Luka Doncic pours in 42 points as Dallas Mavericks split games with Los Angeles Clippers
Sky Sports coverage of the NBA continues late on Thursday night as the Charlotte Hornets visit the Los Angeles Lakers live from 2:30am on Main Event & Arena
Thursday 18 March 2021 08:32, UK
Luka Doncic scored 42 points, his fourth game with at least 40 this season, as the Dallas Mavericks earned a 105-89 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers to split a two-game set between the teams in Dallas.
Los Angeles Clippers 89 - 105 Dallas Mavericks
Tim Hardaway Jr. had 15 points as the Mavericks won two days after a 109-99 defeat to the Clippers. The Mavericks, who were eliminated in the first round of last season's playoffs by the Clippers, won the season series 2-1 between the teams.
Doncic added nine assists and shot 16 of 28 from the field, while Kristaps Porzingis had 11 points and 13 rebounds.
Paul George scored 28 points and Kawhi Leonard added 20 as the Clippers lost for the fifth time in their last seven games and went 1-2 on a quick road trip to New Orleans and Dallas.
Los Angeles was without Serge Ibaka (back) for the second consecutive game, while head coach Tyronn Lue went with a starting line-up that included Ivica Zubac and Marcus Morris Sr. in back-to-back contests.
Milwaukee Bucks 109 - 105 Philadelphia 76ers (OT)
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points, 15 rebounds and five assists and the Milwaukee Bucks rallied from a 19-point deficit for a 109-105 overtime victory over the host Philadelphia 76ers.
Antetokounmpo scored 10 points in overtime, including a personal 7-0 run to seal the win.
Donte DiVincenzo added 20 points and eight rebounds, Jrue Holiday scored 19 points and Khris Middleton had 15 for the Bucks, who won their fifth in a row. Brook Lopez contributed 14.
Tobias Harris led the Sixers with 19 points and nine rebounds and Danny Green hit six three-pointers for 18. Shake Milton added 15 and Dwight Howard had 13 points and 15 rebounds. Ben Simmons had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists while Furkan Korkmaz contributed 11 points and Seth Curry had 10.
The Sixers, who fell to 4-6 without injured All-Star Joel Embiid, had their six-game winning streak snapped.
Brooklyn Nets 124 - 115 Indiana Pacers
James Harden totalled 40 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds as the Brooklyn Nets rallied in the fourth quarter and continued their surge with a 124-115 victory over the host Indiana Pacers.
Brooklyn won its sixth straight game, extended its franchise-record road winning streak to eight games and beat Indiana for the second time in its 14-1 tear since February 9. The Nets overcame a 16-point, second-quarter deficit and chipped away at it before surging ahead in the final 12 minutes.
Harden produced his first 40-point game with the Nets and his 11th triple-double - one shy of Jason Kidd's single-season franchise record (2006-07). He made 13 of 27 shots and got his latest triple-double by rebounding a missed a three-pointer by former Net Caris LeVert with 1.6 seconds left.
Harden also produced the second 40-point triple-double in franchise history. The other was Vince Carter (46 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists) on April 7, 2007 against the Washington Wizards.
Malcolm Brogdon scored 24 points for the Pacers, who lost for the seventh time in nine games and dropped their sixth straight home game. LeVert added 19 in his home debut while Domantas Sabonis totalled 18, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his 10th career triple-double.
Miami Heat 85 - 89 Memphis Grizzlies
Ja Morant scored on a driving, lefty layup with 1.2 seconds left as the host Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Miami Heat 89-85 on Wednesday night to snap a three-game losing streak.
Morant, who scored a team-high-tying 13 points, beat five-time All-Star Jimmy Butler on the layup, dribbling the length of the court to snap an 85-85 tie. Miami's Bam Adebayo then turned the ball over on a risky pass underneath, and Kyle Anderson sank two game-clinching free throws.
Jonas Valanciunas had 12 rebounds and seven points. Melton, a 6-foot-2 reserve guard, added a career-high 10 rebounds and a season-high-tying six assists.
Miami had its six-game road winning streak and its five-game overall winning streak snapped. The Heat are 11-2 in their past 13 games.
Butler put up a game-high 24 points. Adebayo had 15 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in just his second game back from a knee injury.
Charlotte Hornets 104 - 129 Denver Nuggets
Michael Porter Jr. produced 28 points and 13 rebounds, Nikola Jokic finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Charlotte Hornets 129-104 on Monday night.
Denver's Will Barton scored 23 points, Jamal Murray had 19 and PJ Dozier added 13. Facundo Campazzo dished out 10 assists for the Nuggets, who earned their seventh win in eight games.
Terry Rozier led Charlotte with 21 points and Malik Monk added 16, all in the fourth quarter when the game was out of reach. LaMelo Ball contributed 14 points for the Hornets, whose four-game winning streak ended.
