Category: NBA

WASHINGTON (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points and the Oklahoma Thunder pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Washington Wizards 132-111 on Saturday night for their 11th straight win, a game during which four players were ejected following a scuffle in the first half.

Gilgeous-Alexander extended his NBA record of 63 consecutive road games with at least 20 points.

Oklahoma’s Jaylin Williams and Washington’s Justin Champagnie began shoving each other after a basket by the Wizards with 27 seconds left in the second quarter. Several players joined in and the scrum spilled into the stands behind the basket.

In addition to Williams and Champagnie, Ajay Mitchell and Cason Wallace of the Thunder each received a technical foul and were ejected.

Despite losing three players, the Thunder were able to send the Wizards to their season-worst 15th straight loss.

Isaiah Hartenstein had 20 rebounds, 10 assists and 9 points for Oklahoma City. Chet Holmgren had 18 points and 10 rebounds and Jared McCain added 18 points.

Bilal Coulibaly scored 21 points and Bub Carrington added 19 for the Wizards, who are one game from matching a franchise-worst skid of 16 consecutive losses, which happened most recently in March 2024.

HORNETS 124, GRIZZLIES 101

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — LaMelo Ball scored 29 points and finished 7 of 14 from 3-point range to help lift Charlotte to their third straight victory, over struggling Memphis.

Brandon Miller had 22 points and Moussa Diabate had 14 rebounds and 11 points for the Hornets, who have won five of their last six and are 21-6 since Jan. 22 to make a push for a play-in spot.

GG Jackson scored 19 points and Javon Small added 17 points and seven rebounds for the Grizzlies, who have lost two in a row and 10 of their last 11.

CAVALIERS 111, PELICANS 106

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points and James Harden, held scoreless in the first half, added 20 second-half points to power Cleveland to a comeback victory over New Orleans.

Cleveland trailed 88-76 entering the final period, but outscored the Pelicans 35-18 in the fourth — with Harden scoring 13 and Mitchell 12 in the quarter. It was the Cavaliers’ eighth victory in their last nine games against New Orleans, which had its seven-game home winning streak snapped.

Harden made three 3-pointers and a layup in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter to spark an 18-7 run, and the Cavs took the lead for good, 100-99, on a layup by Max Strus, during a 15-7 surge.

Zion Williams, who picked up three early fouls and was quiet offensively in the first half, scored 15 of his team-high 25 points in the third quarter. In a 2:16 span of the third, Williamson scored 11 points and assisted on a 3-pointer by Saddiq Bey in the left corner during a 14-2 run that gave the Pelicans a 72-61 lead. Bey finished with 19.

ROCKETS 123, HEAT 122

HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 27 points to move past Michael Jordan for fifth place on the NBA’s career scoring list and Amen Thompson had a tip-in at the buzzer to lift Houston to a win over Miami.

Durant’s shot for the win bounced off the rim and Thompson tipped it in to give Houston the thrilling victory. Durant has 32,294 points in his career, two more than Jordan.

Miami trailed by eight before using a 9-2 run, with a 3 from Simon Fontecchio, to get within 119-118 with 46.3 seconds to go. Reed Sheppard made a shot in the lane to push the lead to 121-118 with 12.7 seconds left.

Bam Adebayo made two free throws after that before Jabari Smith Jr. was called for goaltending on a layup by Fontecchio to put the Heat on top 122-121 with 5.4 seconds remaining and set up the wild ending.

SPURS 134, PACERS 119

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Keldon Johnson and Dylan Harper each scored 24 points and San Antonio never trailed in a victory over Indiana.

San Antonio All-Star Victor Wembanyama had 20 points, eight rebounds, six assists and five blocks. Harper was 9 for 13 from the field in his first NBA start.

Andrew Nembhard scored 25 points and Jarace Walker added 21 for the Pacers, whose franchise-record losing streak reached 16 games. Indiana fell to 15-56 overall and is in last place in the Eastern Conference after losing to Oklahoma City in seven games in last season’s the NBA Finals.

San Antonio has won 21 of its last 23 games and improved to 53-18, securing its most victories since finishing 61-21 in 2017.

The Pacers had three players out and 10 questionable with various injuries Saturday. Nine of the 10 in question played, with the exception being Ethan Thompson, who is on a G League assignment.

HAWKS 126, WARRIORS 110

ATLANTA (AP) — Dyson Daniels scored a season-high 28 points and CJ McCollumn had 23 points as Atlanta bounced back after having their 11-game win streak snapped with a win over Golden State.

