BOTTOM LINE: San Antonio hosts Minnesota in a matchup of Western Conference teams.
The Spurs are 15-11 in conference games. San Antonio ranks eighth in the Western Conference with 49.9 points per game in the paint led by Victor Wembanyama averaging 10.4.
The Timberwolves are 14-11 against conference opponents. Minnesota ranks second in the Western Conference shooting 37.3% from 3-point range.
The Spurs score 117.6 points per game, 3.1 more points than the 114.5 the Timberwolves give up. The Timberwolves average 14.1 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.7 more makes per game than the Spurs give up.
The teams square off for the third time this season. The Timberwolves won 104-103 in the last meeting on Jan. 12. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 23 points, and Wembanyama led the Spurs with 29 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Wembanyama is shooting 51.6% and averaging 23.9 points for the Spurs. Julian Champagnie is averaging 3.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Julius Randle is averaging 22.6 points, seven rebounds and 5.6 assists for the Timberwolves. Naz Reid is averaging 18.6 points and 6.5 rebounds over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Spurs: 5-5, averaging 110.0 points, 49.1 rebounds, 23.6 assists, 7.1 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 43.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 108.9 points per game.
Timberwolves: 7-3, averaging 123.9 points, 47.0 rebounds, 28.1 assists, 8.5 steals and 5.9 blocks per game while shooting 51.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.8 points.
INJURIES: Spurs: Stephon Castle: day to day (illness), Devin Vassell: out (thigh).
Timberwolves: Terrence Shannon Jr.: out (foot), Anthony Edwards: out (foot).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Brooklyn Nets (12-27, 13th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Chicago Bulls (19-22, 10th in the Eastern Conference)
Chicago; Sunday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Brooklyn hits the road against Chicago looking to break its four-game road slide.
The Bulls have gone 13-15 against Eastern Conference teams. Chicago ranks second in the league with 35.0 defensive rebounds per game led by Josh Giddey averaging 7.8.
The Nets are 9-16 against Eastern Conference opponents. Brooklyn is 8-19 in games decided by 10 or more points.
The Bulls score 117.3 points per game, 3.5 more points than the 113.8 the Nets allow. The Nets' 44.6% shooting percentage from the field this season is 2.8 percentage points lower than the Bulls have given up to their opponents (47.4%).
The two teams play for the third time this season. The Nets defeated the Bulls 112-109 in their last matchup on Jan. 17. Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets with 26 points, and Nikola Vucevic led the Bulls with 19 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Matas Buzelis is averaging 14.8 points and 5.2 rebounds for the Bulls. Vucevic is averaging 20.3 points over the last 10 games.
Noah Clowney is shooting 38.9% and averaging 13.3 points for the Nets. Egor Demin is averaging 3.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Bulls: 4-6, averaging 112.4 points, 44.7 rebounds, 29.2 assists, 6.5 steals and 6.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.7 points per game.
Nets: 2-8, averaging 106.5 points, 39.7 rebounds, 24.0 assists, 9.2 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 43.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.0 points.
INJURIES: Bulls: Noa Essengue: out for season (shoulder), Josh Giddey: day to day (hamstring), Zach Collins: out (toe), Patrick Williams: day to day (ankle).
Nets: Haywood Highsmith: out (knee), Ziaire Williams: day to day (illness).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
New Orleans Pelicans (10-34, 15th in the Western Conference) vs. Houston Rockets (24-15, fifth in the Western Conference)
Houston; Sunday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Trey Murphy III and the New Orleans Pelicans visit Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets in Western Conference play.
The Rockets have gone 2-4 against division opponents. Houston leads the league with 49.2 rebounds per game led by Alperen Sengun averaging 9.2.
The Pelicans have gone 4-24 against Western Conference opponents. New Orleans is seventh in the NBA with 12.4 offensive rebounds per game led by Yves Missi averaging 2.9.
The Rockets are shooting 47.8% from the field this season, 0.8 percentage points lower than the 48.6% the Pelicans allow to opponents. The Pelicans are shooting 46.5% from the field, 0.3% higher than the 46.2% the Rockets' opponents have shot this season.
The teams meet for the second time this season. The Pelicans won 133-128 in overtime in the last matchup on Dec. 19.
TOP PERFORMERS: Durant is scoring 26.3 points per game with 5.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists for the Rockets. Amen Thompson is averaging 20.9 points and 8.6 rebounds while shooting 51.4% over the last 10 games.
Murphy is averaging 22.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.6 steals for the Pelicans. Zion Williamson is averaging 23.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Rockets: 5-5, averaging 107.5 points, 50.6 rebounds, 21.7 assists, 7.5 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 44.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.6 points per game.
Pelicans: 2-8, averaging 113.3 points, 43.7 rebounds, 25.3 assists, 7.7 steals and 6.6 blocks per game while shooting 47.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 120.6 points.
INJURIES: Rockets: Fred VanVleet: out for season (acl), Tari Eason: out (ankle).
