The second of a three-game homestand for No. 13 Michigan State basketball will have another quick turnaround as Northwestern visits Tuesday.
Gilgeous-Alexander leads Thunder to overtime win
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 46 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to an overtime win over the Utah Jazz.
The NBA's reigning Most Valuable Player hit the shot to force overtime before helping the defending champions clinch a 129-125 victory.
Chet Holmgren added a double-double of 23 points and 12 rebounds as the Thunder improved to a 31-7 record and sit top of the Western Conference.
The San Antonio Spurs (26-11) are second in the West having won 107-91 at home to the fourth-placed Los Angeles Lakers (23-12).
Keldon Johnson scored 27 points as a balanced San Antonio attack overcame the individual brilliance of Luka Doncic, with Victor Wembanyama adding 16 points off the bench.
Doncic finished with 38 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the Lakers, who rested LeBron James after the veteran shone in Tuesday's win at New Orleans.
The Denver Nuggets (25-12) remain third in the West after claiming a 114-110 win at the Boston Celtics (23-13).
Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic (knee) missed his fifth straight game for Denver, for whom Peyton Watson scored a team-high 30 points while Jamal Murray added 22 and a career-high 17 assists.
The Celtics (23-13) slipped to third in the Eastern Conference as the New York Knicks won 134-111 at home to the Los Angeles Clippers (24-13) to halt a four-game losing streak.
Eastern Conference leaders Detroit are 28-9 after Isaiah Stewart scored a career-high 31 points as the Pistons won 108-93 at home to the Chicago Bulls.
Winners, Losers from the Trae Young trade to Washington
This was a win-win trade.
How big those wins are hinges on a lot of yet-to-be-determined factors — Can Atlanta use their newfound financial flexibility to land Anthony Davis or another star this offseason? Can Trae Young stay healthy and fill the role of veteran leader and mentor a young team needs? — but this is a trade that made sense for pretty much everyone involved. There aren't many losers in this deal.
Let's break down the winners and losers in this deal. We'll start by laying out the trade.
Washington receives: Trae Young
Atlanta receives: CJ McCollum, Corey Kispert
Note: There are no picks involved in this trade. While the players involved in this deal were agreed to relatively quickly, league sources told NBC Sports that part of the holdup in finalizing the trade was that both sides believed they should receive draft-pick compensation. Atlanta thought they deserved it because they were giving up the best player in the deal, an All-Star level point guard (when healthy) in his prime. Washington thought they deserved picks back for taking on the extra year (a $48.9 million player option Young is expected to pick up) of a contract that Atlanta wanted to dump. Ultimately, the sides agreed to make the trade without picks.
Winner: Washington Wizards
Washington is a winner here, not simply because they get a four-time All-Star and elite offensive player to organize and lead their young core — it's that they got him for basically nothing. McCollum is on an expiring contract and is not part of Washington's future. While Kispert is a quality, sharpshooting wing rotation player, he's not part of their core.
It's easy to envision how a healthy Young can elevate a young Wizards core: Alex Sarr will benefit from pick-and-rolls with Young (plus Young can throw a post entry pass, something the current Wizards struggle with), Tre Johnson is going to get plays run for him off ball where he can find more space and Young will find him, Kyshawn George has ball handling help, and on down the line. Young has not been healthy this season, a knee issue limiting him to 10 games (and clearly bothering his shot), but the potential is there.
THE CAVEAT: Washington is only a winner if they hold off on extending Trae Young. Part of what Young's agents were looking for in a landing spot was a team willing to talk extension, but Washington needs to see how Young fits with their young stars, then see who they get in this draft, and not extend him until the 2027 offseason. If Young fits perfectly and this all works out, they can re-sign him (not at the max, more like below $40 million a season), but if not, the Wizards need to be ready to stick with their young guys and move on.
Loser: Washington Wizards’ defense
Washington has the 29th-ranked defense in the NBA this season. Trae Young is a minus defender (to put it kindly). Washington is going to be a lot more fun to watch with Young running the show, but they are not going to stop anyone. It's going to get ugly.
Winner: Atlanta Hawks
It was time to move on.
That's why this is a win for Atlanta, it's a needed pivot to a young, long, athletic, fluid core of a team that really is the future. Jalen Johnson should be an All-Star this season, Nickeil Alexander-Walker is having a breakout season and is a high-level two-way two guard, plus they have Dyson Daniels and Onyeka Okongwu and more. On top of all that, they have the Pelicans' first-round pick in this June's draft (a pick that could very well be a top-five pick). Atlanta has set itself up for the future.
This trade also gives the Hawks financial flexibility. They can use that trade for Dallas' Anthony Davis — the Hawks reportedly have been his most aggressive suitor — or they could wait until this offseason and see if they could add a star player more on the timeline of their young core (rather than a 32-year-old with an injury history). Whatever they choose, with CJ McCollum and Kristaps Porzingis coming off the books, Atlanta will have at least $32 million in cap space to reshape their roster next offseason. All that money makes it easier to turn the page.