Denver led by as many as 34 points in the fourth quarter.
Boston Celtics 110 - 117 Cleveland Cavaliers
Collin Sexton finished with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists to help the host Cleveland Cavaliers hold off the Boston Celtics in a 117-110 victory.
Sexton shot 10-for-20 from the field and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line while Darius Garland had 25 points on 9-for-16 shooting as the Cavaliers snapped a four-game losing streak.
The Celtics, who lost for the third time in their past four games, trailed by as many as 21 points during a sloppy first half in which they were held to 38 points and committed 12 turnovers which led to 15 Cleveland points. The Celtics also struggled from the beyond the arc, going 3-for-15 from three-point range before half-time.
Jayson Tatum scored 24 of his 29 points and Jaylen Brown scored 21 of his 28 points in the second half and Boston cleaned things up by not committing a turnover the rest of the game.
Nance Jr. finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers while Okoro totalled 15 points and Cedi Osman added 10.
San Antonio Spurs 106 - 99 Chicago Bulls
Jakob Poeltl notched 20 points and 16 rebounds and Dejounte Murray scored eight points in a 17-0 fourth quarter run to boost the visiting San Antonio Spurs to a 106-99 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
San Antonio outscored Chicago 39-19 in the fourth quarter to win for the third time in four games. The Bulls, meanwhile, again squandered a big advantage as they closed a five-game homestand at 2-3.
Chicago led by as many as 23 points in the second quarter and 18 at the break, but the Spurs pulled to within one on a Keldon Johnson layup with 9:03 remaining. The shot punctuated a 15-0 San Antonio run spanning the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth.
Six Spurs finished in double figures, including Derrick White (17), Murray, Johnson and Patty Mills (14 each), and Lonnie Walker IV (11).
LaVine led all scorers with 29 points while adding six assists and six rebounds. Thaddeus Young had 16 points and eight rebounds, Williams had 10 points and 14 boards, and Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. scored 10 points each.
Golden State Warriors 94 - 108 Houston Rockets
Jordan Poole scored 23 points and drilled six 3-pointers off the bench as the visiting Golden State Warriors cruised to a 108-94 victory over the Houston Rockets, who took a franchise-record 18th consecutive defeat.
The old franchise mark of 17 straight losses was set by the San Diego Rockets from January 18-February 16, 1968.
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 19 points, Andrew Wiggins had 17 points and Draymond Green added a triple-double of 16 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for Golden State. The Warriors received 18 points and eight assists from Stephen Curry - who missed 9 of 11 three-point attempts - before he limped to the locker room at the conclusion of the third quarter.
The Rockets trailed by as many as 26 points in the second half. Houston welcomed back Christian Wood (21 points, nine rebounds), who missed the previous 17 games with an ankle sprain, and Danuel House Jr. (11 points), but neither could help the Rockets end their skid.
Kevin Porter Jr. led the Rockets with 25 points and seven assists. Houston closed to within 14 points multiple times in the second half but failed to muster a serious threat.
Toronto Raptors 112 - 116 Detroit Pistons
Saddiq Bey had 28 points and 12 rebounds and the host Detroit Pistons ended a four-game losing streak with a 116-112 victory over the reeling Toronto Raptors.
Jerami Grant contributed 23 points and Delon Wright supplied 18 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Pistons. Josh Jackson had 16 points, six assists and five rebounds off the bench, Mason Plumlee added 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Isaiah Stewart also scored 10 points.
Norman Powell poured in a career-high 43 points for the Raptors, who lost their sixth consecutive game. Toronto's Chris Boucher had 21 points, and Kyle Lowry amassed eight points and 15 assists.
Raptors starters Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet returned to action after missing six and five games, respectively, due to the league's health and safety protocols. Siakam finished with 13 points and VanVleet added 12.
Washington Wizards 119 - 121 Sacramento Kings
De'Aaron Fox rescued the Sacramento Kings with seven late points, including a tie-breaking 19-footer with 1.3 seconds remaining that provided the difference in a 121-119 victory over the host Washington Wizards.
Fox scored Sacramento's final nine points in all to cap a team-high 28-point night that helped the Kings snap a two-game losing streak. Bradley Beal had a game-high 29 points and Russell Westbrook his 158th career triple-double for the Wizards, who dropped their fifth straight.
Westbrook single-handedly drew the Wizards even with two free throws and two layups, the second of the hoops off a Beal assist with 22.6 seconds remaining.
That tied the score and set the stage for Fox's heroics. The Wizards could not get off a shot on a final desperation possession.
Fox complemented his 28 points with a team-high seven assists and game-high five steals for Sacramento, which led by as many as 11 points and took a 102-93 lead into the final period.
