16 points and Grayson Allen scored 28 with eight 3-pointers as Phoenix avoided a third  straight loss.

Jamal Murray had 28 points and Nikola Jokić added 25 points, 16 rebounds and five assists for Denver, which had a six-game winning streak stopped.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will be without Max Strus as well as Donovan Mitchell as they take on the Boston Celtics on Tuesday.

Cleveland had already been without Mitchell for the past two games due to a left knee bone bruise, and he is to miss at least the next three.

Strus, who had started every game this season, will join his team-mate on the sideline as the Cavaliers take on the Eastern Conference leaders.

The 27-year-old guard, in his first season with the Cavs, has sustained a right knee strain.

Cleveland follow Tuesday's home game against Boston by visiting the Atlanta Hawks the following night.

The Cavs are third in the East but enduring a sticky patch, 5-5 across their past 10 games and slipping behind the second-placed Milwaukee Bucks.

Max Strus connected on a 59-foot heave at the buzzer, lifting the Cleveland Cavaliers to a wild 121-119 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.

Strus made five 3-pointers in the final 3:42 of the game and capped a back-and-forth ending, giving the Cavs their 20th win in their last 24 games.

Dallas’ PJ Washington made a contested layup with 2.6 seconds remaining to put the Mavs up 119-118.

Without any timeouts to advance the ball, Strus inbounded to Evan Mobley, who quickly returned the ball. Strus took one dribble before launching from behind the half-court line and swishing the game-winning bucket.

Strus finished with 21 points. Donovan Mitchell also made seven 3’s and led the way for the Cavs with 31 points.

With the win, Cleveland (38-19) remained alone in second place in the Eastern Conference.

The Mavericks, who lead by 10 with under four minutes remaining, squandered a signature performance from Luka Dončić, who finished with 45 points, nine rebounds and 14 assists.

 

Celtics extend season-best winning streak

Jaylen Brown scored 31 points, Jayson Tatum flirted with a triple-double and the Boston Celtics weathered a rare cold shooting night, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 117-99 for their ninth straight win.

The Celtics, who lead the NBA in both 3-point makes and attempts this season, shot just 5 of 22 from beyond the arc, both season lows.

Boston compensated for their cold shooting by attacking the rim and shooting 34 of 37 from the free throw line. Tatum – who finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists – was 10 of 11 from the line, while Kristaps Porzingis made all 12 of his free throws.

The Celtics (46-12) improved to 25-0 at home against Eastern Conference opponents.

Tyrese Maxey was the high-point man for Philadelphia with 32, but the rest of the 76ers’ starters combined for just 22 points.

 

SGA powers Thunder to 6th straight win

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continued to make his case for league MVP, Jalen Williams scored an efficient 24 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Houston Rockets 112-95 to win their sixth straight game.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 31 points and has scored at least 30 in every game during the Thunder’s winning streak.

The win kept Oklahoma City (41-17) in a tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves for the best record in the Western Conference.

Alperen Sengun had a team-high 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Rockets, who are just 6-14 in their last 20 games.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Milwaukee Bucks held off the West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves 112-107 on Friday in a matchup of NBA heavyweights.

Damian Lillard had 21 points, 10 assists and a season-high nine rebounds and Malik Beasley scored all 14 of his points in the third quarter as the Bucks improved to 4-10 under new coach Doc Rivers.

Anthony Edwards scored 28 points and hit three 3-pointers in the final two minutes to draw the Wolves within 110-107 with 31 seconds left, but Lillard’s long jumper 22 seconds later sealed the win.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 22 points with 14 rebounds and Rudy Gobert added 12 points and 19 boards for Minnesota, which had a four-game winning streak snapped.

Butler among 4 ejected in Heat’s win

Jimmy Butler was one of four players ejected after a fourth-quarter scuffle and the Miami Heat held off the New Orleans Pelicans, 106-95.

Butler had 23 points and nine rebounds and Bam Adebayo added 24 points for Miami, which snapped New Orleans’ four-game winning streak and made it seven consecutive wins over the Pelicans.

Also ejected for the melee were Heat reserve Thomas Bryant and Jose Alvarado and Naji Marshall of the Pelicans.

Herb Jones scored 19 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 12 with 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which couldn’t overcome 37.5 percent shooting, including 7 of 32 from 3-point range.

Maxey leads 76ers over Cavaliers

Tyrese Maxey scored 24 points and Cam Payne added 16 off the bench to propel the Philadelphia 76ers to a 104-97 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Maxey came alive in the fourth quarter, scoring 15 of the Sixers’ final 20 points and assisted on a 3-pointer by Buddy Hield that put Philadelphia up by eight in the final minute.