Zaccharie Risacher had 17 points for the Hawks, who were without Jalen Johnson (left shoulder inflammation).

Mouhamed Gueye had 16 points and 10 rebounds and Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 17 as the Hawks shot 54% from the floor to win their 10th straight home game.

Daniels had 15 points in the first quarter, a career-high for one quarter, and finished with six assists and four steals. The Hawks had won 11 in a row before a 117-95 loss to Houston on Friday night.

Jonathan Kuminga struggled for the Hawks in his first game against the team he spent four-plus seasons with. He had two points on 1 for 9 shooting.

De’Anthony Melton had 20 points to lead the Warriors, who have lost eight of their last nine games as they await the return of several injured players.

CLEVELAND (AP) — Mitchell Mesenbrink and Levi Haines each won their second individual championship on Saturday to help Penn State win its fifth consecutive team title at the NCAA men's wrestling championships.

Penn State, which clinched the team title during the consolation matches earlier Saturday, finished with four national champions and a record 181.5 points, breaking its own mark of 177 set last year. The Nittany Lions have won 13 of the last 15 national championships.

Mesenbrink, the defending national champion and No. 1 seed, beat Mikey Caliendo by technical fall (20-4) in the third round to finish the season undefeated and win the 165-pound title. No. 1 seed Haines beat Nebraska’s Chris Minto 2-1 to take gold at 174 pounds and win his second national championship. Haines also beat the third-seeded Minto 2-1 in the Big Ten Conference finals.

Josh Barr beat Oklahoma State's Cody Merrill 6-3 at 197 pounds and Luke Lilledahl took the 125-pound title with a 2-1 win over Princeton's Marc-Anthony McGowan.

Oklahoma State was second with 131 points, including three national champions, and third-place Nebraska had 100.5.

Freshmen Sergio Vega, Landon Robideau and Jax Forrest won titles for Oklahoma State. Vega beat No. 1 seed Jesse Mendez of Ohio State 4-1 on a takedown in overtime to claim the title at 141 pounds. Vega, who was not taken down this season, became the first undefeated freshman national champion since Oklahoma A&M's Dick Hutton in 1947. Mendez, a two-time NCAA champion, had his 31-match win streak (which dated to last season) snapped.

Robideau beat defending national champion Antrell Taylor of Nebraska 4-2 to take gold at 157 pounds. A visibly frustrated Taylor appeared to have thrown his ankle band at Robideau — who stalled in the third round — after the match. Taylor and Robideau were each awarded a point for stalling in the final three minutes.

Forrest, who trailed 1-0 at the end of the second round, beat Ohio State's Ben Davino 5-2 for the 133-pound title.

Tenth-seeded Aden Valencia of Stanford beat top-seeded and previously unbeaten Shayne Van Ness 8-5 in overtime to win at 149 pounds and became the third individual national champion — and first freshman — in program history. Van Ness was the first of six finalists to compete for Penn State.

North Carolina State's Isaac Trumble beat Yonger Bastida of Iowa State 5-0 to win the 285-pound title and his first national championship.

Max McEnelly of Minnesota beat previously undefeated Rocco Welsh of Penn State 4-3 for the crown at 184 pounds.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Marcel Hartel had the lone goal of the second half on Saturday night, and St. Louis City spoiled New England's first trip to Energizer Park with a come-from-behind 3-1 victory over the Revolution.

St. Louis City (1-3-1) had just one goal — by Hartel — through its first four matches before coming to life after spotting New England (1-3-0) an early lead.

The Revolution jumped in front in the 14th minute when defender Ilay Feingold used assists from Luca Langoni and Carles Gil to score for the first time this season. Feingold had three goals in 29 appearances as a rookie last year. Langoni's four assists on the season have come in the last two matches. Gil's first assist of the campaign gives him 74 in 197 career appearances — all with the Revs.

St. Louis City answered with the equalizer in the 29th minute after Simon Becher took a pass from Daniel Edelman and scored his 12th goal in 66 career appearances. Edelman also assisted on the club's first goal by Hartel.

Chris Durkin scored in the third minute of stoppage time and St. Louis City took a 2-1 lead into halftime. It was his seventh career goal in 147 appearances. Defender Rafael Santos notched his first assist in his first season with the club and his seventh in 87 career matches.

Hartel added the insurance goal unassisted in the 83rd minute.

Roman Bürki saved one shot for St. Louis City.

Matt Turner turned away three shots for New England.

