Category: NBA

The Jazz have been all business for Tanking and Co™ all of March. In fact, before tonight, they’d lost 10 of their last 11 games, which included a loss against Denver back in Colorado. The Nuggets, on the other hand, have subtly held an 8-2 record with the league’s second-longest winning streak.

Despite the annual tomfoolish custom of April 1st, there are n tricks tonight; Utah was flat-out defeated on their home floor with a good old-fashioned 130 -117 loss. There were highs. There were lows. There were Jokic no-look passes that dissociate with the external world. As Denver skipped across Salt Lake City before heading back next door, the Jazz decisively fell behind by falling out of a potentially gritty, high-intensity basketball game — they tend to love those.

Utah put the final nail in the coffin after taking out their sole Jokic-stopper, that would be Elijah Harkless — a scrappy 6’3” guard that puts out his best Scrappy-Doo impression each night. Other than that, fans saw all the usuals on the injury report.

The @utahjazz injury report

QUEST – Elijah Harkless (hamstring)

OUT – Isaiah Collier (hamstring)
OUT – Keyonte George (hamstring)
OUT – Blake Hinson (2-way)
OUT – Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee)
OUT – Walker Kessler (shoulder)
OUT – Lauri Markkanen (hip)
OUT – Jusuf Nurkic (nose)

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) March 31, 2026

The Nuggets were at near-full form, with the exception of Spencer Jones and Zeke Nnaji. This is probably going to be a regular occurrence the Jazz will have to deal with for any franchise that isn’t currently outside of the Playoff picture.

Injury Update ahead of tonight’s game against the Jazz:

AVAILABLE:
Aaron Gordon (Left Calf Tightness)

OUT:
Spencer Jones (Right Hamstring Strain)
Zeke Nnaji (Left Hip Sprain)#MileHighBasketballpic.twitter.com/OctLbfU1JX

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) April 2, 2026

It seems apparently that the entire Jazz defensive strategy revolved around one Elijah Harkless, as they looked completely helpless while digging themselves into an early 3-17 hole, with Denver, or just Jamal Murray, raining triple after triple. Murray hit 3-3 from beyond the arc just over 90 seconds into the first quarter. I can’t believe this is a real thing I have to type, but 8 of their first 9 field-goal makes had come from beyond the arc. Not only that, they hit them at a 61.5% rate. What the actual heck is going on in the mountains? Nuggets closed the quarter outscoring Utah 39-28, pushing their lead to 11. Jamal Murray sealed the first 12 minutes off with a half-court heave that could only happen in an area outside of time and space, otherwise known as wherever the Jazz are playing.

The Jazz supposedly held Jokic to 2 field-goals in the first half, but everyone else on the Nuggets did most of the damage. Flip (19 points, 7-11 field-goals) and Brice (18 points, 7-10 field-goals) accounted for 68% of the Jazz points in the first half. The next best scorer scored 7. Jamal Murray continued to beat a man already down, matching his career-best for three-pointers in a half with 5. Bruce Brown beat his personal best of 4 steals in a half. You get a career-high! You get a career-high! Everybody gets a career-high! Nuggets were high and mighty with their 68-54 lead on Utah’s home floor.

Nikola Jokic canned a triple-double with 14-17-10 before the final 12 minutes even rolled open. Nuggets had 49 rebounds, 35 of them being defensive, compared to Utah’s 36 total rebounds.

The Jazz had chipped away several times in this game, but none of them mattered in any significant way. They got as close as 4 points of the Nuggets’ lead with 9:41 in the fourth quarter, but Denver quickly put a stop to that and continued to steamroll as they had been doing. But I have to note, Denver really doesn’t do enough to prevent open shots on the defensive end; imagine if Lauri or Keyonte were hitting those shots.

Brice Sensabaugh led all scorers with 28 in this one, many of which came from a 10-point entourage in the first quarter. The former Buckeye has been an explosive 20-point-per-game scorer for the majority of March. Five Jazz players in total crossed over the 10+ point mark.An

Another Jazz draftee to enjoy was Kyle Filipowski, who netted 25 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists on 9-15 shooting in 31 minutes. Flip did his best and fiercely attacked premier rim-protector Nikola Jokic at the rim, which subsequently led to his benching when the Jazz got too close to the flame.

Jamal Murray enjoyed a strong night, as he usually does against Utah. He averaged 35 points per game, 7.8 assists per games and 4.8 rebounds in the Nuggets’ clean 4-0 sweep against the Jazz this season.

Up Next

Utah drops to 21-56 with this loss and lines up their next matchup in Houston on Friday night.

Stephen Curry continues to make progress toward a return for the Golden State Warriors.

The guard has missed the last 25 games due to a right knee injury, diagnosed as patella-femoral pain syndrome/bone bruising. He's averaged a team-leading 27.2 points per game but has not played since Jan. 30.