Maxey was the only Sixer to make more than one basket in the fourth quarter and also added four rebounds and two assists.

Jarrett Allen had 24 points and Darius Garland added 20 and nine assists, but Cleveland had a six-game road winning streak stopped while losing for the third time in four games overall.

Recent acquisition Buddy Hield scored 24 points and the Philadelphia 76ers held on late to end the Cleveland Cavaliers' nine-game winning streak with Monday's 123-121 victory.

Despite still being without injured reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid, Philadelphia handed the red-hot Cavaliers just their second loss in their last 19 games behind hot-shooting efforts from Hield and Kelly Oubre Jr. 

Hield, making his third appearance since being acquired by the Sixers from the Indiana Pacers on Thursday, finished 5 of 8 from 3-point range and 9 of 13 overall from the field. Oubre hit 10 of his 14 field goal attempts while also collecting 24 points.

The win was Philadelphia's second straight following a 1-8 stretch from Jan. 25-Feb. 9, during which the team lost Embiid for an extended period due to a knee injury that required surgery.

Cleveland got 36 points and six assists from All-Star Donovan Mitchell and 21 points and 10 rebounds from Jarrett Allen, but couldn't match the Sixers down the stretch after taking a 102-100 lead with seven minutes remaining.

Hield scored the final eight points of a 13-2 run that gave Philadelphia a 113-104 advantage with 4:28 left to play, and the 76ers led 120-110 with 1:25 to go following an Oubre 3-pointer.

The Cavs responded with a 9-0 spurt to pull within 120-119 on Mitchell's 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining, and had a chance to win at the buzzer when Darius Garland launched a 3-point shot that just missed the mark.

Garland ended with 21 points and nine assists, while Tyrese Maxey recorded 22 points and nine assists for Philadelphia.

Timberwolves dominate second half in rout of Clippers

The Minnesota Timberwolves got 24 points from Karl-Anthony Towns and a big third quarter to pull away for a 121-100 win over the Los Angeles Clippers and pad their lead atop the Western Conference.

Anthony Edwards added 23 points, 12 of which came during a dominant third quarter in which the Timberwolves outscored Los Angeles by a 40-19 margin.

Minnesota entered Monday's clash owning a slim half-game advantage on the Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets, who were handed a 112-95 defeat by the Milwaukee Bucks, in the tightly bunched West standings. 

The Clippers kept it close until the latter stages of the third quarter, as the Timberwolves held a 70-69 edge with under five minutes left in the period.

Minnesota took over from there, as it closed out the quarter on a 19-3 run to take a commanding 89-72 lead into the fourth. Towns had eight points during the pivotal spurt.

The Timberwolves maintained a lead of 15 points or more throughout the final period en route to posting a second straight win and giving Los Angeles a second loss in its last three games.

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George led the Clippers with 18 points each, while James Harden finished with 17 points and six assists. 

Bucks use defence to get past champion Nuggets

The Milwaukee Bucks got 36 points and 18 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo and another strong performance from their much-maligned defence to hand the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets a 112-95 loss.

Milwaukee entered Monday's marquee matchup ranked 23rd in the NBA in scoring defence at 119.3 points allowed per game, but held the formidable Nuggets to their second-lowest shooting rate of the season at 38.3 per cent.

The Bucks have yielded under 100 points in consecutive games for the first time this season. Milwaukee lost five of its first six outings under new head coach Doc Rivers prior to Friday's 120-84 rout of the Charlotte Hornets.

Nikola Jokić amassed 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for the Nuggets. Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., Denver's second and third-leading scorers on the season, were a combined 4 of 16 from the field, however.

Murray managed just three points on 1-of-5 shooting before sitting out the second half due to inflammation in his lower legs.

The Bucks had built a comfortable 60-44 lead at that point as Antetokounmpo racked up 26 points on 10-of-12 shooting over the first two quarters. The Nuggets never got their deficit under 13 points the rest of the way and are now mired in a two-game losing streak.

 

Jarrett Allen scored 18 points to lead eight players in double figures and the Cleveland Cavaliers rolled to their ninth consecutive victory, 119-95 over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday.

Evan Mobley had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Donovan Mitchell scored 15 and Max Strus contributed 14 points for Cleveland, which has won 22 of its last 26 games and improved to an NBA-best 17-8 on the road.

The Cavaliers are 11-0 this season when holding opponents below 100 points.

Scottie Barnes scored 20 of his 24 points in the first half for Toronto and matched his season high with 10 assists to go with 10 rebounds for his fourth career triple-double.