The Revolution, who were coming off a 6-1 romp over FC Cincinnati in their home opener, have lost their first three road matches under first-year coach Marko Mitrović.

St. Louis City played the Revs to a 2-2 draw at Gillette Stadium on Sept. 7, 2024, in the only other matchup.

Up next

New England: Hosts CF Montreal on April 4.

St. Louis: Visits New York City FC on April 4.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer

The Atlanta Hawks were in action on Saturday evening to face the Golden State Warriors. After a tough loss to the Houston Rockets last night, which ended their 11-game winning streak, the Hawks were looking to see if they could get another streak going.

As for the Warriors, they were also coming off a loss the night before against the Detroit Pistons. It’s been a rough season for Golden State, and it’s mostly been because of the injuries. As for the Hawks, they were without Jalen Johnson in this one with shoulder inflammation.

Dyson Daniels got it going early with a three-pointer.

Dyson for 3 from the top of the key 🔑 pic.twitter.com/zt9tdpzTQT

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

Daniels did a little bit of everything early in the first, and got Onyeka Okongwu this easy dunk.

DD feeds OO for the slam 💪 pic.twitter.com/CoSuRFnaLl

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

The Hawks started off fast, but the Warriors answered quickly with a run of their own. That didn’t bother Daniels, because he knocked down another three-pointer in the first.

Another 3 for Dyson ‼️

He has 11 PTS in 6 MIN pic.twitter.com/HAVmZadjX8

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

The Warriors stormed back again and took the lead once again, but the Hawks kept it close down the stretch. They trailed 36-35 going into the second.

The Hawks still trailed behind for most of the second, but they kept it within striking distance. Zaccharie Risacher was rolling in the second and knocked down a few three-pointers.

Zacch is feeeeeling it ♨️

Stepback triple has him up to 11 PTS in 12 MIN pic.twitter.com/Rejo4FhUtW

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

The Hawks found a rhythm down the stretch, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s bucket got them within two points.

NAW connects 🏹 pic.twitter.com/haw4dsmy41

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

The Hawks grabbed the lead late, and wet into halftime winning 63-61.

It was an avalanche in the third by the Hawks, and McCollum came out and went on a scoring tear.

CJ COOKING to start the 3rd

Just like that we're up 15 pic.twitter.com/UO7VMgVedJ

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

CJ EN FUEGO 🔥

6-6 for 13 PTS in the quarter pic.twitter.com/VNwk9rdhoh

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

What was just a two-point lead going into the third turned into a 24-point lead for the Hawks, and they maintained it throughout the quarter.

Daniels continued his strong game, and got to the rim off a series of moves.

Dyson behind-the-back dribble and finger roll 😯😯 pic.twitter.com/XemlAkYPus

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

Going into the fourth, the Hawks led 102-81.

It was another strong start for the Hawks to start a quarter, and Corey Kispert was a part of it with two strong drives to the rim.

Whoooaaa Corey bounce!😮 pic.twitter.com/pW4eQn7oQm

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

Alexander-Walker got the and-one.

NAW gets the friendly roll for the and-1 🙂‍↕️ pic.twitter.com/5mMLx6BeZO

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 22, 2026

The Hawks controlled the game for the rest of the quarter, and the Warriors waved the white flag early.

Daniels finished with 28 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, McCollum finished with 23 points, Risacher finished with 17 poonts, and Gueye finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Hawks will be back in action on Monday against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The San Antonio Spurs have a habit of playing with their food, but the talent difference between them and their opponents makes up for it on most nights.  Eventually, they flexed their muscles and there was nothing the visitors could do.

They overwhelmed the Indiana Pacers with paint pressure, which also opened up the outside game, and everyone who got time was a contributor. Victor Wembanyama was like an angry killer wasp on defense, constantly harassing ball handlers, racking up four of his five blocks in the first half. Everything was going smoothly, but his teammates started allowing too much penetration, and their 21-point lead was reduced to eight. It was just three players doing most of the heavy lifting offensively for the Pacers, and the Spurs spent the rest of the game, denying them from getting within striking distance.