Pelicans: Jose Alvarado: out (oblique), Dejounte Murray: out (leg), Herbert Jones: day to day (ankle).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
That was a fun one, just wish it had started a little bit earlier.
Late Friday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves took on the Houston Rockets. It was the second straight game for the Wolves without Anthony Edwards as he recovers from an infection in his toe. Timberwolves Head Coach Chris Finch said he is still day-to-day with the injury.
Without their best player, it was always going to be an uphill climb for the Wolves, but they came out of the gates strong, taking a double-digit lead early in the second quarter. The defense was limiting Houston’s quality shots, the ball movement on offense was great, and they did a good job getting out in transition, scoring 16 fast break points in the first half.
The Rockets eventually whittled the Wolves’ lead down to two going into the halftime break. The slim margin would hold until the early parts of the fourth quarter when Houston scored seven straight points to give them an eight-point lead, their largest lead of the game to that point.
Without their best player on the floor, the Wolves could not find enough effective offense down the stretch of the game, turning the ball over eight times in the fourth quarter while making only a single 3-pointer on just three fourth-quarter attempts. Minnesota fell by a final score of 110-105.
Julius Randle and Kevin Durant were each the offensive engines for their team, each scoring 39 points. Randle’s scoring is now up to 27.7 points per game in the ten games Edwards has missed this season. Durant, like he always does, shot the ball incredibly well, going 11-18 from the field, 6-8 from beyond the arc, and 11-14 from the free-throw line.
Naz Reid was the other standout for the Timberwolves in the game, scoring 25 points as he made 8 of his 11 shots, including 5 makes from deep. After getting his first taste of rotation minutes on Tuesday against the Milwaukee Bucks, Joan Beringer kept his spot in the rotation, playing a total of six minutes as the Wolves experimented with a three-big lineup with Beringer, Randle, and Reid sharing the court together.
The centers for each team struggled mightily from the free-throw line as Rudy Gobert went 2-10 and Alperen Şengün shot 3-9. The two teams combined to go 40-69 from the free-throw line, both leaving a good number of points available that could have swung the balance of the game.
While any close loss is a missed opportunity for a team like the Wolves with lofty goals, this game will not come with a ton of baggage for the Wolves. Not having Edwards available made getting a win tough against a solid and potentially desperate Houston team, which had just gotten shellacked by the Oklahoma City Thunder a night ago.
It’s also easy to wonder how the game may have gone differently if Edwards had been able to suit up. Not having him available made it tough offensively for the Wolves against Houston’s ninth-rated defense.
Some losses make it feel like the sky is falling. Other losses, like tonight, you can shrug your shoulders and just try to get the next one.
Up Next
The Timberwolves don’t get much time to rest, as they have less than 20 hours to prepare for their next game, a matchup against the San Antonio Spurs at 7:00 PM CT. It is a quick turnaround between games, as you will see in the NBA, making it a real test as Minnesota takes on the team with the second-best record in the West. Fans can watch tomorrow’s game on FanDuel Sports Network.
Durant, who is in his first season with Houston, powered the Rockets with a season-high scoring effort.
He finished the first half of play with 18 points after making 7-of-11 shots from the field and helped the Rockets close the gap only trailing Minnesota by two points after a 3-pointer with just a second remaining in the second quarter.
For the game, Durant made six of his eight shots from long range.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Domantas Sabonis scored 13 points in his return from a knee injury, Russell Westbrook had 26 and the Sacramento Kings beat the Washington Wizards 128-115 on Friday night for their fourth straight victory.
Sabonis returned after missing 27 games because of a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. The three-time All-Star forward/center came off the bench, entering with 5:11 left in the first quarter.
Sabonis also had seven rebounds and five assists in a little over 21 minutes. He was 5 of 6 from field, with the miss coming from 3 -point range.
Dennis Schroder also was back for the Kings after serving a three-game suspension for confronting Lakers star Luka Doncic after a game in Los Angeles. Schroder had 15 points and five assists.
Westbrook was 9 of 14 from the field, hitting 6 of 9 3-pointers, and had six assists. DeMar DeRozan scored 17 points, and Precious Achiuwa and Zach LaVine each had 16.
The Kings have won the first three games of a seven-game homestand to improve to 12-30. They opened the run against Houston, then beat the Lakers and New York.
Alex Sarr led Washington with 19 points, and Tre Johnson had 18. The Wizards dropped to 10-30 with their fifth straight loss.
Washington newcomer Trae Young — acquired from Atlanta in a deal that sent CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert to the Hawks — is sidelined by knee and quadriceps injuries. He will be re-evaluated in mid-February.
Sacramento led 67-61 at the half after scoring 41 points in the first quarter and giving up 39 in the second. The Kings had a 34-23 edge in the third.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jaylon Tyson scored a career-high 39 points, Evan Mobley’s dunk with 4.8 seconds left was the winner and the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers completed a two-game sweep of the 76ers in Philadelphia with a 117-115 victory on Friday night.