Curry was seen participating in pregame activities on the Chase Center court before the Warriors' home game against the San Antonio Spurs on April 1.

The two-time MVP participated in a live 5-on-5 scrimmage on March 31, according to the team.

“He looked good,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “I was up here with you guys for most of it so I caught the tail end. But everybody said he looked good and felt good. He’ll have another scrimmage in the next couple of days. That’s the next step.”

The team expects Curry to be re-evaluated over the weekend.

The Warriors will play in the postseason after clinching a spot in the play-in tournament.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Steph Curry injury update, Warriors star's status

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Charge’s magical season came to an end with a 126-123 loss to the Capital City Go-Go in the first round of the NBA G League playoffs. The Charge fought hard, but an inability to grab crucial rebounds late ultimately did them in.

Point guard Darius Brown II was the only constant in a Charge season that was characterized by six NBA call-ups. And in many ways, he’s symbolic of why this season has been so successful for the team. His steady hand at the point allowed various roster configurations to work. He was doing so again against the Go-Go until his body finally gave out.

In the first quarter, he bloodied his knee diving for a loose ball. In the third, he hurt his hamstring after being fouled. And midway through the fourth, he rolled his ankle while forcing an eight-second violation.

By the end of the game, Brown could hardly move, but that didn’t keep him from making a positive impact on the game. He hustled back to stop a fastbreak layup with a minute and a half left in a three-point game. Then, he converted a fastbreak layup of his own to make it a one-point game.

Brown wouldn’t use that as an excuse. “Everyone is playing through something,” he said. But most aren’t gutting it out like he was.

“It just says everything about who he is,” head coach Eli Kell-Abrams said. “He’s been in a walking boot for a month, and the way he’s been able to fight through pain, fight through adversity, fight through off-court stuff and still not make it about him, and be able to galvanize and lead the group is really impressive.”

The Charge had a chance to win what was a back-and-forth game late. In the last minute, they missed two crucial defensive rebounds and had two bad turnovers. The Go-Go took advantage of those miscues to put the game away.

“It’s one of the tough things about a single-elimination tournament,” Kell-Abrams said. “Sometimes, if you just don’t have it, you don’t have it. I think defensively we weren’t able to guard the ball and rebound, which we knew were going to be big keys to the game.”

Cleveland didn’t have an answer for Alondes Williams. He poured in 39 points and four assists while going 12-21 from the field. This included contributing 24 in the second half to help the Go-Go erase a seven-point deficit at the break. Former Cleveland Cavaliers two-way player Chris Livingston also supplied 27 points and nine rebounds in the victory.

The Charge were led by 25 points from Brown on 8-15 shooting to go along with 10 assists and seven boards. Cavs two-way player Olivier Sarr finished with 22 points on 8-10 shooting with four rebounds and a block.

Even though this wasn’t the way the Charge wanted the season to end, they aren’t going to remember this season for what happened on Tuesday.

“A couple missed helps, a couple tough switches, and a couple of offensive rebounds shouldn’t define what’s been one of the most successful years in Charge history,” Kell-Abrams said. “With the development we’ve had, headlined by Tristan Enaruna. … We knocked the development part out of the park.”

The Charge did knock that out of the park. They had six call-ups (seven if you want to count Nae’Qwan Tomlin, who didn’t play with the Charge, but started on a two-way deal). That includes losing Killian Hayes, who was having an MVP-caliber season, before he was signed by the Sacramento Kings.

Kell-Abrams attributes Brown for being a big reason why they were able to keep things on the rails and attract more talent — like Riley Minix, Malaki Branham, and Sarr — to replace the guys they lost to call-ups.

“[The G League] encourages you to be selfish,” Kell-Abrams said. “You think points will get you called up. You think, ‘How many shots am I getting?’ And D.B. says, ‘You know what, I’m going to pass the ball. I’m going to pass the ball in a league that doesn’t want to.’ And that’s why everybody wants to come play with him. That’s why we were able to get Riley Minix here to play with him. That’s what we were able to get Malaki Branham…Olivier Sarr. Like, these guys want to come be here.”

While many will remember this season for the on-court success that the Charge had, Brown will remember it for how special this group was.

“The stuff I remember most is always the stuff off the court,” Brown said. “I’ll just remember things from after team dinners, going out to Top Golf or doing stuff like that with the staff and everybody. That’s the stuff I’ll remember more than anything we did on the court, although that was very successful.”

Before the season, Kell-Abrams laid out two goals. He wanted to develop NBA talent and be successful on the court. He did both. The Charge finished with their second-best winning percentage for a regular season in their history and had numerous players called up. This was a successful season, even though it didn’t end how they wanted it to.

“Forty-eight minuts of not our best basketball doesn’t define us,” Kell-Abrams said.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Technically, the Knicks fulfilled Josh Hart’s “must-win” decree.

