|
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Chris Paul had 33 points and nine assists, J.J. Redick added 25 points and the Los Angeles Clippers beat Oklahoma City 120-108 on Wednesday night, ending the Thunder's seven-game home winning streak. DeAndre Jordan had 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Clippers, who are fighting for a top-four seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Oklahoma City is battling to merely make the field and fell a half-game behind the New Orleans Pelicans in the race for the final playoff spot. Both teams are playing for extended stretches without their superstar forwards: Kevin Durant for the Thunder, Blake Griffin for the Clippers. In their absence, Paul fared better than his point guard counterpart, Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook. Westbrook, who triple-doubles in five of Oklahoma City's previous six games, finished with 24 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and a career-high 10 turnovers. NUGGETS 115, HAWKS 102 DENVER -- Danilo Gallinari had 23 points, Will Barton added 16 and Denver beat Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta for its eighth straight home win over the Hawks. By the end of the third quarter, Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer had seen enough and inserted his bench players, who went on a 24-1 run midway through the fourth quarter to make the score respectable after trailing by 32 with 7:32 remaining. The Hawks haven't won in the Mile High City since Dec. 6, 2006. Kyle Korver had 18 points to lead Atlanta. He hit five 3-pointers to give him 1,697 in his career and move him past Kobe Bryant (1,694) for 12th in NBA history. CELTICS 95, GRIZZLIES 92 BOSTON -- Marcus Smart converted a go-ahead, three-point play with 52 seconds left, Avery Bradley added a clutch jumper with 8 seconds remaining and Boston ended a five-game losing streak against Memphis. Bradley scored 17 points to help the Celtics win their second in a row as they chase a playoff spot. Smart put Boston ahead 91-90 with the last of 14 lead changes in the game, which ended when Mike Conley missed a deep 3-pointer for Memphis just before the buzzer. Conley led Memphis with 20 points after missing time in the second half with an injured ankle or knee. Tony Allen added 16 points, and Zach Randolph had 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists. HEAT 104, NETS 98 MIAMI -- Dwyane Wade had 28 points and nine assists, Chris Andersen tied a career high with 18 points and set a season high with 14 rebounds, and Miami finished off a season sweep of Brooklyn. Goran Dragic added 17 points in his return to the Miami lineup. The Heat went 7-0 against New York's two teams this season -- 4-0 against the Nets, 3-0 against the Knicks -- and moved back into the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race, helped by Sacramento beating Charlotte earlier Wednesday night. The Heat were without center Hassan Whiteside, serving a one-game suspension for elbowing Boston's Kelly Olynyk on Monday night. Deron Williams and Jarrett Jack each scored 18 points for the Nets. Brook Lopez finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds. BULLS 104, 76ERS 95, OT PHILADELPHIA -- Aaron Brooks scored seven of his season-high 31 points in overtime to help short-handed Chicago beat Philadelphia Pau Gasol had 27 points and 16 rebounds, and Nikola Mirotic finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Bulls. They snapped a three-game skid without four regulars and three of their top five scorers. The Bulls dressed only 10 players and were without Jimmy Butler, Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson and Joakim Noah. Rose had knee surgery Feb. 27, but said Monday that hopes to return this season, targeting 4-to-6 weeks for a comeback from yet another knee injury. Butler (elbow) missed his sixth straight game, and Gibson (ankle) sat out his seventh in a row. Noah (knee) was a late scratch. Ish Smith led Philadelphia with a career-high 23 points. SUNS 106, TIMBERWOLVES 97 PHOENIX -- Markieff Morris scored 24 points, Eric Bledsoe had 18 points and nine assists and Phoenix beat Minnesota. Rookie T.J. Warren added a career-high 17 points, and Marcus Thornton hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter and finished with 14 points. Warren's dunk with 3:20 left punctuated the win. He was fouled on the basket and made the free throw to give the Suns a 12-point lead. Kevin Martin had 16 points for Minnesota. KINGS 113, HORNETS 106 CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Ben McLemore scored 27 points, Rudy Gay added 26 and Sacramento beat Charlott to snapp a four-game losing streak. DeMarcus Cousins had 20 points and 14 rebounds for the Kings. Charlotte's Kemba Walker had six points in 16 minutes off the bench after missing 18 games following knee surgery, but the Hornets lost center Al Jefferson to a strained right calf late in the third quarter. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist led Charlotte with 23 points. BUCKS 97, MAGIC 91 MILWAUKEE -- Khris Middleton scored a season-high 30 points for the second time in three games to lead Milwaukee past Orlando Magic on Wednesday night. Middleton, who also had 30 points Saturday night against Washington, was 12 of 17 from the floor. The Bucks have won 10 of their last 12 home games. Nikola Vucevic had 19 points and 14 rebounds for Orlando. The Magic have lost nine a row on the road.
|