Observations

• This is a gap year for the Pacers, and despite their abysmal record, they have flashes of being a strong team since a lot of their DNA from the finals run remains. They were searching for 3-pointers in the fourth plus their ball and body movement gave the Spurs some trouble, but the latter’s significant rebounding edge gave them more shots. Keep in mind that the Spurs had three players log multiple offensive rebounds.
• These games are valuable at the end of the season because there may be someone who shows coach Mitch Johnson that the playoff rotation should be a bit longer. At the very least, they are showing they can be capable replacements in case of emergencies. Credit to Wemby for being a good teammate by taking a step back to let others shine for most of the game as he focused on defense. He and De’ Aaron Fox were the stars of the fourth quarter.
• Dylan Harper and Harrison Barnes were slotted into the lineup for Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell. Harper played eight minutes before taking his rest in his first start, and had most of the first-half playmaking duties while being in attack mode. He got into the lane easily, and had one of his best games of his young career. Barnes was Mr. Reliable, making shots from inside and out. Moreover, the team didn’t get to the line much, yet the offense scored 136.7 per 100 possessions, good enough for the 95th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.
• Keldon Johnson led the cavalry off the bench, getting inside at will as bodies bounced off him. He was the team’s leading scorer at halftime with 16 points on 87.5 percent shooting. He’s a physical presence, sort of like the greater of the Ajaxes in The Iliad (ruler of Salamis). 
• The Spurs are just as good as any team when they raise the pace. They finished with 24 fastbreak points, and Indiana’s turnovers and misses caused it, wearing out their legs.
• The zone is risky because of all the space available up top. They went to it with Luke Kornet, but it’s suboptimal with him instead of Wemby because he’s not as laterally quick. Still, Kornet had a solid night, and one of his finest moments was a chase-down block in transition.

Eleven games remain on the regular season slate for our heroes. If they hope to leapfrog Boston for the second seed, New York needs to win at least those games in which they are favored. This week offers the Knicks three chances to stack wins against weaker opponents. The last game in this batch will be the first of a four-game road trip, and next week promises stiffer competition. So this week, run the table Knickerbockers!

Sunday, March 22 — Knicks vs Washington Wizards, 7:30 PM (MSG)

The Knicks host the woeful Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden. Obviously, the Knicks are heavily favored—the ‘Zards are underdogs against everyone, save perhaps the Pacers, the only club with a worse record. Even the contemptible Kings can look down their noses at Washington!

The Knicks have beaten the Wizards in 11 straight games and twice already this season. In their last meeting, on February 3, the Knicks won 132-101 with Mikal Bridges scoring 23 points and Jalen Brunson adding 21. Will Riley scored 17 for the losing team. 

Tuesday, March 24 — Knicks vs New Orleans Pelicans, 7:30 PM (MSG)

When they met on December 29, the Pels pushed New York to the wire but fell short. The Knicks won 130-125 with Jalen Brunson posting 28 points and 10 dimes. Zion Williamson scored 32 in their loss.

The buzz about freshman Derik Queen has quieted of late. Zion’s put up solid numbers, but is not a leader sufficient enough to lift this team out of the bottom tier in the West. Still, they can be feisty and have won six of their last ten. Slacking is discouraged in this one.

Thursday, March 26 — Knicks at Charlotte Hornets, 7:00 PM (MSG)

The Knicks have beaten the Hornets twice this season and will have two more chances before the playoffs. When they played on December 3, the Knicks won 119-104 with Karl-Anthony Towns logging a 35-18 double-double.

Kon Knueppel has shot 7-of-28 in two games against the Knickerbockers this season. He’s a much better shooter than that, so prepare for the double K rookie to deliver better performances in at least one of their next two tilts.

Go Knicks. 

MONTREAL (AP) — Cole Caufield scored three goals to push his season total to 43 and added two assists to help the Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Islanders 7-3 on Saturday night.

Caufield is second in the NHL in goals, two behind Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon.

The Canadiens are third in the Atlantic Division, while the Islanders are a point behind Detroit for the second wild card in the tight Eastern Conference.

Juraj Slafkovsky had two goals and two assists, and Nick Suzuki had four assists to bring his season total to 61. Kaiden Guhle added a goal and two assists, Alex Newhook also scored and Jacob Fowler made 19 saves.

Emil Heineman, Simon Holmstrom and Matthew Schaefer scored for New York.

Ilya Sorokin allowed six goals on 32 shots before he was pulled midway through the third period. David Rittich stopped three of four shots in relief as the Islanders dropped their second second straight game.

After Schaefer beat Fowler with a one-timer from the point to tie it 45 seconds into the third period, the Canadiens responded with four goals in a row,

Guhle restored the lead when his shot from distance deflected off forward Marc Gatcomb and into the net at 3:17.

Slafkovsky made it 5-3 at 8:08, and Caufield chased Sorokin with a shot between the goalie’s pads with 8:40 to go. Hats rained down on the ice when the American winger buried his 43rd with 5:01 left.