Donovan Mitchell added 13 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds for Cleveland, which rallied from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers defeated the 76ers 133-107 on Wednesday.
Joel Embiid scored 33 points and Tyrese Maxey had 22 points, nine assists and five steals for the 76ers.
Cleveland was without Darius Garland (right big toe soreness) and Sam Merrill (right hand sprain), who were both injured on Wednesday. Coach Kenny Atkinson said both will be reevaluated when the team returns to Cleveland this weekend.
The 76ers looked in control when Paul George hit a jumper with 8:47 remaining for an 11-point lead. But the Cavaliers used a 13-2 run, capped by De’Andre Hunter’s 3-pointer with 5:53 left, to tie it at 102. Philadelphia moved ahead by seven points after turnovers by the Cavs on three straight possessions, but Cleveland hung around.
Hunter’s layup with just over a minute left put the Cavs up a point. After Mobley made one of two free throws with 22.7 seconds remaining, Maxey tied it on a runner with 8.1 seconds left. After a timeout, Tyson set up Mobley near the basket for an easy dunk to put Cleveland in front by two. Maxey’s shot from just beyond half court that could have won the game went long.
PACERS 127, PELICANS 119
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Center Jay Huff had a career-best 29 points and nine rebounds and led five players in double figures as Indiana beat New Orleans.
The 7-foot-1 Huff, who entered Friday averaging 8.4 points, shot 13 for 17 from the field and 3 for 6 from 3-point distance. The center’s previous high was 22 points, achieved last year while with the Memphis Grizzlies in a win over the Dallas Mavericks. Huff was acquired by Indiana in a trade with Memphis during the offseason.
Pascal Siakam scored 20 of his 27 points in the first half, and Andrew Nembhard added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacers, who won for the fourth time in five games. Aaron Nesmith and Quenton Jackson scored 12 points apiece as Indiana closed out a 3-1 homestand and improved to 8-16 at home.
Zion Williamson led New Orleans with 27 points on 10-for-12 shooting from the field and 7-for-10 shooting from the line. Williamson was 8 for 8 from the field in the first half, when he scored 21 points.
Trey Murphy III scored 22 points, Saddiq Bey added 20, Jeremiah Fears finished with 16, Derik Queen had 14 and Jordan Poole 11 for the Pelicans, who are 3-16 in road games. Queen also had 12 rebounds.
NETS 112, BULLS 109
NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Porter Jr. made a go-ahead layup with 5.4 seconds remaining after Brooklyn had blown a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter, and the Nets beat Chicago.
Porter scored 26 points and Noah Clowney had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Nets, who snapped a five-game losing streak. Day’Ron Sharpe scored 14 points and rookie Danny Wolf had 13.
Nikola Vucevic scored 19 points and Ayo Dosunmu had 18 for the Bulls in the opener of a home-and-home series.
Coach Jordi Fernandez thought the Nets could’ve won all three games on their just-completed road trip, but it appeared they wouldn’t need to worry about another close finish after a 15-0 run in the second quarter helped them take a 17-point halftime lead, their second-largest of the season.
Cam Thomas’ 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter made it 92-72 before the Bulls scored the next 11 points. Thomas hit another 3 to stop that surge, and the Nets still led by six with under a minute remaining.
The Bulls then scored seven straight points to go ahead 109-108 on Tre Jones’ layup with 11.4 seconds remaining. The Nets ran a play to get Porter the ball near the basket, and he put the Nets back on top. Rookie Drake Powell then stole Chicago’s pass in from the sideline and Clowney’s two free throws made it 112-109 before Vucevic missed a rushed 3-pointer.
CLIPPERS 121, RAPTORS 117, OT
TORONTO (AP) — James Harden had 31 points and 10 assists, Jordan Miller scored 19 points and Los Angeles extended its winning streak to five games by beating Toronto.
Ivica Zubac had 16 points and 14 rebounds, Cam Christie scored 16 points and Kris Dunn had 15 as the Clippers won for the 12th time in 14 games since starting the season 6-21.
Toronto’s Scottie Barnes scored 24 points and Brandon Ingram had 19.
The Clippers are 7-14 on the road. They’ve won four of their past five away from home.
Kawhi Leonard missed his team’s lone regular-season visit to Toronto because of a sprained right ankle. Leonard won the 2019 NBA championship with the Raptors.
The Raptors lost for the second time in 21 games when leading after three quarters.
Toronto led 109-101 with 3:35 remaining in regulation, but missed six straight shots as Harden forced overtime with a personal 8-0 run. Harden made four straight free throws to begin OT.
Harden shot 10 for 27 and finished 2 for 15 from 3-point range. He went 9 for 10 at the free throw line.
KINGS 128, WIZARDS 115
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Domantas Sabonis scored 13 points in his return from a knee injury, Russell Westbrook had 26 and Sacramento beat Washington for its fourth straight victory.
