Giannis Antetokounmpo leads Milwaukee Bucks in wire-to-wire rout of Philadelphia 76ers
Harden and Westbrook combine for 72 as Rockets beat Jazz; Bazemore inspires Kings from bench as they shock Clippers; Heat honour Wade in Cavs win
Sunday 23 February 2020 10:40, UK
Giannis Antetokounmpo collected 31 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists to lift the host Milwaukee Bucks to a wire-to-wire 119-98 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Philadelphia 76ers 98-119 Milwaukee Bucks
Giannis Antetokounmpo collected 31 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists to lift the host Milwaukee Bucks to a wire-to-wire 119-98 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Antetokounmpo shot 12 of 17 from the field for the Bucks, who have won 21 of 24 games since losing 121-109 to Philadelphia on Christmas Day. The reigning NBA MVP made 8 of 27 shots for 18 points in that contest before erupting for 36 points and 20 rebounds in Milwaukee's 112-101 victory over the 76ers earlier this month.
Khris Middleton added 25 points and nine rebounds as the Bucks sent road-challenged Philadelphia to its sixth straight loss away from home.
Joel Embiid scored 12 of his 17 points in the second quarter, however a porous shooting display (5 of 18) and early foul trouble prevented the 76ers' All-Star from establishing any semblance of rhythm.
To make matters worse for Philadelphia were the early departure of fellow All-Star Ben Simmons, who aggravated a back injury on a layup midway into the first quarter. He promptly retreated to the locker room and did not return, scoring just five points in five minutes.
The Sixers collapsed in a bid to keep Antetokounmpo under wraps, allowing Wesley Matthews, Robin Lopez, Donte DiVincenzo and Middleton open looks from beyond the arc as the Bucks turned a six-point halftime lead into a 93-73 advantage after three quarters.
Antetokounmpo got in on the three-point party, calmly sinking an uncontested shot from distance early in the fourth quarter. The crowd promptly serenaded him with "MVP" chants.
He's looking more and more like a lock to take the award for the second consecutive year, whilst the Bucks continue to remain rampant moving to 48-8 on the season with the win.
Houston Rockets 120-110 Utah Jazz
James Harden scored 38 points, Russell Westbrook added 34 and the Houston Rockets beat the Utah Jazz on the road for the second time in four weeks, winning 120-110 at Vivint Smart Home Arena.
Harden added five rebounds and seven assists to his ledger, and it was his sixth three-pointer with 2:13 remaining that silenced the Jazz once and for all. Utah had sliced a 16-point deficit to 115-108 before Harden drilled a 27-footer that lifted Houston to victory.
Eric Gordon and Ben McLemore scored 12 points apiece off the bench for the Rockets, who finished 20 of 48 from behind the arc. It was the Rockets' three-point prowess that undergirded the decisive run down the stretch of the third quarter, with McLemore, Austin Rivers and Gordon all connecting from deep to spark a 17-5 surge after Utah closed to within 83-80 on a three-point play from Mike Conley.
Donovan Mitchell paced the Jazz with 31 points while Jordan Clarkson added 22 off the bench. Utah posted a whopping 64 paint points, but that wasn't enough to offset the Rockets' shooting.
The Rockets drained 25 treys at Golden State on Thursday and carried that momentum to Utah, opening 8-for-9 on threes before Gordon and Westbrook missed to initiate a regression to the mean.
Although the Rockets cooled down and the Jazz rallied in the second quarter to hold the lead at halftime, Houston were dominant enough in the second half to claim its seventh win in nine games.
Sacramento Kings 112-103 LA Clippers
Kent Bazemore scored a season-high 23 points off the bench, while De'Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic added 20 points each as the Sacramento Kings defeated the host Los Angeles Clippers 112-103.
Harry Giles III had 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Harrison Barnes chipped in 13 points for Sacramento. Nemanja Bjelica contributed 10 points and seven rebounds. Fox had a team-high eight assists for the Kings, who have won five of their last seven.
Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Clippers. Lou Williams finished with 24 points and Montrezl Harrell had 16 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for Los Angeles.
The Clippers played without Paul George (hamstring) and Patrick Beverley (groin).
And the title contenders started slowly, missing 20 of their 24 first-quarter shots from the floor as the Kings coasted to a 25-13 lead. It was the lowest output in a quarter this season for the Clippers and it proved costly, as the team fell to a third straight loss.
Dallas Mavericks 107-111 Atlanta Hawks
John Collins tied his career high with 35 points and Trae Young scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter to help the host Atlanta Hawks overcome an 11-point deficit in the period to defeat the short-handed Dallas Mavericks 111-107.