Winner: Wizards fans
Washington has been a tough watch for a couple of years. While they have good young players like Sarr and Johnson, this team has lacked a player more casual fans could rally behind. They needed someone to sell tickets.
Trae Young sells tickets. Tray Young excites fans. Young running the Wizards offense with all that athleticism around him is going to be highly entertaining — and Wizards fans will take that.
Washington has given its fan base someone to root for. That matters.
Maybe winner: New York Knicks
Washington owes its 2026 first-round pick to the New York Knicks, but it is top eight protected. Before Wednesday night, that seemed irrelevant. The young Wizards were learning on the job and were destined for a high lottery seed (they sit fourth in the lottery at the time of the trade).
With an energized Trae Young running the show, could the Wizards get on a heater and start to climb up the East standings, maybe make the play-in, and end up turning over their pick to the Knicks?
Probably not. Young has been battling knee issues all season, and Washington will use that if needed. Even if Young does start playing games for them soon, don't be shocked if the Wizards shut him down with an injury with plenty of time left in the season — Washington needs more elite talent on the roster and this draft is the best way for them to get it. Save the test run with Young for next season.
Still, Knicks fans can dream.
Stanford gets win over Virginia Tech, freshman Ebuka Okorie calls game
Stanford won a close game that came down to the wire against Virginia Tech. Here's how the game ended at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Ames native Tamin Lipsey a big part of first 15-0 start for No. 3 Iowa State
Iowa State point guard Tamin Lipsey, the senior who grew up near campus in Ames, is now part of something that had never been done by the Cyclones. “Watching all those teams growing up and just realizing that I have a chance right now to make a footprint for Iowa State, and just the community of Ames and all of that, I never take for granted.” Lipsey scored 24 points, overcoming some early foul trouble that kept him on the bench for nearly eight minutes in the first half.
No. 1 Arizona remains unbeaten with 101-76 win over Kansas State
Arizona (15-0, 2-0 Big 12) is off to its best start since winning the first 21 games of the 2013-14 season. Arizona won by at least 18 points for the 10th consecutive game, matching a mark Michigan had earlier this season that tied for the longest such run since 2003-04. Burries had his fifth 20-point game and matched his career high by going 12 for 16 from the field while adding nine rebounds.
No. 11 Vanderbilt remains undefeated with 96-90 win over No. 13 Alabama
Tyler Tanner scored 23 of his career-high 29 points in the second half and No. 11 Vanderbilt remained undefeated by beating 13th-ranked Alabama 96-90 on Wednesday night. The Commodores (15-0, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) extended their best start since winning 16 straight games to open the 2007-08 season. This is only the second time in the program's 124-year history that Vanderbilt has won its first 15.
Godfrey’s 17 points and Clemson’s strong defense lead to 74-70 win over No. 24 SMU
RJ Godfrey scored 17 points and Clemson held down No. 24 SMU in a 74-70 victory Wednesday night. The Tigers (13-3) have started 3-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference for a second consecutive season. SMU (12-3, 1-1) came in averaging 91.5 points per game — tops in the ACC and 14th nationally — but couldn't crack Clemson's defense until late in the game.
Karl-Anthony Towns' big fourth quarter keys Knicks' win over Clippers: 'The way he played tonight, it’s what we needed'
Just 48 hours ago, the Knicks were demolished by the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons, extending their season-long losing streak to four games.
While most of the Knicks players simply didn't show up to play in Detroit, a spotlight was focused on Karl-Anthony Towns.
The Knicks' big man scored just six points on 1 of 4 shooting with one rebound and one assist. He turned the ball over six times and was a minus-27 on the floor in Monday's loss. It was a dreadful showing and he looked lost. So much so that he told the NY Post afterward that the reason for his poor performance was adjusting to head coach Mike Brown's new system.
Well, what a difference two days make.
The Knicks snapped their losing streak with an impressive 123-111 win over the red-hot Clippers on Wednesday night, and Towns was a huge part of the victory.
With the game still close in the fourth quarter, Towns took over offensively, scoring 10 of his 20 points in the final frame. He also came down with four rebounds to help the Knicks separate themselves from Los Angeles.
"We needed it," Jalen Brunson said of Towns' performance after the game. "Helped us increase our lead and it was big-time play from him. We all have to have each other’s backs. The way he played tonight, it’s what we needed."
Towns' comments after Detroit about his performance garnered questions about what was different for him and why he found success against the Clippers.
The big man said that he's just trying to impact the game in a winning way, and that's what his goal is.
"I said it last year, I say it this year, any time I touch the ball, I’m trying to be aggressive, whether that’s making a play for myself or my teammates," Towns said. "I want to impact winning every single day."
For Towns in the fourth quarter, he pointed to his increased aggressiveness as the catalyst for his performance.
"I made some shots, didn’t make a lot of them, but I think tonight shows aggression wins," Towns explained. "Not letting go because some shots aren’t going in, stay very aggressive in any opportunity that I got. At the end of the day, it worked out for our team. Those plays, miss or make, I'm glad they impacted winning and put us in a better spot."