The Raptors had won four straight and 10 of the past 11 home meetings against Cleveland.

 

Warriors win on Curry’s last-second 3-pointer

Stephen Curry drained a long 3-pointer with 0.7 seconds remaining – his ninth of the game - and the resurgent Golden State Warriors stunned the Phoenix Suns, 113-112.

After Bradley Beal missed a 3-pointer, Curry grabbed the rebound and the Warriors called time out with five seconds to play trailing 112-110.

Brandon Podziemski’s inbound pass was a little behind Curry, but he grabbed the ball and put up a 33-foot heave that hit nothing but net with the clock down to 0.7 seconds left.

Curry finished with 30 points, 10 rebounds and six assists and Jonathan Kuminga added 21 points to help Golden State win its fourth straight and sixth in seven games.

Devin Booker had 32 points for the Suns, who fell just short of a fourth consecutive victory.

 

Gafford has strong debut for surging Mavericks

Luka Dončić scored 32 points and Daniel Gafford had 19 and nine rebounds in his Mavericks debut as Dallas defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder, 146-111 for their fourth straight win.

Kyrie Irving added 25 points and Maxi Kleber had 12 points and 12 boards for Dallas, which led 47-30 after the highest-scoring first quarter in franchise history.

The Mavericks are 4-0 with Doncic and Irving in the lineup since Irving’s return from a sprained thumb.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 25 points for the Thunder, who shot 38.8 percent from the field and were outrebounded 54-40.

Donovan Mitchell scored 14 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter and Evan Mobley added 22 on 9-of-10 shooting as the Cleveland Cavaliers won their seventh straight game Wednesday, 114-106 over the Washington Wizards.

Mitchell, who had eight rebounds and five assists, scored at least 40 for the fifth time this season. He is averaging 34 points on 56 percent shooting over his last five games.

Cleveland survived a game with nine ties and 17 lead changes to win for the 15th time in 16 tries. The Cavs moved a game ahead of Milwaukee and New York in second place in the Eastern Conference.

Mitchell scored five points during a 9-0 run in the fourth quarter that gave Cleveland the lead for good and his fifth and final 3-pointer of the night made it 104-97 with 2:19 to play.

Kyle Kuzma scored 28 points and Corey Kispert had 23 on 9-of-15 shooting with seven rebounds for the Wizards, who have lost four in a row overall and 12 straight at home.

 

Pelicans cool Clippers for fourth straight win

CJ McCollum scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and Zion Williamson had 21 with a career-high 11 assists as the New Orleans Pelicans slowed the Los Angeles Clippers, 117-106.

Brandon Ingram had 15 points and eight rebounds and Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III each added 13 points to help the Pelicans open a four-game road trip with their fourth straight win.

James Harden scored 19 points and Norman Powell had 18 for the Clippers, who had a four-game winning streak snapped in their first game back from a 6-1 road trip.

Los Angeles was playing its eighth game in 13 days and lost for only the sixth time in 32 games since the start of December.

 

Porzingis propels Celtics past Hawks

Kristaps Porzingis had 31 points and Derrick White scored 12 of his 21 in the fourth quarter to power the Boston Celtics to a 125-117 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Jayson Tatum tallied 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists and Jaylen Brown scored 15 for the Celtics, who made 9 of their 17 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to make it seven consecutive wins over the Hawks.

Saddiq Bey scored 25 points and Trae Young added 20 with 10 assists as Atlanta dropped its second straight following a four-game winning streak.

Donovan Mitchell scored 29 points and led a torrid shooting performance from 3-point range that carried the Cleveland Cavaliers to a sixth consecutive win, a 136-110 rout of the Sacramento Kings on Monday. 

Cleveland rolled to its 14th victory in 15 games by going 23 of 41 (56.1 percent) from beyond the arc. Mitchell finished 5 of 11 on 3-point tries and Max Strus was 6 for 10 while adding 22 points.

The Kings got 12 points, 19 rebounds and 15 assists from Domantas Sabonis - his 15th triple-double of the season - but couldn't match the Cavaliers' prolific perimeter shooting as Cleveland began pulling away early in the second quarter.

Cleveland scored five straight points to stretch its lead to 46-36 less than two minutes into the second quarter and went into the half owning a comfortable 74-59 advantage behind Mitchell's 19 points.

The Cavaliers remained up by double digits the rest of the way, with their lead expanding to as many as 29 points late.

Harrison Barnes led Sacramento with 22 points while finishing 6 of 10 from 3-point range. The Kings closed out a seven-game road trip in which they had won five of their first six outings and six of seven overall coming into Monday's clash.

Irving, Doncic lead Mavericks past ailing 76ers

Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić combined for 42 points in the duo's first appearance together in two weeks to propel the Dallas Mavericks to a 118-102 win over the staggering Philadelphia 76ers.

Irving racked up 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting to go along with eight assists in his return from a six-game absence caused by a sprained right thumb. Doncic had 19 points and eight assists to help Dallas end a two-game skid and deal the ailing 76ers their sixth loss in seven games.

It was just the 23rd time in the Mavericks' 50 games this season they had a healthy Irving and Doncic together in the lineup.

Playing their third straight game without reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid, who will undergo left knee surgery and is out indefinitely, the Sixers received 19 points from Kelly Oubre Jr. and 17 from Tobias Harris.

All-Star Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia's second-leading scorer behind Embiid, had 15 points but was just 6 of 16 from the field.

The 76ers did manage to lead 33-26 after one quarter and 57-53 at the half, but Doncic hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:57 left in the third quarter to spark an 8-2 run that gave the Mavericks a 77-72 edge near the end of the period.

Dallas then dominated the fourth quarter, outscoring the 76ers by a 41-28 margin with its bench providing most of the offence, as reserves Jaden Hardy and Grant Williams each recorded 10 points in the final 12 minutes. 

Leonard's 36 points help Clippers cap trip with win over Hawks

Kawhi Leonard scored 13 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter as the Los Angeles Clippers outlasted the Atlanta Hawks and completed a successful road trip with a 149-144 victory.

James Harden added 30 points and 10 assists as he and Leonard powered Los Angeles to a ninth win in 10 games. The Clippers went 6-1 on an 11-day trek away from Crypto.com Arena while the venue hosted the Grammy Awards. 

In a fast-paced fourth quarter that saw both teams combine for 90 points, the Clippers outscored Atlanta by a 21-10 margin over a late stretch to move ahead for good.

Leonard began the run with a putback of his own miss that gave Los Angeles a 124-123 lead with 4:52 left, and Harden capped it when he was fouled after hitting a 26-foot jumper with 1:06 to go. He made the free throw to complete the 4-point play and extend the margin to 143-133.

The Hawks put forth a late rally and got to within 147-144 on Bogdan Bogdanović's 3-pointer with 26.7 seconds remaining, but Harden sunk two free throws on the ensuing possession to keep Atlanta at bay.

De'Andre Hunter had 27 points and seven rebounds off the bench to lead Atlanta, which had a four-game winning streak snapped. Trae Young finished with 25 points and 12 assists in the loss. 

 

Giannis Antetokounmpo notched his third triple-double in four games and the Milwaukee Bucks ended the Cleveland Cavaliers’ eight-game winning streak Wednesday with a 126-116 victory in their first game since the firing of coach Adrian Griffin.

Antetokounmpo had 35 points, a season high-tying 18 rebounds and 10 assists for his seventh triple-double this season. He came up one assist shy of having four consecutive triple-doubles after he had 31 points, 10 boards and nine assists in Saturday’s win at Detroit.

Joe Prunty served as Milwaukee’s interim head coach after Griffin was fired on Tuesday despite the Bucks leading the Central Division with a 30-13 record. The team was finalising negotiations with Doc Rivers to take over.

Damian Lillard added 28 points and Khris Middleton had 24 for the Bucks, winners of six of seven.

Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 23 points and Jarrett Allen had 21 and 12 assists.

 

Booker scores 46 for streaking Suns

Devin Booker scored 22 of his 46 points in the third quarter and the Phoenix Suns won their seventh straight game, 132-109 over the Dallas Mavericks.

Bradley Beal had 20 points and Kevin Durant added 12 and 10 rebounds as Phoenix matched its longest win streak of the season by turning a 16-point deficit in the second quarter into a 22-point lead after outscoring Dallas 43-20 in the third.

Luka Dončić tallied 34 points, eight rebounds and nine assists but didn’t get much help with All-Star sidekick Kyrie Irving out with a right thumb sprain.

 

Gilgeous-Alexander keeps Thunder hot

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 32 points, 10 assists and six rebounds as the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away for their fourth straight win, 140-114 over the San Antonio Spurs.

Aaron Wiggins scored 22 points and Chet Holmgren added 17 and nine rebounds as the Thunder remained tied with Minnesota atop the Northwest Division.

Victor Wembanyama had 24 points and 12 rebounds as the Spurs rookie faced off against Holmgren in a matchup of two of the top contenders for Rookie of the Year.

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