Paul George's clutch free-throws seal win for Clippers; Young and Capela keep Hawks soaring; RJ Barrett stars for Knicks. Coverage of the NBA continues on Wednesday night as Denver Nuggets visit Portland Trail Blazers, live on Sky Sports Main Event and Arena at 3am.
Thursday 22 April 2021 07:04, UK
Kyrie Irving scored 32 points and Joe Harris had 24 to lead seven Brooklyn players in double figures as the short-handed Nets held off the host New Orleans Pelicans 134-129 on Tuesday night.
Landry Shamet added 18, Blake Griffin scored 16, Jeff Green had 15, Bruce Brown had 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot scored 10.
The Nets (39-19) played without James Harden, who is out indefinitely after suffering a setback in his rehabilitation of a hamstring injury; Kevin Durant, who is day-to-day with a thigh contusion; and Nicolas Claxton and Reggie Perry (health and safety protocol).
Zion Williamson scored 33 points, Brandon Irving had 27, Lonzo Ball and Naji Marshall added 15 each, and Kira Lewis Jr. had 11 to lead the Pelicans (25-33), who lost their fourth straight game.
Marshall's 3-pointer started the fourth-quarter scoring and gave New Orleans a two-point lead before Brooklyn went on an 11-3 run.
New Orleans got within two points three times, but Brooklyn answered each time and Irving's jumper gave the Nets a 126-122 lead with 52.4 seconds left.
The Pelicans' Steven Adams made one of two free throws before Irving's layup gave Brooklyn a 128-123 lead with 26.2 seconds left.
Lewis made a 3-pointer and Harris answered by hitting one of two free throws with 12.7 seconds left, leaving the Pelicans with a chance to tie with a 3-pointer. But Griffin fouled Ingram before the Pelicans forward could get in shooting position and Ingram made both free throws with 11.4 seconds left.
New Orleans got within three points three times, but each time Brooklyn prevented a 3-point attempt by fouling.
Paul George made two free throws with 4.8 seconds left to cap a 33-point effort and propel the Los Angeles Clippers to a 113-112 victory over the host Portland Trail Blazers.
George scored the final six points of the game as the Clippers (41-19) won for the 15th time in the past 18 games. Marcus Morris Sr. added 16 points as Los Angeles defeated the Trail Blazers for the sixth consecutive time.
CJ McCollum scored 28 points for Portland (32-25) but missed a jumper just before time expired. The loss was the seventh in 10 games for the Trail Blazers.
Nicolas Batum and DeMarcus Cousins tallied 11 points apiece and Ivica Zubac added 10 points for the Clippers, who shot 50 per cent from the field and were 11 of 38 (28.9 per cent) from 3-point range.
George, who collected 11 rebounds, has topped 30 points in six of his past seven performances.
Norman Powell scored 23 points, Carmelo Anthony added 18 points and Anfernee Simons had 13 points for the Trail Blazers, who shot 44.7 per cent from the field and made 14 of 44 (31.8 per cent) from long distance.
RJ Barrett scored 18 of his 24 points as part of a huge third quarter for the New York Knicks as they topped the visiting Charlotte Hornets 109-97.
The Knicks (32-27) won their seventh game in a row, shooting 48.2 per cent from the field.
New York's offense also received a boost from reserves Derrick Rose and Immanuel Quickley, who each racked up 17 points.
Julius Randle and Reggie Bullock chipped in with 16 points apiece. Randle also had 10 rebounds and seven assists, though his streak of games with 30 or more points ended at four.
Charlotte was led by P.J. Washington, who came off the bench for 26 points - bolstered by six 3s - and Terry Rozier scored 21 points. Miles Bridges posted 15 points and 14 rebounds and Jalen McDaniels had 11 points.
Trae Young, wearing googles for the first time due to an injury, scored 25 points and Lou Williams came off the bench to score 22 as the Atlanta Hawks defeated the visiting Orlando Magic 112-96.
The Hawks (32-26) have won two straight and nine of their last 11 games. Atlanta improved to six games over .500 for the first time since March 11, 2017. Orlando (18-40) has lost three in a row and nine of its past 10.
Young was wearing the glasses to protect his right eyelid, which was scratched in a Sunday game against the Indiana Pacers. Young never seemed comfortable - and removed the goggles a couple of times during the game - but still shot 7-for-16 from the field while compiling seven assists, five rebounds and five turnovers.
Clint Capela had 14 points and 19 rebounds for his 11th straight double-double, increasing his total to a team-leading 39.
Orlando was led by Cole Anthony with 17 points and eight assists and Wendell Carter Jr. with 17 points and eight rebounds. Greg Harris scored 14, and Dwayne Bacon and Chasson Randle had 10 points apiece.
D'Angelo Russell scored 26 of his 28 points in the first half and rookie Anthony Edwards also had 28 as the Minnesota Timberwolves earned a 134-120 victory over the Sacramento Kings for their first road win in just over a month.
Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 26 points and 18 rebounds as Minnesota won for the third time in its past six games. The Timberwolves improved to 16-43 and no longer have the worst record in the NBA, handing that dubious distinction to the Houston Rockets (15-43).
Harrison Barnes and Maurice Harkless each scored 20 points while Chimezie Metu had 16 as Sacramento lost for the 10th time in the past 11 games.
After a convincing victory Sunday over the Dallas Mavericks, the Kings revived their Western Conference play-in tournament hopes briefly, but they are now six games behind the 10th-place San Antonio Spurs with 14 games remaining.