Sabonis returned after missing 27 games because of a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. The three-time All-Star forward/center came off the bench, entering with 5:11 left in the first quarter.
Sabonis also had seven rebounds and five assists in a little over 21 minutes. He was 5 of 6 from field, with the miss coming from 3 -point range.
Dennis Schroder also was back for the Kings after serving a three-game suspension for confronting Lakers star Luka Doncic after a game in Los Angeles. Schroder had 15 points and five assists.
Westbrook was 9 of 14 from the field, hitting 6 of 9 3-pointers, and had six assists. DeMar DeRozan scored 17 points, and Precious Achiuwa and Zach LaVine each had 16.
The Kings have won the first three games of a seven-game homestand to improve to 12-30. They opened the run against Houston, then beat the Lakers and New York.
Alex Sarr led Washington with 19 points, and Tre Johnson had 18. The Wizards dropped to 10-30 with their fifth straight loss.
ROCKETS 110, TIMBERWOLVES 105
HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 39 points and made a season-best six 3-pointers to lead Houston to a win over Minnesota.
Alperen Sengun added 25 points with 14 rebounds to help the Rockets bounce back after a blowout loss to Oklahoma City Thursday night.
A 6-2 run by the Timberwolves, with four points from Julius Randle, got them within 105-102 with about 90 seconds to go. Sengun fouled out soon after that and Jaden McDaniels made one of two free throws to get Minnesota within two points.
Durant made two free throws with under a minute left before Randle turned the ball over and Durant was fouled again. He made two more free throws with 22.1 seconds left to seal the victory.
Durant’s big shooting night came after he was 0 for 5 on 3-pointers against the Thunder.
Randle had season-high 39 points for the Timberwolves on a night when Anthony Edwards missed a second straight game with a foot issue.
The Timberwolves trailed by six points after a basket by Bones Hyland before Rudy Gobert missed a chance to close the gap by missing three of his next four free throws. Houston remained up by 5 later in the fourth, but a dunk by Sengun extended the lead to 103-96 with 3½ minutes left.
Jaylon Tyson’s career-high 39 points led Cleveland to the win. Tyson couldn’t miss as he went 13-17 from the field. He was the only Cavalier to score over 20 points.
Tyson connected on 7-9 from threes. He is now hitting 45.8% of his threes on 4.1 attempts per game. This is up from shooting 34.5% from distance last season.
Tyson finished the game with a 97.1 effective field goal percentage and a 99.3 true shooting percentage. That seems pretty good, yeah?
All 13 of Tyson’s field-goal makes were assisted. Tyson’s ability to play within the offense has stood out this season. He’s done an excellent job of moving off the ball and attacking whenever he gets an opening to do so. Tyson did that brilliantly on Friday. Everything was within the flow of the offense, he wasn’t forcing anything, and he continually made the right offensive play, as evidenced by his game-winning assist to Mobley.
Donovan Mitchell’s 13 points are his second-fewest in a game this season. He struggled to get into a scoring rhythm with the Sixers’ doubling him every chance they could. Mitchell finished the game shooting 4-13 from the field. This included going 0-4 on looks in the paint and not attempting a shot in the restricted area.
The Cavs are now 2-7 when Mitchell scores 21 or fewer points. The Cavaliers have typically gone as Mitchell has from a scoring perspective. That’s why they’re 9-1 when he scores 35 or more. This game was a rare exception.
Mitchell chipped in a season-high 12 assists. However, this was accompanied by six turnovers, which is the second most he’s had this season.
Five of Donovan Mitchell’s 12 assists went to Tyson. The Sixers were blitzing Mitchell whenever they could, especially when they brought a screen his way. Mitchell used this to his advantage by getting Tyson involved. Tyson was able to make them pay as a scorer in the short roll and as a shooter out of these actions.
Cleveland turned it over 18 times. This was eight more giveaways than the Sixers. This led to the Sixers winning the points off turnovers battle 32-15.
The Cavs had three players with four or more turnovers: Mitchell (6), Evan Mobley (4), and Jaylon Tyson (4).
The Cavs are now 6-1 when they turn it over 18 or more times. This stat is a good reminder that correlation does not always equal causation.
Joel Embiid scored 16 of his 33 points off long midrange jumpers. Jarrett Allen did a great job of keeping Embiid out of the paint on Wednesday. Instead of trying to get back there, Embiid took the midrange shots that Allen was giving him, going 8-15 on long twos. Allen could’ve been stronger with contesting those jumpers, but you’d rather limit him to taking a shot he makes 47% of the time instead of one he makes 64% of the time.
The Cavs went 17-34 (50%) from three. This was the second time they’ve shot 50% or better from three in a game. They’re now 7-2 when they connect on more than 42% of their triples.
Cleveland’s 34 three-point attempts were their fifth-fewest in a game this season. They’re also 7-2 when they take 35 or fewer threes.