But it wasn’t exactly the cakewalk it appeared after a historically dominant first quarter, as the Knicks needed to overcome slumping second-half stretches in Wednesday’s 130-119 victory over the tanktastic Grizzlies.

Without a resting Jalen Brunson, the Knicks tied a franchise record with 48 points in the opening quarter. It left the impression they were ready to breeze in Memphis, but the Knicks cooled off considerably in the second half — allowing the lead to dwindle to three in the third quarter — and coach Mike Brown was forced to run his starters until the final buzzer.

“It was good. We were sharing the ball, all that stuff. I think defensively we could’ve been better, still gave up a lot of points,” Mikal Bridges said. “Offensively, we were sharing the ball, moving well. But defensively, we could’ve done better.”

Bridges was active with 24 points. OG Anunoby led the way with 25 points and 13 boards. Karl-Anthony Towns collected his fourth career triple-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, benefiting from being the focal point of the offense in his 30 minutes.

The effort was far from perfect, but the baseline of a victory was achieved after a three-game losing streak and a humiliating defeat a day prior in Houston.

The vibes in the locker room postgame were positive, a contrast to the night prior when Towns, clearly frustrated, uncharacteristically left without talking to the media.

“It was a group effort to regroup,” Towns said Tuesday.

Immediately after that loss to the Rockets, Hart, the team’s leader and spokesman, declared the Memphis matchup a “must-win.”

And the Knicks responded exquisitely from tipoff with that powerful first quarter.

Everybody ate. In the opening 12 minutes, the Knicks shot a ridiculous 81 percent — going 5-for-5 from deep — while collecting 14 assists. Nine Knicks scored in the first quarter.

Six of them had at least five points.

They led by 18 after that opening period, then by 17 at the break.

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• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NBA STANDINGS AND KNICKS STATS

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But the Grizzlies responded in the third quarter — attacking the Knicks and hitting their 3-pointers.

It meant Anunoby had to carry the Knicks to victory with 17 points in the fourth quarter.

“I was shooting the same shots [as the previous three quarters], but they were just going in,” Anunoby said.

It was an impressive offensive statistical performance across the board, which will inevitably lead to pundit chatter that the Knicks play faster and freer without Brunson.

But context matters. The Knicks (49-28) were playing the miserable Grizzlies (25-51), who are among the NBA’s preeminent tankers and deployed a lineup of G-Leaguers.

Ja Morant, Zach Edey, Santi Aldama Ty Jerome, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jaylen Wells were all out with injuries.

Brandon Clarke, who was also an injury DNP, was reportedly arrested in Arkansas on Wednesday on charges of trafficking a controlled substance.

The Grizzlies starters included two rookies (Cedric Coward, Javon Small), two former second-round picks (GG Jackson and Cam Spencer) and a player who started on a two-way contract this season (Olivier-Maxence Prosper).

They also had three players in the rotation Wednesday on 10-day contracts.

It was their 15th loss in their last 17 games.

The Knicks?

They’re still third in the East — 2 ½ games behind the Celtics for No. 2, and 1 ½ games clear of the Cavaliers at No. 4.

They’ve also won 10 straight against teams with losing records. Conversely, they’ve dropped five straight to opponents with winning records, including that blowout Tuesday in Houston that had Hart sounding alarms in the postgame locker room.

“We’re not going in the right direction,” said Hart, who had just five points in Wednesday’s win in 25 minutes. “We’re not trending upwards. So we got to figure it out. … Got another one (on Wednesday in Memphis). That’s a must-win for us.”

Coach Mike Brown appreciated the sense of urgency. “It’s good to have that mindset,” he said. His team responded well in Memphis, but only in the bookends of a win.

“I’m still not happy about us in the second half not locked in and them making a run,” Bridges said. “They play hard. A good young team. But I think it’s unacceptable for us.”

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gavin Williams struck out 10 in seven scoreless innings, outpitching World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and José Ramírez hit his first home run of the season to lead the Cleveland Guardians past the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-1 on Wednesday.

Gabriel Arias also went deep for the Guardians, who took two of three games in the series from the two-time defending champions.

Williams (1-1) walked three and allowed only two hits, both singles by Andy Pages. Freddie Freeman homered off Cade Smith with two outs in the ninth, spoiling Cleveland's shutout bid.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb

Last night in Houston, the Knicks (49*-28) lost their third straight game, all on the road. It was possibly the least entertaining game we’ve watched all season, and New York played out of sync all night. Tonight, in the second of a back-to-back, they had a prime opportunity to regain their confidence against a Grizzlies team (25-51) that has seven players out with season-ending injuries and no active center. Mostly, the game went as expected, with the Knicks taking a 22-point first-half lead. Memphis shot well (51% from the field, 44% from deep), but New York shot better (55% and 41%), owned the glass (49-20) and the paint (66-44). Despite a dip late in the third quarter, New York held on to win it, 130-119.

