Klay rains threes as Warriors thump Nuggets; Griffin inspires Pistons comeback; Williams drop 40 as Clippers beat Thunder
Saturday 9 March 2019 10:54, UK
James Harden scored a game-high 31 points as the Houston Rockets beat the Philadelphia 76ers to win their seventh straight game.
James Harden scored 31 points and Eric Gordon chipped in 17 with five three-pointers as the Houston Rockets extended their winning streak to a season-best seven games with their 107-91 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday at Toyota Center.
Harden added 10 rebounds, seven assists and two steals to his ledger as the Rockets seized control with a 14-2 spurt midway through the first quarter.
Philadelphia played their eighth consecutive game without All-Star center Joel Embiid (left knee), falling to 4-4 in that stretch.
A combination of lethargic defense and errant shooting did the 76ers in, particularly early. While Houston rolled to a 37-point opening period on 56.5 per cent shooting, Philadelphia missed all four of their three-point attempts in the first quarter while shooting 10-of-24 (41.7 per cent) overall.
The 76ers shooting did not improve throughout the course of the game, with Philadelphia finishing 3-for-26 from behind the arc while shooting 36.8 per cent from the floor.
Tobias Harris paced the 76ers with 22 points with nine rebounds while Jimmy Butler posted 19 points and nine boards. Ben Simmons also grabbed nine rebounds to complement his 15 points and 10 assists.
Rockets center Clint Capela just missed a double-double with 18 points and nine rebounds. Gerald Green added 14 points off the bench. Houston finished 13-for-41 from behind the arc.
Harden, who departed the game briefly after taking a hard fall on his right wrist, beat Butler off the dribble and converted a driving lay-up that extended the Houston lead to 15 points at the intermission.
Houston delivered the knockout blow with an 11-2 third-quarter burst that featured a trio of three-pointers. The Rockets extended their lead to 24 points on an Iman Shumpert corner three in the final period.
Klay Thompson poured in 27 of his game-high 39 points in the first half, allowing the Golden State Warriors to run away from the Denver Nuggets for the second consecutive time on their way to a 122-105 blowout win in Oakland.
The win allowed the Warriors (45-20) to increase their lead over the Nuggets (43-22) atop the Western Conference playoff race. It also gave Golden State a 2-1 lead in the season series, with one game remaining in Oakland on April 2.
Much as they did in a 142-111 shellacking of the Nuggets in Denver in January, the Warriors dominated the first quarter en route to a lead they relinquished only briefly.
The Warriors raced out of the gate with a 15-3 run, with Thompson contributing his first two three-pointers to the burst.
Golden State led by as many as 19 in the quarter, but the Nuggets rallied to within 30-20 by period's end and into a 40-39 lead midway through the second quarter after a pair of triples by Malik Beasley.
The Warriors regained a 53-50 lead, then finished the half on a 14-0 run, using four 3-pointers - two by Thompson - to account for all but two of the points en route to a 67-50 half-time advantage.
The Nuggets got no closer than eight in the second half.
Thompson finished 9-for-11 on three-pointers in his first outing after a two-game absence due to a sore right knee. Kevin Durant backed Thompson with 26 points for the Warriors, who had lost three of their previous four games.
Stephen Curry finished with 17 points and DeMarcus Cousins with 13 to complement six rebounds, six assists and six blocked shots for the Warriors.
Beasley and Monte Morris had 17 points apiece off the bench to lead Denver, who completed a 1-2 trip that began with a loss at San Antonio. Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray were the only two Nuggets starters to score in double figures, with 16 and 11 points, respectively.
Lou Williams scored 40 points off the bench as the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder 118-110 to move into sole possession of seventh place in the Western Conference.
Danilo Gallinari scored a season-high 34 points and Ivica Zubac added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Clippers, who have won seven of nine.
Russell Westbrook had 32 points, eight rebounds and seven assists before fouling out with 54 seconds left and the Thunder trailing by three points.
Paul George scored 15 points on 5-for-16 shooting before fouling out with 3:49 left and the Thunder down a point.
Dennis Schroder also scored 15 on just 5-for-20 shooting for Oklahoma City, who fell into sole possession of fourth in the West with their sixth loss in the past eight games.
Westbrook gave the Thunder their last lead at 104-103 when he converted a three-point play with 2:30 remaining, but Williams scored nine points the rest of the way.
Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points as the visiting Toronto Raptors pulled away from the shorthanded New Orleans Pelicans in the second half of a 127-104 victory.
Leonard scored 24 first-half points and finished 14-of-20 from the floor. Kyle Lowry added a triple-double with 13 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds. Pascal Siakam scored 19 points, Jeremy Lin had 14, Danny Green 13 and Serge Ibaka had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Pelicans played without three starters as Jrue Holiday (abdominal strain) and E'Twaun Moore (quad contusion) were ruled out for at least a week to 10 days and Anthony Davis was a last-minute scratch because of back spasms.
Jahlil Okafor started in Davis' place, but left for good in the third quarter because of a sprained left ankle.
Rookie Frank Jackson started in Holiday's place and led New Orleans with 20 points, Julius Randle added 18 points, Cheick Diallo came off the bench to add 16 points and 12 rebounds, Elfrid Payton scored 13, Ian Clark had 11 and Darius Miller 10.
The Raptors led by three points at half-time and scored the first six points of the third quarter. The Pelicans cut the deficit to four points on four occasions before Toronto took control.