The Cavs held the Sixers to just 61.5% shooting at the rim (30th percentile). This wasn’t a great defensive game from Cleveland, but being able to defend the rim this well is a good sign that their defense was probably a little better than it seemed. The number of easy baskets off turnovers made it difficult to judge the Cavs on that end.
Mobley had four blocks for the second straight game. The Cavs are 5-2 when he records four or more rejections in a game.
Craig Porter Jr. tied a career high with 11 assists. He performed well filling in for Darius Garland in the starting lineup, who missed the game with a toe injury on his other foot. Porter turned it over only once and wasn’t part of the team’s problems with holding onto the ball.
De’Andre Hunter and Porter led the team in plus/minus (+12). The Cavs played some of their best basketball with Hunter on the court. He provided 16 points and four assists on 7-13 shooting. This was Hunter’s second strong outing in a row.
Six Cavaliers had double-digit points: Tyson (39), Hunter (16), Mobley (15), Mitchell (13), Tyrese Proctor (13), and Allen (10).
The Cavs closed the game on a 13-4 run. They played their best basketball in the clutch, which allowed them to rally back from a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit. With the win, the Cavs are 9-14 in clutch situations (games that are within five points in the final five minutes).
With all due respect to the paying customers of Scotiabank Arena, the NBA’s best players continue missing games in Toronto.
Kawhi Leonard joined the growing list of stars to not suit up against the Raptors, including Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Joel Embiid, and Jaylen Brown.
Lucky for Los Angeles, they still have another All-Star who can both entertain and frustrate the opposition’s fans, James Harden.
The Bearded One overcame a slow first half to lead the visiting Clippers to a thrilling overtime win over the short-handed Raptors. Harden finished with 31 points and 10 assists. He received help up and down the roster as three other starters and two bench players each scored in double figures. Ivica Zubac had a double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds. In addition to being a pest all night on defense, Kris Dunn finished with 15 points and 4 steals. Jordan Miller led all reserves with 19 points and 6 assists, to go along with a game-high +20.
For most of the game, Toronto was led by Jamal Shead, who ended up with 15 points and a career-high 13 assists. Scottie Barnes took over in the overtime period, ultimately leading the Raptors with 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Heading into this matchup, the Clippers had rebounded from a 6-21 start, winning 11 of its previous 13 games (now 12 of 14). In addition to Kawhi’s absence (knee), Los Angeles was also Bogdan Bogdanovic (hamstring), Derrick Jones Jr. (knee), Patrick Baldwin Jr. (hip), and Chris Paul (uuhhhh).
The injury report remained long for the Raptors as they were without Jakob Poeltl (back), RJ Barrett (ankle), Immanuel Quickley (back spasms), Ja’Kobe Walter (hip pointer), Jamison Battle (ankle), and Chucky Hepburn (knee).
With Kawhi out, LA’s offense was clearly going to be very Harden-heavy. Darko Rajakovic held no punches and started the game with Scottie Barnes guarding the . On one of the first possessions, Harden called for a screen from Ivica Zubac, who was being guarded by Collin Murray-Boyles. Suffice to say, the possession ended with the Clippers not scoring.
Scottie Barnes + Collin Murray-Boyles have the BEST 2-man duo Defensive Rating in the league the last 7 games.
Brandon Ingram has played well against the Clippers, mainly with his time on the Pelicans. On one sequence, he patiently waited for Harden to finish his dribble-shimmy-dance routine and blocked a stepback three attempt. Before Harden could complain for a foul call, Brandon was already sprinting out for an eventual fastbreak layup.
Halfway through the first quarter, Toronto had 10 fastbreak points, forced 3 turnovers, and had jumped out to an 18-4 lead.
With Quickley out for a second consecutive game, Jamal Shead took the proverbial bull by the horns. The Houston Cougar alum took advantage of the attention given to Ingram and Barnes to torch the Clippers with 10 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds in the first quarter alone!
Just like in Indiana, Toronto grabbed an early lead and didn’t let up. The Raptors ended the first quarter with a 32-24 lead, holding Los Angeles to 43% shooting and 20% from three, including 0-5 from Harden.
While the first 12 minutes were highlighted by Toronto’s ability to get out in transition, the offense slowed down in the second quarter when Ingram and Barnes took turns resting. Instead the relied on its defense to stem the Clipper tide. At the center of that defense — as has been the growing case since Poeltl’s injury — was Murray-Boyles.
CMB and Barnes surprised Zubac with a well-timed double-team, causing Big Z into a traveling violation. Shortly after, CMB doubled the ballhandler, then somehow recovered in time to block the three-point attempt. On a nightly basis, Collin has at least one defensive highlight that makes your jaw drop. If nothing else happens, Murray-Boyles has injected a similar kind of excitement that Barnes once garnered.
Toronto’s offense went through a bit of a lull in the second quarter as Los Angeles slowly crept back into the game. By the time Rajakovic called a timeout with 3:52 remaining in the second quarter, the Clippers had whittled the deficit down to 46-43.