Young, who scored 50 points on Thursday, was quiet until making some noise in the final quarter. His driving layup with 57.5 seconds left gave Atlanta a 109-107 lead en route to the win.
After Dallas' Tim Hardaway missed a 3-pointer with 36 seconds left, Atlanta took a four-point lead when Collins scored on an offensive rebound after Young's drive was blocked by Delon Wright with 8.4 seconds left. Wright was whistled for goaltending, but the call was reversed after a video review. However, the Collins basket was allowed to stand since he was shooting when the whistle blew.
Dallas opted to rest Luca Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis on the second end of a back-to-back. The Mavericks also lost Jalen Brunson, who started in place of Doncic, with a right shoulder sprain early in the first quarter.
Collins was 13-for-18 from the floor, including 3-for-3 on three-pointers, and added 17 rebounds. Cam Reddish scored 20 for the Hawks, who won their second straight.
Hardaway matched his season-high with 33 points, including six three-pointers. Seth Curry scored 22 points and made four threes in the losing effort for the Mavericks.
Cleveland Cavaliers 105-124 Miami Heat
Hot-shooting Miami produced their best half in franchise history and romped over the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 124-105 on a Saturday night when the Heat retired the jersey of iconic guard Dwyane Wade.
Playing without top scorer Jimmy Butler (personal reasons), the Heat made 14 of their first 17 shots and raced out to their best half ever by leading 82-52 at the halftime break.
In their last home game on February 3 against the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami - with five-time All-Star Butler notching a season-high 38 against his former team - scored 81 points in the second half of their 137-106 victory.
Kendrick Nunn tallied 24 points and eight assists to lead seven Miami players who scored in double figures. Duncan Robinson added 19, Kelly Olynyk 17 and Goran Dragic 16. Bam Adebayo had 15, and Derrick Jones Jr and Jae Crowder each had 13 as Miami improved to 23-3 at home but won for just the second time in seven games.
At halftime, the Heat honoured Wade - their 13-time All-Star - whose No 3 jersey was retired and raised to the rafters at AmericanAirlines Arena. Wade, 38, helped Miami to three NBA championships and is the organisation's all-time leader in games, points, assists and steals.
The Cavaliers, who own the worst record in the Eastern Conference (15-41), were paced by Cedi Osman's 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, while Collin Sexton added 17 points and Tristan Thompson scored 16.
Second-leading scorer Kevin Love rested his ailing Achilles on the second game of back-to-backs for Cleveland, which has dropped seven of their last nine.
Brooklyn Nets 115-86 Charlotte Hornets
Reserve Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot's 21 points and Caris LeVert's 17 points led eight players in double-figure scoring as the Brooklyn Nets tore through the host Charlotte Hornets in a 115-86 victory.
Garrett Temple (15 points), Taurean Prince (14), Joe Harris (12), Jarrett Allen (12), DeAndre Jordan (12) and Spencer Dinwiddle (10) also reached double digits.
The Hornets were aiming to increase their winning streak to a season-high four games, but that didn't pan out.
PJ Washington posted 16 points, Malik Monk had 15 points, Cody Zeller had 14 with nine rebounds and Miles Bridges added 13 points for Charlotte. Terry Rozier had 10 points.
Six different players drained at least one 3-point basket for the Nets, who won three of four meetings with Charlotte this season.
Phoenix Suns 112-104 Chicago Bulls
Deandre Ayton scored 28 points and grabbed 19 rebounds as the visiting Phoenix Suns rallied from down 10 points at halftime to beat the Chicago Bulls 112-104.
Phoenix, playing the second leg of a back-to-back, began their current, three-game road swing on Friday trying unsuccessfully to mount a second-half comeback at reigning NBA champion Toronto. Saturday's contest in Chicago followed a different arc.
Chicago led by as many as 17 points in the second quarter. Coby White came off the bench to set the pace, finishing with a career-high 33 points. But the Suns chipped away before halftime, then set the tone for the second half by scoring the third quarter's first 13 points.
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Phoenix took their first lead since the first quarter when Devin Booker knocked down a three-pointer, one of the five he made on the night en route to a team-high 29 points. Booker also collected five rebounds and five assists.
Ricky Rubio flirted with a triple-double for Phoenix with 18 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.
Zach LaVine scored 20 points for the Bulls, but shot just 8 of 20 from the floor and 2 of 8 from behind the arc. LaVine finished with a team-high five assists, but committed another team high with seven turnovers.