Up next

Islanders: Host Columbus on Sunday night.

Canadiens: Host Carolina on Tuesday night.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — The Ottawa Senators had a dominant game against their provincial rivals beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 on Saturday night.

Anthony Stolarz was expected to get the start but took a puck to the throat during warm-ups and was sent to hospital for precautionary imaging putting Joseph Woll back in action. Woll had faced 36 shots in a 4-3 overtime loss to Carolina on Friday night.

Tim Stutzle, Claude Giroux, Warren Foegele, Michael Amadio and Ridly Greig scored for Ottawa. Tyler Kleven and Jordan Spence added two assists each, and Woll stopped 38 shots.

John Tavares and Easton Cowan scored for the Maple Leafs, who were without captain Auston Matthews who had knee surgery on Thursday. Linus Ullmark made 12 saves.

Trailing 3-1 to start the third the Leafs made it close with a goal by Cowan.

The Senators regained the two-goal lead midway through the period when Amadio scored his 12th of the season, tucking in Spence's rebound. On an odd-man rush Dylan Cozens found Greig in the slot.

The Senators made it 2-0 midway through the period when Giroux grabbed Kleven's rebound and backhanded it past Woll.

Foegele made it 3-0 with just over two minutes remaining when his shot deflected off Simon Benoit, but 21 seconds later Tavares completed the give-and-go with Cowan and beat Ullmark under the arm.

Ottawa opened the scoring at 14:58 of the first with a power-play goal. Stutzle stepped into the faceoff circle and wristed a shot clean past Woll.

Morgan Rielly missed the game and is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Up next

Maple Leafs: At the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.

Senators: At the New York Rangers on Monday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The Cleveland Cavaliers narrowly won their final game of this road trip. Let’s go over today’s winners and losers.

LOSER- Offensive Purpose

I’ll just say it. This was one of the uglier games the Cavs have played this season. Calling it sloppy would be an understatement. For long stretches of this game, I had no idea what they were attempting to accomplish.

Aimless three-point attempts. Turnovers that made them look like an AAU basketball team. And truly, no sense of direction on offense.

James Harden went scoreless in the first half while the Cavs mustered up just 19 points in the second quarter. There really aren’t enough fingers to blame everyone. It took a full team effort to nearly blow this game

I’ll dish out criticisms for Mitchell and Harden, who looked half asleep for the first three quarters. Dennis Schroder hopped off the bench and turned in a disaster class. Nae’Qwan Tomlin apparently signed up for the same class. Thomas Bryant, while effective with 11 points and 8 rebounds, ultimately looked out of place in this up-tempo match.

Had it not been for a complete turnaround in the fourth quarter, I would have been prepared to call this the worst loss of the season. And we haven’t even talked about the defense yet.

LOSER – 3PT Containment

I don’t want to beat a dead horse. The truth is, I could copy and paste any of my previous winners and losers to explain what’s wrong with the defense. Let’s try to condense this by explaining what went wrong tonight.

Herb Jones had never taken 10 three-pointers in a game before. He did it in the first half tonight. You see, you can’t always control whether or not your opponent shoots efficiently, but you can at least limit their attempts. The Pelicans, who are among the league’s worst three-point shooting teams, had already made nine three-pointers entering halftime. That’s nothing crazy, but it’s just two shy of their average for entire games this season.

Yeah. The Pelicans are that bad.

The Cavs are giving up 3PAs at one of the highest rates in the NBA. It’s a systemic problem that allows even teams like the Pelicans to momentarily burn them.

Fortunately, the Cavs flipped this around and held the Pelicans to just three three-pointers in the second half. But if you allow the floodgates to remain open like this, you’re going to get washed away more often than not.

WINNER – The Fourth Quarter

I’m reluctant to reward this team after the way they played in the second and third quarters. But they don’t ask how, they only ask how many. The Cavs did enough in the fourth quarter to win this game. Let’s break it down.

Cleveland had worked itself into a 15-point hole entering the final frame. All of the above reasons led to that deficit. Naturally, fixing those issues in the fourth quarter is what led to them turning the tables.

Magically, the Cavs began playing defense again. Williamson was met with a wall in the paint. Three-point shooters were run off the line or contested at their release. Ball handlers were pressured. Turnovers were forced. And the Cavs used their defense to build momentum on offense.

New Orleans went four full minutes without scoring a field goal in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, James Harden and Donovan Mitchell led a seismic wave to create a 28-6 run in favor of Cleveland. The backcourt combined for 25 of Cleveland’s 35 points in the final quarter.