CMB doing it on both ends: – Accurate kickout to the corner for 3 – Emphatic block at the rim – Smart move to create room to score pic.twitter.com/tvZ2WmOYEK
Toronto’s on-ball defense on Harden was excellent throughout the first half. Whether it was Barnes, Murray-Boyles, or even Gradey Dick guarding him, Harden simply could not generate enough separation for a clean shot. Not long after airballing a three-pointer — his sixth straight miss from beyond the arc to start the game — Harden was finally able knock down a three.
Three was actually the magic number for the Clippers in the first half. Kobe Sanders, Cam Christie, Kris Dunn, Jordan Miller, Zubac, and Harden each scored three field goals apiece! While it took the rest of them between 3 to 5 attempts to get there, Harden needed 13 attempts.
Toronto carried a 61-52 lead into halftime.
Clippers came out of halftime scorching hot and focused, scoring 16 of the first 18 points of the third quarter and grabbing (and extending) its first lead of the game, 68-63.
After leading wire-to-wire against the Pacers, Toronto took it to heart after seeing themselves trailing. An Ingram triple was followed by a Mamu run! Sandro Mamukelashvili almost single-handedly snapped the Raptors out of its funk, scoring the next 7 Toronto points and pushing the Raps back into the lead, 73-72.
Cue Gradey Dick’s music! The reigning Raptors Chain recipient hit back-to-back threes to bring the crowd to their feet. Then, to top it off, dove for a loose ball and threw an outlet to fellow Jayhawk, Ochai Agbaji, for a breakaway opportunity. Agbaji was fouled, but drained the ensuring free throws to raise the lead to nine.
The Raptors ended up closing the quarter on an 8-1 run to enter the final quarter with an 89-78 lead.
Similar to the second and third quarters, Ty Lue and his group of ragtag Clippers clawed their way back into the game. A contested triple by Brook Lopez (remember him?) cut the lead to 89-87. After a Darko timeout, a layup by Christie completed an 11-0 run by Los Angeles to tie the game.
Both teams got contributions up and down the roster. After CMB scored an and-1 layup to put the Raptors up 109-101 lead with 3:35 remaining, 13 different players were in double-figures — yet not a single player had reached 20 points.
From there, it was the James Harden show. After being kept in check for most of the game, Harden scored the game’s next 8 points while the Clippers defense kept Toronto from scoring. Both teams were unable to score in each of their last two possessions, including a potential game-winning, buzzer-beater, which Harden missed.
In the extra session, Harden grifted his way to charity stripe on consecutive possessions, giving the Clippers a 4-point edge. Both foul calls were touchy at best, but when you’re a veteran like Harden, you know how to work the referees.
Do the math on the previous 3 paragraphs and the tally reads: Harden — 12; Raptors — 0, spanning five minutes of game play between the fourth quarter and overtime. Barnes took the early deficit in overtime as a sign to take over. All in all, Scottie and James went back and forth throughout the extra period, scoring 8 points each. Ultimately, the Raptors couldn’t get a single point to end regulation and put the game away, or find ways to stop Harden in overtime to regain momentum.
The Clippers may have won because of Harden’s heroics, but he wouldn’t have had that opportunity if it wasn’t for the help of his teammates. Cam Christie chipped in with 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting off the bench. Kobe Sanders amassed 13 points and 3 steals, stepping into the starting lineup for the ailing Leonard.
For the Raptors, Gradey Dick had a second consecutive positive game, finishing with 15 points and 7 rebounds off the bench. Ingram (19 points), Mamukelashvili (13 points), Murray-Boyles (11 points), and Ochai Agbaji (15 points) also scored in double-figures. Shead’s 8 first-half assists tied a season-high for any half this season.
Toronto heads out for a five-game road trip, starting in Los Angeles (the Lakers, this time) on Sunday. With the trade deadline less than 3 weeks away and the Raptors seemingly in every single rumour, the team’s resolve will be tested as they cling to the 4th spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
Tyson, the No. 20 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, set a new career high for a single game, topping the 31 points he scored in a double-overtime loss to the Indiana Pacers on April 13, 2025. But the 23-year-old only needed four quarters Friday night to establish a new personal best.
Tyson tallied 12 points in the first quarter and seven more in the second to give him 19 points at halftime. He came out of the break with 12 points in the third and closed the game with eight in the fourth quarter. In all he made 13 of 17 shots, including 7-for-9 on 3-pointers, and made all six of his free throws.
And, while he didn’t hit the game winner, he did have the game-winning assist – his fourth of the night – on Evan Mobley’s dunk with 4.8 seconds remaining. Tyson also added five rebounds as the Cavaliers (24-19) rallied from seven points down after three quarters, outscoring the Sixers (22-18) by 11 points in the final frame.
JAYLON TYSON FINDS EVAN MOBLEY FOR THE GAME-WINNER 🚨
It marked the second consecutive win for Cleveland in Philadelphia this week. The Cavaliers routed the 76ers 133-107 on Wednesday, Jan. 14; Tyson scored 12 in that contest.