Green made back-to-back three-pointers to complete a 9-0 run that gave the Raptors an 88-75 lead. The Raptors increased the lead to 16 before settling for a 93-80 edge after three quarters. They expanded the lead to 21 midway through the fourth quarter.
Mike Conley scored 28 points and dished out 11 assists while Jonas Valanciunas added 27 points as the host Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Utah Jazz 114-104.
Reserves Ivan Rabb and Delon Wright chipped in 15 and 11 points, respectively, for the Grizzlies.
Memphis, who beat Utah for the third time in four meetings this season, shot 51.1 per cent from the field and outscoring the Jazz 60-34 in the paint.
Donovan Mitchell poured in 38 points while shooting 12-of-24 from the field to lead Utah. Joe Ingles added 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Jazz, and Jae Crowder had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
The Grizzlies scored 13 unanswered points over a four-minute stretch spanning the second and third quarters. Conley and Valanciunas each made a pair of baskets, and Valanciunas capped the surge with a pair of free throws to give Memphis a 69-53 lead.
The Jazz clawed within four in the fourth quarter, cutting the Memphis lead to 95-91 behind a floater and a pair of free throws from Mitchell.
That was as close as Utah would get. Valanciunas made back-to-back shots and Wright tipped in a basket to put the Grizzlies up 101-91 with 5:15 remaining.
Blake Griffin scored 27 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter, as the visiting Detroit Pistons rallied from a 21-point deficit to take down the Chicago Bulls 112-104.
Andre Drummond recorded his 11th 20-20 game this season with 20 points and 24 rebounds as the Pistons won for the 11th time in 13 games. Reggie Jackson supplied 21 points, Langston Galloway added 15 and Luke Kennard chipped in 14.
Detroit outscored Chicago 43-24 in the fourth quarter.
Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 24 points, Otto Porter Jr supplied 23 points and eight assists and Lauri Markkanen added 18 points.
Chicago had three starters in double figures by half-time in racing to a 66-49 halftime lead. The Pistons chipped away in the third quarter and got as close as nine. Chicago brought an 80-69 advantage into the fourth.
Griffin retreated to the locker room during the third quarter to have a leg injury checked out but returned in the fourth. He hit a three-pointer seconds later, and a Galloway trey on Detroit's next possession made it a five-point game.
Galloway tied it at 85-all with 8:34 left on a three-pointer. Kennard knocked down a transition three 36 seconds later to give Detroit an 88-86 advantage.
A Markkanen layup tied it again, but the Pistons then scored the next 10 points, including six from Drummond.
The Bulls crept within five, but when Griffin converted a three-point play with 1:57 left, Detroit's lead was up to 10. Chicago couldn't get closer than five again.
Terrence Ross scored 22 points in his return from a one-game absence due to a sore left Achilles as the host Orlando Magic posted a 111-106 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
Orlando's Nikola Vucevic recorded his team-high 48th double-double of the season after collecting 20 points and 13 rebounds. Aaron Gordon chipped in with 18 points, and Ross went 6-for-11 from three-point range for the Magic, who have won nine of their last 13 games.
Rookie Luka Doncic scored 24 points for the Mavericks, who have lost nine of their last 10 overall and 27 of 33 on the road this season.
Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki, who finished with 15 points, moved past John Stockton for third place all-time in games played (1,505) in NBA history. The 40-year-old trails only Robert Parrish (1,611) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,560).
The Magic closed the third quarter on an 18-10 run and overcame a few anxious moments in the game's final minute before walking away with the win.
Dwyane Wade sparked a third-quarter run and the Heat scored 10 straight in the fourth quarter to pull away for a 126-110 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Miami.
With the win, the Heat remained in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, just ahead of Orlando and Charlotte.
Rodney McGruder scored 11 points in the fourth and 13 overall as Wade added six more in the final quarter as Miami opened up a 19-point lead with just over four minutes remaining.
Eight Heat players scored in double figures. Josh Richardson led the way with 20 points. Justise Winslow finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Hassan Whiteside scored 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Wade finished with 12 points and five assists.
Collin Sexton led Cleveland with 27 points and Jordan Clarkson added 21.
Marvin Williams erupted for a season-high 30 points as the Charlotte Hornets held on in the closing seconds for a 112-111 victory over the visiting Washington Wizards.
The Hornets won when Washington's Bradley Beal missed a drive in heavy traffic with three seconds remaining. Charlotte's Jeremy Lamb had given the Hornets a 112-111 lead with a three-pointer with 51.5 seconds remaining.
The Hornets snapped a two-game losing streak with the victory. They had lost nine of their previous 12 games to fall to 10th in the Eastern Conference.
Williams was 10-of-16 from the field and matched his career high of seven three-pointers. Lamb finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, and he also had a key blocked shot on the possession after he gave the Hornets their 112-111 lead.
The Hornets also got 18 points from Kemba Walker and 10 each from Nicolas Batum and Dwayne Bacon. It was Bacon who supplied the defense against Beal in the final seconds.
Bobby Portis led Washington with 23 points and nine rebounds. Beal finished with 15 points on 4-of-21 shooting, after he had scored 46 against the Hornets three weeks ago. Jabari Parker also scored 15, Thomas Bryant had 12 and Jeff Green and Tomas Satoransky scored 11 each.