It’s nice that the Cavaliers flipped the switch and won this game. Yet, it also proves that so many of their current problems can be resolved by simply playing harder. That’s a bittersweet reality in a game you almost blew.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Pius Suter and Pavel Buchnevich scored in a 1:19 span in the second period and the St. Louis Blues beat the NHL-worst Vancouver Canucks 3-1 on Saturday to end a two-game losing streak.

St. Louis is six points behind Nashville for the final wild-card playoff berth in the Western Conference. The Blues have are 7-1-2 in their last 10.

Jordan Kyrou scored into an empty net on a power play with 48 seconds left to seal it. Jordan Binnington stopped 14 shots for St. Louis, allowing only defenseman Filip Hronek's third-period goal on a power play.

Kevin Lankinen made 18 saves for the Canucks.

Suter, a former Vancouver player, opened the scoring midway through the second period. Lankinen stopped Robert Thomas' shot but the puck hit Suter and went into the net.

Just over a minute later, Buchnevich took a shot from above the faceoff circle that found an empty corner of the net past a diving Lankinen.

Up next

Blues: Host Washingtons on Tuesday night.

Canucks: Host Anaheim on Tuesday night.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — LaMelo Ball scored 29 points and finished 7 of 14 from 3-point range to help lift the Charlotte Hornets to their third straight victory, 124-101 over the struggling Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.

Brandon Miller had 22 points and Moussa Diabate had 14 rebounds and 11 points for the Hornets, who have won five of their last six and are 21-6 since Jan. 22 to make a push for a play-in spot.

GG Jackson scored 19 points and Javon Small added 17 points and seven rebounds for the Grizzlies, who have lost two in a row and 10 of their last 11.

The Hornets took the lead for good just 2:47 into the game when Miller made one of two free throws to make it 9-8 and Charlotte was up 59-47 at halftime.

A 15-6 run by the Hornets in the third quarter, capped by a three-point play by Miles Bridges — who finished with 13 points — made it 74-53 and Charlotte cruised from there.

Up next

Grizzlies: Play at Atlanta on Monday night.

Hornets: Host Sacramento on Tuesday night.

—

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

The Cleveland Cavaliers picked up an ugly win in New Orleans. These are the hardest games to grade, as the first three quarters put a heavy tarnish on an incredible comeback in the fourth.

Please bear with me.

All grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.

Donovan Mitchell

27 points, 3 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 turnover

Defense matters. With that in mind, both Mitchell and Harden are going to be severely docked for their performances tonight. Sure, they put on their capes and saved the day in the fourth quarter. But lackluster defense and iffy offensive process through the first three quarters are what caused the trouble, in the first place.

Mitchell scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, including the game-sealing and-one finish. If I were grading his fourth quarter alone, this would be a healthy A.

If he didn’t have that fourth quarter…? This would have been an F.

Grade: C

James Harden

20 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 2 turnovers

Harden rolled into halftime scoreless. A tough combination when paired with his poor defense. He eventually broke the dam with his playmaking and found a rhythym when it mattered most. But again, the first three quarters aren’t easy to ignore.

I will say, the box score looks flawless. I’m hoping that anyone who watched this game with me can understand why the grade is so low. Attendance matters, and Harden was extremely tardy.

Similar to Mitchell, Harden would get an A for his fourth quarter and probably an F for the previous three. I think a C is a fair enough middle ground.

Grade: C

Evan Mobley

18 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks

Again, I’d love to give Mobley more credit than what he’s receiving here. He had 16 points at halftime and looked to be on the verge of another big scoring game. Then he largely disappeared in the second half — both because the Cavs offense became stagnant and his own lack of aggression.

Still, Mobley was more of a steady presence throughout the night. His defense was a major reason for the tide changing in the fourth quarter.

Grade: C+

Max Strus

5 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists

This is a work in progress. Strus is still getting into the swing of things after missing seven months of basketball. He secured some key rebounds tonight and once again helped the Cavs close a game. That’s worth something. But he was just as much part of the problem on defense, and he didn’t have his shot falling tonight, either.

Grade: D+

Keon Ellis

7 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Ellis gave the Cavs some defensive juice in the fourth quarter. This wasn’t his best game, but he was active enough to make a difference.

Grade: B-

Sam Merrill

15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists

Merrill’s efforts on both ends of the floor stopped this game from getting out of reach. A double-double from Money Merrill (first of his career) is the type of stuff that gets you a soaring grade.