Tyson has started 23 of 38 games this season as the Cavaliers have dealt with multiple injuries, including to point guard Darius Garland, who was injured in Wednesday's game. But Tyson’s big night against a conference rival could indicate that he is ready to assume an even bigger role as Cleveland makes a push to take a run at the top teams in the East.
2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings: Tyrese Maxey – 17 VJ Edgecombe – 5 Paul George – 5 Joel Embiid – 3 Andre Drummond – 2 Dominick Barlow – 1 Adem Bona – 1 Justin Edwards – 1 Quentin Grimes – 1 Jared McCain – 1 Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1 Trendon Watford – 1 15th roster spot – 1
The Sixers dropped their second game in a row to the Cavaliers on Friday, blowing an 11-point fourth quarter lead.
It was a second consecutive difficult night for the starting backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, combining for only 32 points. Cleveland’s second-year wing Jaylon Tyson put up a career-high 39 points, missing only four shots on 17 attempts.
This caused the Sixers to play through Embiid for most of the game offensively, which had some consequential side-effects in the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers’ relentless rim pressure in the final frame displayed Embiid’s physical shortcomings, and surged them back into the game with the chance to win the game in the final seconds.
Lonzo Ball inbounded the ball with eight seconds remaining, gave it to the on-fire Tyson who drove baseline and dropped off a beautiful wrap-around pass to Evan Mobley for an easy layup. With no timeouts remaining and just a few seconds remaining, the Sixers were forced into a last-second heave from Maxey, which missed wide right.
JAYLON TYSON FINDS EVAN MOBLEY FOR THE GAME-WINNER 🚨
Embiid was the sole source of offense for the Sixers on Friday, as the Cavs continued to enforce strong defense against the Sixers guards. He got into a groove early on after making his first couple shots, and began mixing up his offensive attack.
His free-throw line jumper and appears to be in pristine condition as he continues to find his touch in the midrange. He had a couple possessions taking Mobley on with power dribbles, getting to his fade and the rim with ease.
Big fella with the corner three and he's got a game-high 28. Sixers up 73-64. pic.twitter.com/Fleir3sSkL
He was persistently drawing fouls no matter if it was Mobley or Jarrett Allen on him, slowing the game down to fit his style of play. He came out strong offensively in the second half, accounting for most of the teams points in the third. It would begin to trickle off in the fourth, as more was being asked of him on the defensive end. He had an insane chase down block on Hunter, but other than that, was largely getting picked on late with consistent rim attacks.
Adem Bona: 4 points, 4 rebounds, 3 blocks
There are two moments to highlight from Bona’s performance. The first came in the second quarter where in a span of 30 seconds, Bona threw down a cutting dunk, defended Mobley on the perimeter, blocked Tyson’s layup, and blocked a Tyrese Proctor layup on the next possession.
What a sequence from Adem Bona!
A big-time slam followed by TWO incredible blocks 💥🚫🚫
ADELAIDE, Australia (AP) — Third-seeded Mirra Andreeva trailed 3-0 but came back to win nine games in a row and 12 of the last 13 to beat Victoria Mboko 6-3, 6-1 in the Adelaide International final on Saturday.
The match featured the only players aged under 20 inside the top 20 on the WTA Tour. Andreeva is 18 and Mboko 19.
The Canadian took a 3-0 lead in the first set before Andreeva evened the match, winning 13 consecutive points and dominating the rest of the set and match.
Trailing 3-0 in the second set, Mboko took a medical timeout when her blood pressure and pulse was taken. She returned to win her first game of the second set but Andreeva closed out the match three games later.
It was Andreeva's fourth WTA title.
“I’ve been practicing a lot,” Andreeva said. I’ve been working, sweating . . . "
Mboko has rapidly established herself near the top of the rankings and has two career titles: the WTA 1000 Canadian Open at Montreal last year and the WTA 250 Hong Kong Open.
She will rise to a career-high No. 16 ahead of her Australian Open debut on Monday, where she’ll face another teen in Australia’s Emerson Jones.
“Sorry I couldn’t be 100%, but I want to give a huge congrats to Mirra for playing incredible tennis today and her team, of course, too," Mboko said.
Andreeva will also open her Australian Open campaign on Monday, facing Donna Vekic. Andreeva has reached the fourth round at Melbourne Park the past two years.
In the later men’s final at Adelaide, Tomas Machac beat Ugo Humbert 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-2.
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Third-seeded Jakub Mensik served 18 aces Saturday on his way to a 6-3, 7-6 (7) win over Sebastien Baez in the final of the ATP 250 tournament in Auckland.
The 20-year-old from the Czech Republic, ranked 18th, saved three set points in the second-set tiebreak to claim his second ATP Tour title.