"He’s an explosive scorer. Starting with me, I got to continue to find ways to help him, like I have to help the rest of the team," Brown said of Towns. "What I like about tonight is, he’s an All-Star, great level player and those types of players impact the game.
"He can score with the best, so we know eventually he’s going to get going in that area, but what I like about it, he was impactful defensively -- 11 rebounds, seven assists, the nine points definitely helped and he helped us create that separation by doing that. But I don’t want to belittle the fact that he did what All-Stars do, what great players do. He found other ways throughout the course of the ballgame to continue to help our team win. That’s fantastic to see because he’s more than capable with as good as he is."
Entering Wednesday, Towns is averaging 21.5 points, on 47 percent shooting and 11.5 rebounds. All three categories are down from last season when he was voted All-NBA Third Team and to his fifth All-Star Game. However, the second-year Knick is more worried about winning and getting New York to the NBA Finals for the first time in almost three decades.
And while there's still a lot of season left, Towns and the Knicks hope Wednesday's win leads to more as they head West for a four-game road trip.
"We weren’t at our best today, but we did enough to win," he said. "At points in the game, we did a good job of getting a run and we didn’t let them stop the bleeding. We got to better than we were tonight. I have to be better. This is a good start before heading on the road trip to stop the bleeding of four losses in a row...now we have to build off of it.
"Teams understand now that we are coming in with a little momentum, and they are going to try and stop that. We have to do a better job of out-executing them and out-hustling them. It's up to us."
The Knicks head to Phoenix to start their West Coast trip against the Suns on Friday.
No. 4 UConn rallies past Providence late for 103-98 victory in overtime
Braylon Mullins scored eight of his career-high 24 points in overtime and fourth-ranked UConn rallied past Providence 103-98 on Wednesday night for its 11th consecutive victory.
No. 15 Arkansas uses balanced scoring to beat Mississippi 94-87 in SEC matchup
Brazile scored 18 points, Billy Richmond III and Meleek Thomas added 13 points apiece, and Karter Knox scored 10 in the balanced Arkansas performance. Ole Miss was led by Ilias Kamardine and Malik Dia with 16 points apiece. AJ Storr scored 12 points, Eduardo Klafke had 11 in the second half and Patton Pinkins added 10.
Malik Thomas scores 20 and No. 23 Virginia moves to 9-0 at home with 84-60 win over Cal
Malik Thomas scored 20 points and No. 23 Virginia beat California 84-60 in its Atlantic Coast Conference home opener Wednesday night, scoring at least 80 points for the 14th time in 15 games this season. Johann Grunloh, Thijs De Ridder, Sam Lewis and Ugonna Onyenso each added 12 for the Cavaliers (13-2, 2-1), who assisted on 23 of 30 baskets and dominated the glass with 45-26 edge in rebounding. Virginia has won two straight since a triple-overtime loss at rival Virginia Tech on New Year's Eve.
Saunders scores career-high 31 points as No. 9 BYU routs Arizona State 104-76
BYU outscored Arizona State 31-16 in fast-break points and blocked 10 shots. Anthony Johnson scored 24 points while Massamba Diop had 22 points and nine rebounds to pace the Sun Devils (9-6, 0-2), who dropped their fourth game in a row. The Cougars wasted no time imposing their will on both ends of the court.
Braden Smith overcomes foul trouble by scoring 23 and leading No. 5 Purdue past Washington 81-73
Braden Smith finished with 23 points and seven assists and made two late free throws to help No. 5 Purdue fend off Washington's late rally for an 81-73 victory Wednesday night. Trey Kaufman-Renn added 14 points and 14 rebounds as the Boilermakers won their fifth in a row and matched a school-best start at 14-1 (4-0 Big Ten) for the ninth time in program history. It came on a night Purdue honored Smith, an Associated Press preseason All-American guard, before the national anthem by presenting the Big Ten's new career assists leader with a framed poster.
Nets fall to Magic in OT, 104-103, on Paolo Banchero's buzzer-beater
NEW YORK (AP) — Paolo Banchero banked in a three-pointer from the top of the key at the overtime buzzer to give the Orlando Magic a 104-103 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night.
Two nights after falling at lowly Washington, the Magic beat the Nets for the eighth straight time to improve to 21-17.
Banchero scored 30 points to lead Orlando. Wendell Carter Jr. added 20, Tristan da Silva had 14 and Noah Penda 13.
In overtime, Egor Demin made a three-pointer with 1:07 left to give Brooklyn a 100-99 lead. Carter put Orlando back in front on a dunk with 16 seconds remaining. Demin countered with another three with 3.6 seconds left to make it 103-101, and Banchero ended it with the 26-footer that banked in.
After Brooklyn pulled to 91-90 in regulation on Noah Clowney’s jumper, da Silva scored on a dunk for Orlando with 17 seconds left. Demin hit a three-pointer with six seconds to go to tie it, and Banchero missed a 30-footer at the buzzer.
Michael Porter Jr. led Brooklyn with 34 points and Demin had 18. The Nets were coming off a home victory over Denver on Sunday. They are 11-13.
Up next
Magic: Host Philadelphia on Friday night.
Nets: Host the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.