Grade: A

Dennis Schroder

1 point, 1 assist, 1 rebound

Schroder only played 14 minutes, going 0-3 and quickly being taken out of the game.

Grade: F

Dean Wade

7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals

Zion Williamson was pulverizing Dean Wade throughout the second half. But outside of that, Wade was actually one of the more positive Cavaliers.

Grade: C+

Thomas Bryant

11 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist

Bryant’s minutes didn’t go as well as the box score would suggest. He was effective early, but Cleveland’s offense eventually cratered when he was on the floor, and New Orleans’ athleticism made him look out of his depth. He was a minus-6 in 15 minutes.

Grade: D+

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Archie Goodwin subbed on in the 75th minute and scored two goals — the first two in his MLS career — and Charlotte FC beat the New York Red Bulls 6-1 on Saturday night.

Pep Biel, Idan Toklomati, Kerwin Vargas and Wilfried Zaha each added a goal for Charlotte (2-1-2) and Ashley Westwood had three assists. Kristijan Kahlina finished with seven saves.

Toklomati opened the scoring in the 14th minute when he flicked a header, off a free kick played by Biel on the right side, inside the left post.

Gustav Berggren, who made his first start of the season, was shown a straight red card in the 53rd minute and the Red Bulls played a man down the rest of the way.

Biel immediately made New York pay when he scored his fourth goal of the season on the ensuing free kick to make it 3-0 in the 54th.

Goodwin, in the 77th minute, flicked in a header off a cross by David Schnegg for his first goal in MLS and capped the scoring in the third minute of stoppage time.

Julian Hall scored the 81st minute for New York. The 17-year-old, who went into the season with three career goals in MLS, has four goals in 2026.

Ethan Horvath had four saves for the Red Bulls (2-2-1).

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

On a night when offense came at a premium for the Lakers, Luke Kennard stepped up when it mattered most.

Kennard buried a game-winning 3-pointer with 0.6 seconds left to give the Lakers a 105-104 win and extend their win streak to nine games.

LA flew out of the gate to start the game, scoring 37 points in the first 10 minutes of the game. However, they scored only 68 over the next 38 minutes of the contest, though it was exactly as many as they needed to win the game.

LA shot 44.7% from the field, but a frigid 22.6% from the 3-point line. They also were outscored 21-16 on second chance points, an issue that plagued them at various stretches during the game.

The Lakers opened the game with a barrage of baskets at the rim. Deandre Ayton threw down an alley-oop, LeBron James turned a steal into a breakaway slam and Luka Dončić finished a fastbreak layup all inside the first minute.

After the officials spent a handful of possessions forgetting the rules of basketball, Luka answered a couple of Orlando threes with makes of his own. Behind some further impressive shotmaking from Luka, LA opened up a 30-20 lead after an 8-0.

While a three from the Magic stopped the run briefly, Luka did not slow down. Austin put an unexpected and emphatic exclamation point on a 15-3 run with a huge dunk in transition.

Hayes SWATS it.
Reaves SLAMS it.

The Lakers are eager for their 9th win in a row! pic.twitter.com/V6zBkSxcjs

— NBA (@NBA) March 21, 2026

To that point, LA was shooting 16-21 from the field in the period. Some offensive rebounds from Goga Bitadze helped pull the Magic back into the game as they trailed 37-30 going into the second.

The Orlando run carried into the next quarter as a 16-2 tied the game at 39-39. Desmond Bane’s steal led to a pair of free throws for the guard, who connected on both to give the Magic their first lead of the game three minutes into the frame. Redick was eventually forced to take a timeout after a Jevon Carter jumper gave them a 43-39 lead.

Collective amnesia swept over the Lakers as they forgot how to play the sport, allowing Orlando to keep piling on. Following another Carter 3-pointer to put the hosts up six, the Magic reserves were outscoring LA’s 27-10.

Capping off a truly awful first half from the officials, Marcus Smart was handed a questionable technical foul, allowing the Magic to stem off a Lakers run as they tried to get back into the game.

The refs just gave Marcus Smart a tech foul for this play.

Unbelievable call pic.twitter.com/K0SiBAw9yp

— Italo Santana (@BulletClubIta) March 22, 2026

A couple of baskets at the rim from Austin Reaves in the final 35 seconds closed the Lakers’ deficit to just 65-62 heading into the locker room.