He now heads to the Australian Open in which he will play Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta in the first round. Baez, who beat top-seeded American Ben Shelton in the quarterfinals in Auckland, will play Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round in Melbourne,
Mensik breezed through the first set in 31 minutes with 11 aces and served for the second set at 6-5. But Baez broke him for the first time in the match and led 6-3 in the tiebreak before Mensik won three straight points.
Mensik gained his second match point with his 18th ace, then took the final point off Baez's serve to seal the match.
“I would say it has been a great start of the year,” Mensik said. “Obviously, I'm super happy after the preparation and pre-season. Seb is a great fighter. It's difficult to hit a winner against him."
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Sacramento Kings star Domantas Sabonis returned Friday night against Washington after missing 27 games because of a partially torn meniscus in his left knee.
The three-time All-Star forward/center came off the bench, entering with 5:11 left in the first quarter in the Kings' 128-115 victory.
Sabonis scored 13 points and had seven rebounds and five assists in a little over 21 minutes. He was 5 of 6 from field, with the miss coming from 3-point range.
Dennis Schroder also was back for the Kings after serving a three-game suspension for confronting Lakers star Luka Doncic after a game in Los Angeles. Schroder had 15 points and five assists.
The Kings have won the first three games of a seven-game homestand to improve to 12-30. They opened the run against Houston, then beat the Lakers and New York.
It was neither perfect nor pretty, but it was enough to snap the longest losing skid in the NBA.
Barely.
The Nets threw away a 20-point fourth-quarter cushion and needed a last-ditch score by Michael Porter Jr. to pull out a 112-109 escape against Chicago before a sellout crowd of 17,548 at Barclays Center.
Michael Porter looks to keep the ball away from Jalen Smith during the second quarter of the Nets’ 112-109 win over the Bulls on Jan. 16, 2025 at Barclays Center. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Porter had a game-high 26 points, including a go-ahead layup with 5.4 seconds left.
Then the Nets needed a late steal by rookie Drake Powell to turn Porter’s bucket into the winner, having turned what should have been a laugher into a nail-biter.
“The lesson is that there’s no safe lead in the NBA. Teams will always punch back,” coach Jordi Fernández said. “Give them credit. But at the end of the day, responding is important because when things go against you and then the other team takes the lead, it may seem like a big mountain in front of you. And the guys kept composure, scored when we needed to. Mike with a big bucket and then the stop.”
The Nets (12-27) came in having dropped a league-worst five straight and eight of nine.
They had been swept on a three-game road swing against teams that were a combined 39-70.
But after building a 92-72 cushion in the fourth quarter after rookie Nolan Traore (game-high seven assists) found Cam Thomas for a 3-pointer, and a 108-102 edge with a minute left, they had allowed seven unanswered points and coughed up the lead.
A bad Porter pass led to a Jalen Smith 3-pointer, and a bad Traore pass gave Isaac Okoro a breakaway dunk.
When Powell getting blocked by Nikola Vucevic (19 points, six assists, six rebounds), led to Tre Jones’ go-ahead layup with 11.4 seconds left, the Nets’ lead was gone.
Noah Clowney drives past Matas Buzelis during the first quarter of the Nets’ win over the Bulls. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
That was until Porter took it back. It was only the second time he had ever hit a go-ahead bucket with under 10 seconds left, after a 14-foot jumper for Denver with six seconds to play in a 122-120 win over Dallas on Nov. 10, 2024.
“I just need him to catch the ball. After that, he knows what he’s doing,” Fernández said. “He caught it close to the elbow. It was easy enough for him to use his size and finish. Very proud of him for how he executed. He was responsible. He played like the player that he is. We would have not won this game without Michael.”
Added Porter: “It was a play to give me that side on the pin down and give me the ball and try to make a play. I felt like I let the team down a little bit last game and, honestly, tonight with a late turnover. So I was pretty determined to try to get a good look off. This is how a losing team becomes a winning team.”
With shots like Porter’s. And plays like Powell’s.
With starting point guard Josh Giddey out injured, the Bulls were going to inbound but called a timeout.
The Nets’ defense forced another timeout on an inbound attempt when the Bulls changed their intended play.
Powell stole Jones’ bad pass, and after a Chicago foul, Noah Clowney (23 points, 11 rebounds) sealed it at the free throw line.
“I’m just glad we finished out. It was good, but it shouldn’t have been that close, especially with the lead we had going into half, even the third quarter,” Clowney said.
“When shots stopped falling, we stopped getting what we wanted. We stopped getting back, and they were capitalizing every time. Just get back, play defense, regardless of shots falling or not.”
With the Nets having struggled on the glass, Nic Claxton had seven points, 14 rebounds and five assists while Day’Ron Sharpe added 14 points and six boards.
The Nets are now 1 ½ games behind fourth-place Sacramento in the lottery standings. They travel to Chicago on Sunday.
“We had to just stick with it,” Claxton said. “Really, we shouldn’t have been that close down the stretch. We got to be better, but at the end of the day, we got the win, that’s what matters.”