Quoth JustMissedOut2001, “Dang is that stat right? Only 20 rebounds for the grizz.” According to the talking heads after the game, 20 rebounds was the fewest ever for a Knicks opponent. It helps when the tallest guy on the other team is 6’9” in heels.

With Jalen Brunson resting a sore right ankle, Jose Alvarado (15 PTS, 4 AST, 4 TO, 2 STL) got his second start as a Knick. Memphis started rookie shooting guard Cedric Coward (15 PTS), the 11th pick in last summer’s draft, and four other dudes, at least one of whom is on a two-way contract.

Karl-Anthony Towns attacked the rim, wisely, as the undersized Grizzlies had no equal in their front court. He finished the night with a triple-double of 20 points, 11 rebounds, and a career-tying 11 assists—and he did it in 29 minutes. Bridges had a very efficient night, too, tallying 24 points on 9-of-15 from the field. And OG Anunoby delivered an excellent performance, with 25 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks, and a steal in his 40 minutes.

In fact, all our heroes were sizzling, missing just two of their first 15 shots while hitting a perfect five from downtown (Hart, Bridges, Alvarado, Kolek, and Shamet). They also had 11 assists on their first 13 makes, with Josh Hart (5 PTS, 6 RBS, 6 AST, 25 MIN) and Kat combining for seven dimes in the quarter.

Just gonna drop this here….

The KAT-Brunson 2-man lineup played 62 minutes together in the last three games. It had a -38.7 net rating. It was Brunson's worst rated pairing during the losing streak. KAT was only worse with Josh Hart. KAT-JB is supposed to be NYK's super weapon. They're still taking turns.

— Stefan Bondy (@SbondyNBA) April 1, 2026

Midway through the period, coach Mike Brown subbed in Tyler Kolek (9 PTS, 7 AST, 0 TO, 19 min), Jordan Clarkson (8 PTS), and Landry Shamet (13 PTS, 2 STL), back after missing five games with a right knee bone bruise. Landry showed no signs of being hindered, knocking down three of five from deep tonight.

Late in the first quarter, Ariel Hukporti (7 PTS, 6 RBS, 12 MIN) replaced Towns. His rust showed, but Huk could teach Mitchell Robinson (out due to the back-to-back) something about shooting free throws. Coach Brown would name Hukporti the Defensive Player of the Game.

An 11-0 run in the fading minutes helped to pad their lead, and after a Cam Spencer (10 PTS) triple and Tyler Burton (10 PTS) adding two of his own, Shamet canned a corner three in the final seconds to give the visitors a 48-30 lead. That’s a season-high for any quarter of the season for the Knickerbockers.

landry knocking down the long ball 👌 pic.twitter.com/8Wq5kdapTJ

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) April 2, 2026

To start the second quarter, Brown stayed with Kolek and inserted rookie Mohamed Diawara (4 pTS, 5 MIN) into the mix. The tall Frenchman made the most of his minutes, with two quick scores and a steal. Not to be overlooked, Towns continued to have the biggest impact with multiple dunks, putbacks, and strong rebounding, while Bridges added efficient scoring, including a step-back three and driving plays. Hart and Alvarado contributed key assists, steals, and timely buckets, and with the lead reaching 22, this game became a glorified scrimmage.

Memphis got sporadic production from G. G. Jackson (20 PTS, 8-of-12 FG) and Coward, but struggled with turnovers and chasing down loose balls. For the half, New York outrebounded them 21-6! The Grizzlies could never close the gap. Score at intermission: 79-62. That’s the first-half season-high for our heroes.

CRAZY 🎱

25 PTS | 13 AST | 2 BLK | 1 STL pic.twitter.com/bHTBTwqoTp

— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) April 2, 2026

Through two quarters, the Knicks shot a ridiculous 71% from the field (29-for-41) and 70% from three (7-for-10) while the visitors scraped by at 56% and 45%. What’s easy to miss amid all the buckets is New York’s dominance of the paint (40-20) and the boards (8-2 offensive). The Grizzlies hadn’t led once. Bridges topped all first-half scorers with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting. KAT was on his way to a triple-double. Three Bears had 10 points (Walter Clayton, Jr., Jackson, and Burton).

The Grizzlies opened the third frame on a 14-6 run, cutting the Knicks’ lead from 17 to nine. Jackson scored or assisted on nine of those points. With three minutes left, a Shamet turnover and an Adama Bal triple cut the differential to three. Too close for comfort, but it would get no smaller.

The Knicks went on a 14-3 run across the end of the third and start of the fourth quarter, turning a three-point game into a 14-point lead. The Grizzlies had three turnovers and made just one shot during this stretch. The key was execution and extra possessions: Anunoby crashing the glass and protecting the rim, Bridges knocking down a three, and Towns dishing a run of assists.