The halftime break allowed the Lakers to reset and regain their offense, leading them to retake the lead early in the third. The opening minutes of the quarters were spent with the two sides trading baskets with neither side able to get a foothold in front.

LeBron willed the Lakers ahead on a series of fastbreak plays. Across three consecutive possessions, LeBron either scored in transition or drew a foul, leading to six points as part of a 12-0 run that gave LA a 78-70 lead.

As was the case in the first half, the Lakers immediately allowed a run to let Orlando take the lead back following a Wendell Carter and-one, putting them ahead 81-79.

The rest of the quarter saw the Magic in firm control. Luka struggled from the field, shooting just 1-9 from the field in the period.

The biggest Luka development, though, came in the final minutes when he started trash talking with Bitadze at the free throw line before the two were given a double technical. That was the 16th technical of the year for Luka, meaning he will be suspended for the Lakers’ game against the Pistons on Monday.

Looked like Luka Doncic and Goga Bitadze were exchanging words while Luka was shooting FTs late in the 3Q.

Led to another back and forth before both were T'd up. https://t.co/gNBAwHYAAhpic.twitter.com/wAuNxxtzwl

— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) March 22, 2026

It was a pretty fitting cap to a pretty putrid quarter as LA went into the fourth down 87-82.

After Reaves opened the frame with a turnover, Bane’s layup gave Orlando its largest lead of the game. The Lakers got on the board with a lob from LeBron to Hayes, but then the latter followed that up by missing a pair of free throws a few possessions later, an encapsulation of the team’s inability to build momentum in the second half.

The team’s defense was keeping them attached to the Magic. With no one else able to find a rhythm offensively, Reaves finally stepped up with some big shots before a pair of free throws pushed them ahead 92-91 with 6:31 remaining.

Orlando moved back ahead in an ugly fourth quarter offensively for both teams, inching ahead 98-95 after two free throws from Paolo Banchero with 3:18 left.

An acrobatic finish on a driving layup for LeBron closed the deficit to one point with just over two minutes to go. Banchero responded with his own acrobatic finish around Deandre Ayton to restore the three-point lead.

Luka got his second field goal of the half with a floater, but Wendell Carter Jr. answered wit ha free throw line jumper with just over a minute remaining.

A step-back three from Luka missed as the Lakers came up empty on the next possession. Banchero drew a foul on the other end and knocked down both free throws to make it a five-point game with 50 seconds left.

Reaves raced downcourt off the make for a layup to make it a one-possession game again. The Lakers forced a miss from Bane and corralled the rebound. Luka eventually found Reaves for an open 3-pointer that missed, but Ayton tracked down the rebound while drawing a foul with 5.5 seconds left.

The big man knocked down the first, but his intentional missed free throw attempt did not get the bounce Reaves’ did last weekend and the Magic grabbed the rebound with six seconds left.

All of that set up a chaotic ending. Orlando’s ensuing in-bound was knocked out of bounds off Banchero by LeBron, giving the Lakers a chance to tie the game or take the lead with just over 4.7 seconds remaining.

LA got LeBron open on the ATO, but was blocked — and fouled, though it wasn’t called — on the play, giving the Lakers another chance under their own basket with 2.6 seconds left. This time, Kennard was the one left open and he buried the game-winner.

LUKE KENNARD HITS THE GO-AHEAD 3 TO WIN IT FOR THE LAKERS 🚨

LOS ANGELES HAS WON 9 GAMES IN A ROW! pic.twitter.com/1kZR6dsqQk

— NBA (@NBA) March 22, 2026

Key Player Stats

Luka’s big first half led him to 33 points to go with eight assists and five rebounds. Austin picked up the slack in the fourth to finish with 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Aside from a stretch in the third quarter, it was a quiet night from LeBron, who tallied just 12 points along with six rebounds and four assists with three steals as well.

Kennard had 13 points off the bench while Jaxson Hayes had a strong showing with eight points and seven rebounds to go along with three blocks.

The Lakers will next be in action on Monday when they travel to Detroit. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. PT.

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.

ATLANTA (AP) — Sean Johnson had two saves for D.C. United in a 0-0 tie with Atlanta United on Saturday.

The 36-year-old Johnson had his second shutout of the season D.C. United (2-2-1).

Atlanta (1-3-1) had 65% possession and outshot D.C. United 9-4, 2-1 on target. Lucas Hoyos, a 30-year-old in his first MLS season, finished with a save and had his first career shutout.

D.C.'s Caden Clark and Brandon Servania hit the post with shots from outside the area in the 83rd and 87th minutes, respectively.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer