Dec. 10 – Joel Embiid scored 38 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, De’Anthony Melton posted career highs with 33 points, eight 3-pointers and seven steals, and the host Philadelphia 76ers beat the Los Angeles Lakers 133- 122 in overtime.
The Lakers rallied from nine in the final 29 seconds to force overtime, but the 76ers scored the first 12 points of the overtime session to snap a three-game losing streak.
James Harden contributed 28 points and 12 assists and Tobias Harris contributed 14 points and nine rebounds for Philadelphia.
Los Angeles’ Anthony Davis returned from a one-game absence caused by a non-COVID illness to produce 31 points and 12 rebounds, but the Lakers lost their third in a row. Russell Westbrook had 12 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds to become the first Laker to record a triple-double off the bench since Magic Johnson on Feb. 14, 1996.
Timberwolves 118, Jazz 108
D’Angelo Russell hit six 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and scored 30 points to lead Minnesota to a victory over Utah in Salt Lake City.
Rudy Gobert added 22 points and 13 rebounds in his first game at Utah since moving to Minnesota from the Jazz this offseason. Gobert, who remains beloved in Utah, received a warm welcome from jazz fans and a standing ovation after an early night video tribute.
Malik Beasley, one of the few players traded to Utah with four first-round picks, led the Jazz with 23 points. Jarred Vanderbilt, also part of that deal, had 12 points and 10 rebounds for Utah.
Dollars 106, Mavericks 105
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 28 points and Brook Lopez sank the game-winning layup with 7.1 seconds left as Milwaukee stole a game from Dallas.
George Hill lobbed a pass to Lopez from the sideline, the basket putting the Bucks ahead by one. After a Mavericks timeout, Luka Doncic missed a potentially game-winning 3-point shot. The decisive finish was Lopez’s only basket of the night.
Doncic finished with 33 points, 11 assists and six rebounds. Antetokounmpo, who saw his eight-game 30-point streak come to an end, was aided by teammates Khris Middleton (19 points) and Jrue Holiday (17).
Knicks 121, Hornets 102
Julius Randle had 33 points to propel New York to a road win over Charlotte.
New York, which earned its third straight win, shot 38.2 percent from 3-point territory on 13 of 34 attempts. Jalen Brunson, Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley and Isaiah Hartenstein finished with 11 points each.
Terry Rozier’s 24 points and Kelly Oubre Jr.’s 22 points were the driving force behind Charlotte, who lost her fourth in a row.
Pacers 121, Wizards 111
Buddy Hield scored a season-high 28 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 23 points and 11 assists to power Indiana to a victory over Washington at Indianapolis.
Rookie Bennedict Mathurin recorded 18 points and eight rebounds and Oshae Brissett added 16 and eight, respectively, for the Pacers.
Kyle Kuzma added 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Wizards, who have lost five straight games overall and seven straight road games. Jordan Goodwin added 19 points off the bench.
Nets 120, Falcons 116
Kevin Durant scored 34 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:17 remaining, and Brooklyn made enough plays in the streak to seal a victory over Atlanta in New York.
Kyrie Irving added 33 points and 11 rebounds for the Nets, who went 6-1 on a season-high seven-game homestand with five of those wins in the single digits.
Trae Young scored 33 and Bogdan Bogdanovic added a season-high 31, but the Hawks lost their third straight game and fell for the seventh time in 10 games.
Pelicans 128, Suns 117
Zion Williamson scored 35 points, Jose Alvarado added 20 off the bench, and scorching New Orleans beat Phoenix.
CJ McCollum added 18 points, Larry Nance Jr. scored 17 and Jonas Valanciunas contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds as the Pelicans won their sixth in a row and 11th in 13 games.
Deandre Ayton had 25 points and 14 rebounds while Chris Paul had 24 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the Suns, who lost for the fourth time in five games.
Kings 106, Knights 95
Harrison Barnes led a balanced offense with 20 points and Sacramento responded to its biggest deficit of the night with a late-game 19-point flurry that produced a stunning Cleveland triumph.
Kevin Huerter went for 19 points, while Domantas Sabonis and Keegan Murray each offered 18 as the Kings rebounded from a trip opener loss at Milwaukee to win for the fourth time in their last five games.
Caris LeVert had a game-high 22 points for the Cavaliers, who played without Donovan Mitchell, a late scratch with right leg pain. Darius Garland also had 19 points as Cleveland lost for the second time in three games.
Grizzlies 114, Pistons 103
Jaren Jackson Jr. led a balanced offense with 20 points as host Memphis extended their winning streak to five games by defeating Detroit.
Brandon Clarke had 17 points and seven rebounds and Dillon Brooks provided 16 points. Ja Morant, one of the league’s top 10 scorers, was limited to 15 points but also contributed 12 assists, six rebounds and three steals.
Bojan Bogdanovic led seven Detroit players in double figures with 19 points. Marvin Bagley III had 14 points as the Pistons lost for the sixth time in eight games.
Magic 113, Raptors 109
Franz Wagner scored the go-ahead basket in the last minute and had a season-best 34 points as Orlando beat visiting Toronto.
Paolo Banchero added 23 points for the Magic, which have won two in a row after losing nine in a row. Orlando’s Cole Anthony contributed 18 points.
Pascal Siakam had 36 points for Toronto. Gary Trent Jr. added 20 points and Fred VanVleet had 19 points as the Raptors fell to 2-4 in their last six games.
–Field-Level Media
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