KAT DROPPED HIS FIRST TRIPLE-DOUBLE OF THE SEASON 👏

20 PTS (8-12 FGM)
11 REB
11 AST@nyknicks win on the road! pic.twitter.com/NdmSOScj8h

— NBA (@NBA) April 2, 2026

From there, OG put it away with a pair of late threes, while Towns cleaned the glass and kept piling up his assist total. Fairly easy win, as it should have been.

Up Next

New York heads home to face the Bulls on Friday. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

Box Score

The Knicks salvaged their four-game road trip with a convincing 130-119 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night to snap a three-game losing streak.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Without top scoring threat Jalen Brunson in the game due to right ankle soreness, New York needed its other players to step up and make some shots and make shots they did. It was an all-out team effort in the first quarter with the Knicks putting up 48 points in the opening 12 minutes of the game, the most points they've scored in any quarter this season. 

-- Nine players saw the court in the first quarter and all nine made at least one field goal, including Ariel Hukporti, who saw extended minutes for the first time since March 13 against the Indiana Pacers. 

 Mikal Bridges led the way by going 3-for-3 from the field and drilling his only three-point attempt. But it wasn't just Bridges as New York shot 81 percent from the field in the first and 100 percent from downtown (5-for-5). They also didn't miss from the free-throw line, going 9-for-9.

-- Overall, the Knicks missed just four shots in the opening frame and were getting anything they wanted offensively. Still, it wasn’t their best defensive effort as they allowed the Grizzlies to score 30 points.

-- The second quarter saw more of the same as Bridges continued his scoring barrage with Karl-Anthony Towns also heavily involved. New York wasn't able to keep up its first-quarter field-goal percentage in the second, but it still shot 71 percent from the field (70 percent from three) going into halftime and still didn't miss from the charity stripe (14-for-14). Along with the starters, it also got some nice contributions from Tyler Kolek and Landry Shamet.

-- Given their ridiculous offensive production, the Knicks outrebounded Memphis 21-6 at the break and had more offensive rebounds (eight) than the Grizzlies had total rebounds. Regardless, Memphis shot a more than respectable 56 percent from the field in the first half and had 62 points at halftime, even outscoring New York 32-31 in the second quarter. Of course, it was outshone by the Knicks' 79 points and 17-point lead at the half.

-- What felt like a clear and obvious win for New York for the entirety of the first half came crashing back down to Earth in the third quarter when the Grizzlies just kept chipping away and made it a game, relying on players like GG Jackson II, who led his team with 20 points, and Javon Small. 

After an Adama Bal three-pointer with 2:48 left in the quarter made it 90-87, what was once a Knicks lead as large as 22 points was shriveled to three points. 

-- The near total collapse by New York came from turnovers, continued bad defense and not having a player to defer to to put an end to a run. That changed in the fourth quarter when OG Anunoby put the team on his back and killed any thought the Grizzlies may have had to come back and win the game.

-- Entering the fourth quarter with just eight points, Anunoby scored 17 in the final frame, in which the Knicks needed every bit of it as Memphis continued to apply pressure. Anunoby finished with a game-high 25 points and led everybody with 13 rebounds.

-- Meanwhile, Towns had a triple-double (20-11-11) and Bridges finished with 24 points in Brunson's absence. New York's bench had a good game, scoring 41 points and dishing out 11 assists (seven via Kolek). 

Game MVP: OG Anunoby

Even though KAT finished with a triple-double, Anunoby made some big shots when it looked like the Knicks might blow their massive lead and had a double-double in his own right.

Highlights

Mikal 👌 pic.twitter.com/oMqKRVZbH4

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 2, 2026

48 points in the first quarter for the Knicks! pic.twitter.com/GUCVVuGfep

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 2, 2026

KAT finds Bridges! pic.twitter.com/k4Q9Y7Ikys

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 2, 2026

Landry and-one from the corner! pic.twitter.com/CtGEGaHaVe

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 2, 2026

KAT whips it in to OG and then he throws it down! pic.twitter.com/mBozYuzVun

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) April 2, 2026

What's next

The Knicks return home for a Friday night showdown with the Chicago Bulls starting at 7:30 p.m.

The Celtics scored 53 first quarter points in route to a 147-129 point win over the rival Miami Heat. It was a night that included a 43 point game from Jaylen Brown, a triple-double from Jayson Tatum and 15 point and 10 rebound game from Neemias Queta.

The Celtics had everyone available, outside of Nikola Vucevic for this one. Vucevic did go through a workout today in Miami at shoot around.

Good sign: Nikola Vucevic is doing some on-court work here at shootaround in Miami

It’s been 3.5 weeks since he fractured his right ring finger pic.twitter.com/dfRqbDx8oi

— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) April 1, 2026

The Celtics started Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Jayson Tatum and Neemias Queta. Norman Powell was out for the Heat who started Davion Mitchell, Tyler Herro, Andrew Wiggins, Pelle Larson and Bam Adebayo.

It was a hot start for Jaylen Brown who scored the Celtics first 11 points.

There wasn’t a ton of defense in the first 6 minutes of the game as the teams were tied at 21 at the first timeout. The Celtics were struggling to guard Bam Adebayo, who had 11 points, 2 rebounds (both offensive boards) and 1 assist early in the game.

It was a monster Sam Hauser quarter as he had 17 points shooting 6/6 from the field and 5/5 from three.

The Celtics led Miami 53-33 at the end of the first quarter. It was a dominant first quarter for Boston, they shot 71% from the field and 73% from three, making 11 threes. They ended the quarter on a 32-9 run as well.

Jaylen Brown had 20 points (the most by a Celtics in the first quarter this season) along with the previously mentioned 17 from Hauser.

53 points is the most first quarter points for the Celtics in franchise history.

53 points is the most BOS has ever scored in a 1st quarter & is tied for the 2nd most 1st-quarter points in NBA history.

Brown's 20 pts is tied for the 2nd most he's ever scored in a 1st quarter.

Hauser's 17 is a 1st quarter career-high and his 5 3's ties Celtic record.

— Dick Lipe (@DickLipe) April 2, 2026

Jordan Walsh was the 9th Celtic off of the bench, Hugo Gonzalez had been filling that role for a while now.

After a slow start, the Celtics defense really clicked in. After giving up 30 points in the first 7:16 of the game, they hunkered down on that side, giving up 21 points over the next 12 minutes of game action.

The Celtics cooled off a bit in the second quarter and did not score 100 points. They did score 80, however, and led Miami 80-57 at halftime. Brown led the team with 24 points while Hauser had 17 and Jayson Tatum had 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Your eyes aren’t deceiving you, insane numbers 📈 pic.twitter.com/yMq1S8HYBZ

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 2, 2026

The third quarter was another hot start for Brown as he scored 8 straight points as the Celtics opened up a 26 point lead.

The rest of the third quarter didn’t go well for the Celtics. They didn’t get nearly enough stops in the quarter and the Heat were able to cut the lead to 10 with 45 points in the period. Just unacceptable stuff from the defense.

The Heat just scored 20 points in 3.5 minutes

They went 6-7 from three in that span

— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) April 2, 2026

The Celtics led the Heat 112-102 at the end of three quarters. Jaylen Brown was dominating the game with 36 points.

Early in the fourth quarter, Jayson Tatum recored a triple-double and then a step back three put the Celtics back up 16. Tatum finished the game with 25 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists.

A Jayson Tatum three pushes the Celtics' lead back up to 16, and gives him 22 points pic.twitter.com/1c7WiVUoYt

— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) April 2, 2026

The Heat made a push but the closest they got was 9. The Celtic won the game 147-129. Jaylen Brown finished with 43 points, Sam Hauser had 23 points and Neemias Queta had 15 points and 10 rebounds.

The Celtics 58% from the field and 48% from three while the Heat shot 46% from the field and 51% from three. Boston’s next game is Friday night in Milwaukee against the Bucks at 8 EST.

All Times EDT

Thursday, April 2

MLB

Minnesota at Kansas City, 2:10 p.m.

Atlanta at Arizona, 9:40 p.m.

N.Y. Mets at San Francisco, 9:45 p.m.

NBA

Minnesota at Detroit, 7 p.m.

Phoenix at Charlotte, 7 p.m.

L.A. Lakers at Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m.

Cleveland at Golden State, 10 p.m.

New Orleans at Portland, 10 p.m.

San Antonio at L.A. Clippers, 10:30 p.m.

NHL

Boston at Florida, 7 p.m.

Buffalo at Ottawa, 7 p.m.

Columbus at Carolina, 7 p.m.

Detroit at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.

Montreal at N.Y. Rangers, 7 p.m.

Pittsburgh at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.

Washington at New Jersey, 7:30 p.m.

Vancouver at Minnesota, 8 p.m.

Winnipeg at Dallas, 8 p.m.

Chicago at Edmonton, 9 p.m.

Calgary at Vegas, 10 p.m.

Toronto at San Jose, 10 p.m.

Utah at Seattle, 10 p.m.

Nashville at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m.

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HOUSTON (AP) — Reed Sheppard scored 27 points on a career-high nine 3-pointers, Alperen Sengun added 25 points and the Houston Rockets beat the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks 119-113 on Wednesday night for their fourth straight victory.

Kevin Durant finished with 19 points and nine assists, Amen Thompson had 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists and Jabari Smith Jr. scored 12 points for the Rockets. They shot 47% from the field, going 18 of 42 on 3-pointers.

Houston had 30 assists on 41 field goals and forced the Bucks into 15 turnovers that they converted into 18 points.

Ousmane Dieng had a career-high 36 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists for Milwaukee. Cormac Ryan had a season-high 25 points, Pete Nance added a career-high 23. AJ Green had 15 points and eight rebounds.

The Bucks shot 47% and were 17 of 40 on 3-pointers. They made 10 3-pointers in the third as they cut Houston’s 20-point lead to seven by the end of the quarter.

Gary Trent Jr. exited with a hip contusion with 4 1/2 minutes left in the first after hitting the ground hard while diving for a loose ball at midcourt. He walked to the locker room holding his right side. Trent’s exit left the Bucks with seven available players after Ryan Rollins was ruled out with a right hip strain.

Down 112-100 with 3 1/2 minutes left in the fourth, the Bucks reeled off eight straight to close within four on two free throws by Dieng. Sengun made two free throws to push the lead to six with 1:06 remaining.

After the teams traded baskets, Jericho Sims made 1 of 2 free throws, but after the Bucks stole the ball, Ryan missed a 3-pointer. Houston got the rebound, and Sengun made 1 of 2 free throws with 16 seconds left to push the lead back to six.

Up next

Bucks: Host Boston on Friday night.

Rockets: Host Utah on Friday night.

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

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Sarah Fillier scored two goals 14 seconds apart in the third period and she completed her first PWHL hat trick in overtime as the New York Sirens ended a four-game skid with a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Frost on Wednesday night.

New York (8-1-3-12) won at the Prudential Center for the first time since March 8 when Fillier had two goals and three points.

Minnesota (11-3-4-6) has lost three straight games for the first time this season.

The Sirens fell behind 1-0 just 16 seconds into the game as Taylor Heise scored on the first shot of the game.

Minnesota forward Grace Zumwinkle scored the only goal of the second period and she added another 44 seconds into the third for a 3-1 lead. Five of her 11 goals this season have come against New York.

Fillier started the comeback by jumping out of the penalty box, intercepting the puck and scoring on a breakaway to get within 3-2 with 7:40 to go. Then she sent in a rebound to tie it seconds later.

In overtime, Fillier received a centering pass from Maja Nylén Persson and flicked it over the glove of Maddie Rooney for her seventh goal in the last six games.

Minnesota had won the three previous meetings with New York this season. Zumwinkle scored twice when the teams met in the Denver Takeover Tour game in March. She has seven points in four games against the Sirens this season.

Up next

Minnesota returns home to play the Vancouver Goldeneyes on Saturday.

New York will host the first PWHL game at Madison Square Garden on Saturday against the Seattle Torrent. The Sirens announced the game is sold out, with an arena capacity of more than 18,000.

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AP women’s hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-hockey

In what might just be the Milwaukee Bucks’ best game of the season, they go down to the Houston Rockets 119-113 with just seven players for most of the night (and all of the senior players sitting). Ousmane Dieng announced himself on the NBA stage, leading the Bucks with 36 points, 10 assists, and seven rebounds. The Rockets were led by Reed Sheppard, who had 27 points.

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

The Bucks suited up EIGHT for this one. Jericho Sims understood the assignment and picked up two fouls in under a minute. Kevin Durant was the main figure early as the Rockets staked out a 10-5 lead. Houston continued to grow their lead, with Reed Sheppard knocking down a couple treys. Perhaps sensing his relative stature, Ousmane Dieng upped his usage, to ill effect. But despite sporting a bench of Andre Jackson Jr., Cormac Ryan, and Alex Antetokounmpo—and losing Gary Trent Jr. to injury to boot—the Bucks parlayed some truly grotesque push shots into a run of inspired YMCA pickup basketball. They ended the frame on an eight-point run to stem the bleeding at 27-20 Rockets.

Houston continued to have a problem in the second, and that problem was offense. That was at least partly to the Bucks’ credit, including some 2-3 zone that the Rockets couldn’t capitalize on from deep. Against all odds, Ime Udoka called a timeout as Milwaukee whittled Houston’s lead to 3. Sadly, Houston (specifically Sheppard) started to make shots again, staking out a healthier lead. Ous continued to call his own number, though this time to better effect (including a sick slam). Josh Okogie injected some well-needed verve into the Rockets as they reclaimed a double-digit advantage. But a couple buckets from Cormac Ryan kept the Bucks in orbit. After an early 15-point deficit, Milwaukee ended the half down a more respectable 54-44.

The Rockets quickly extended their lead to around 15 out of the locker room, with their starters sharing the load equally, leading 72-55 at the 6:42 mark; their size was obviously their biggest advantage against the miniature Bucks lineup. But from there, Milwaukee really took it to the Rockets with an inspired rest of the quarter, headlined by Cormac Ryan and AJ Green. Ryan and Green nailed nine of their 11 tries from deep. Some were just off great ball movement, but others were tough jumpers coming off DHO actions. The Rockets’ clogged-toilet offence even reared its ugly head against the Bucks’ third-strong unit, leaving them trailing by only seven, 85-78, after three.

The Bucks forced several tough shots to open the fourth, but the Rockets just made them (Alperen Sengun, in particular). Still, Milwaukee wasn’t going anywhere, with Ousmane Dieng notching a new career-high of 23 points following consecutive buckets—Houston up 93-87 at the 8:33 mark. The Rockets were able to run out on the fast break a few times after that, getting their lead back up to double digits. Cormac Ryan wasn’t going out without a fight, though, getting fouled by KD on a three and then driving the lane for a nice filayyyy; Rockets up 102-94 at the halfway mark. Houston would increase their lead to 12, but it was halved in short order after threes from Nance and Green with just 2:40 to go! Fast forward a few minutes, Dieng nailed a step-back jumper for his 36th point, and the Bucks were just down four with 54 seconds left. Unfortunately, the Rockets made just enough plays to win, but what an inspired performance from the Bucks. Wow.

Stat That Stood Out

Somehow, the Bucks (with their tiny lineup) got more O-boards (15) than the Rockets (12).

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer season standings:

Tyrese Maxey – 22.5
VJ Edgecombe – 12
Joel Embiid – 10.5
Paul George – 7
Justin Edwards – 4
Kelly Oubre Jr. – 4
Quentin Grimes – 3
Jared McCain :’( – 3
Dominick Barlow – 2
Andre Drummond – 2
MarJon Beauchamp – 2
Adem Bona – 1
Cam Payne – 1
Jabari Walker – 1
Trendon Watford – 1
15th roster spot – 1

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The 76ers are back in the win column as they push to avoid the play-in following a 153-131 victory over the Washington Wizards.

The Sixers came out hot offensively, but left a ton to be desired in terms of defensive effort for most of the first half. Against a tanking Wizards team, giving up 71 points in the first half is inexcusable, even with Joel Embiid missing the game due to illness.

They would eventually pull themselves out of the mud in the third quarter, but allowed the Wizards to creep back into it in the fourth, requiring Nick Nurse to put the starters back in.

We saw strong offensive showings from Tyrese Maxey (28 points, nine assists) and VJ Edgecombe (23 points, 10 assists), as well as some two-way flashes for Adem Bona, but our Bell Ringer tonight was pivotal in ensuring a Sixers win on both ends of the floor.

Paul George: 39 points, 15-of-22 FG, 6-of-12 3PT, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 0 turnovers

Paul George came out of the gates scorching, putting up 14 points through the first 10 minutes of action. He opened scoring with a midrange jumper and immediately found his touch from that distance, nailing another one off a Bona offensive rebound. He would also nab a couple steals to give the Sixers an early double-digit lead. His hot start would travel behind the arc as well with a beautiful step-back three over Tristan Vukcevic.

Paul George with a pretty stepback three for the Sixers pic.twitter.com/6aVgcY9Vaz

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) April 1, 2026

In the midst of the Wizards’ second-quarter run, George helped bring the Sixers back into it late in the frame with a flurry of shots from midrange and deep. He concluded the period with another step-back three to give the Sixers the lead and to bring him to 24 points at halftime.

In the third, George opened up scoring with a corner three, assisted a Bona cutting dunk, and nailed another three to bring his total up to 30. The Sixers gained some ground through the offense of Maxey, but this sequence from George helped put the nail in the Wizards’ coffin, despite it still being the third quarter.

What a sequence here from Paul George:

He nails an "F you" three to tie his season high, drives past the defender for two, then intercepts a pass on the other end which leads to an easy fastbreak conversion for the Sixers. pic.twitter.com/hVHacDgo95

— Drew Peltzman (@dapeltz13) April 2, 2026

His consistent energy was contagious for his teammates, and his leadership continues to be a key force for Edgecombe’s development.

George finished with a season-high 39 points, his highest total since April 7, 2024, when he put up 39 points against the Cavaliers as a member of the Clippers. Even with the stint in the fourth, the Sixers were unable to get him 40.

CHICAGO (AP) — Pascal Siakam scored 25 points and the Indiana Pacers beat the Chicago Bulls 145-126 on Wednesday night to move out of the NBA basement.

Coming off a home victory over Miami on Sunday, the injury-ravaged Pacers had their highest-scoring game of the season. They improved to 18-58 to move a game ahead of last-place Washington.

Ethan Thompson added 24 points, and Kobe Brown and Jay Huff each had 17.

Guerschon Yabusele led Chicago with 20 points, and Collin Sexton had 18. The Bulls have lost five straight — the first four on the road — to fall to 29-47.

Up next

Pacers: At Charlotte on Friday night.

Bulls: At New York on Friday night.

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