PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Shaedon Sharpe scored 27 points and had seven rebounds and four steals, and the Portland Trail Blazers extended their winning streak to four games with a 127-110 victory over the Miami Heat on Thursday night.
Deni Avdija added 20 points before leaving with a back injury. Caleb Love also had 20 points, Toumani Camara had 16 and Jrue Holiday 15 for the Trail Blazers, who led by as many as 21 and won for the 11th time in 14 games. Their 9-2 mark in January is the best in the NBA.
At 23-22, it's the first time the Trail Blazers are over .500 through 45 games since the 2020-2021 season.
Bam Adebayo scored 32 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Heat. Norman Powell added 18 points and Simone Fontecchio had 17.
The Trail Blazers led 64-63 at halftime and pulled away with a 17-2 run in the third quarter that put them up by 17. Sharpe led the way with a team-high 24 second-half points.
The Trail Blazers made 20 3-pointers, with Sharpe shooting 5 of 9 from beyond the arc, compared to the Heat making just nine.
The Lakers nearly pulled off an improbable comeback against the Clippers on Thursday before coming up just short, falling 112-104.
After trailing by as many as 26 in the second half, the Lakers cut the deficit to two points, setting up a frantic finish. Despite an improved defensive effort in the second half, LA ran out of steam down the stretch.
LA lost the rebounding battle 55-43, giving up 15 second-chance points. Ivica Zubac pulled down 19 boards himself.
It was an offensive showdown early. Jake LaRavia was red hot, draining two 3-pointers for the Lakers. Kawhi Leonard then began to heat up for the Clippers, scoring eight points. LaRavia and Luka Dončić combined for 12 of LA’s first 16 points.
Kobe Sanders provided instant offense for the Clippers off the bench with two triples. The purple and gold’s struggles mounted as Luka was the only one scoring. The Clippers jumped to a lead of seven, forcing a Laker timeout.
Out of the break, Luka scored on a shot off the glass.
Sanders continued shooting well from behind the arc, draining another triple. After missing his first two shots, Rui Hachimura knocked down a 3-pointer at the first quarter buzzer, making it a seven-point deficit.
The second period began with Brook Lopez scoring four points. LeBron James was being assertive and playing aggressively as he was at nine points in the half. The Lakers couldn’t defend Leonard, who was still scoring at ease. He was the second player in the game in double figures with 12.
At the 7:13 mark, the Lakers were down by nine.
Each time the Lakers tried to get closer, the Clips had an answer. Despite defending James Harden well, he did still manage to notch seven points. The lead kept growing for the Clippers as the Lakers completely fell apart on both ends.
At halftime, the purple and gold were down by 17.
The Lakers failed to score from the 2:58 mark of the 2nd Q until Ayton's first hoop with 26 seconds to play, snapping a 9-0 run.
The third period began with both teams missing shots until Harden converted on a three-point play. Deandre Ayton countered with a hook shot on the other end. Leonard then went on a personal 5-0 scoring run, forcing a timeout for the Lakers. The Lakers only made one of their first seven shot attempts.
Leonard was now at 24 points for the game.
The Lakers were struggling with poor energy and effort until they suddenly found some life. They scored five straight points, but they were still down by double figures. After a Clippers timeout, Luka converted on a midrange jumper.
The Lakers continued to build on the momentum they had conjured up by defending and scoring. They ended the third on a 19-7 scoring run for a deficit of 14 going into the fourth period.
LA finally got something going late in the 3rd Q, rallying behind Luka Doncić – 26 points, 8 boards, 7 assists – to get within 14 after trailing by as much as a 26 earlier in the period.
Hachimura opened the final frame with a 3-pointer for the Lakers. Jordan Miller was cooking for the Clips with seven quick points. The Lakers were throwing all their bodies at Leonard, making him battle more for his shots.
It was down to a 10-point game at the 8:45 mark.
Jarred Vanderbilt was providing energy off the bench by doing the dirty work with two assists and three steals. The Lakers had completely taken all the momentum from the Clippers and had now made it a five-point game.
It's a 35-14 extended run now, and the deficit is down to 5 after Smart's and-1.
Luka and Harden exchanged a pair of 3-pointers, making it a fun shootout. It had become a two-point deficit until the Clippers answered back with a 10-0 scoring run.
All the great energy and effort the Lakers had built was an afterthought as they looked drained. As quickly as it looked to all be done, the Lakers came alive once more, scoring eight straight points to cut the deficit to single digits once more.
A three-point play from LeBron made it a three-point game with 1:28 left.
The Clippers then responded again with a 5-0 run, capped off with a John Collins three with 43 seconds left to put the hosts up 110-102 to effectively seal the result.
Key Player Stats
Dončić ended with 32 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists and three steals. LeBron had 23 points with five rebounds and six assists. LaRavia pitched in with seven points, five rebounds, three steals and four blocks.
Hachimura scored 12 points off the bench. Jaxson Hayes notched six points and two rebounds. Vanderbilt put up seven points with two assists and four steals while finishing with a team-best plus-minus of +16. Marcus Smart had 10 points with four assists and two steals.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday at 5:30 PM PT.
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Anthony Mantha scored twice, Sidney Crosby made it three in an early 37-second span and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Edmonton Oilers 6-2 on Thursday night.
The 37-second spree was the fastest three goals in Penguins history and the fastest three allowed by the Oilers.
The Penguins scored on three of their first four shots. Just 2:20 in, Justin Brazeau made a nifty pass through a defender’s legs to Mantha, who deflected it in. Twenty-two seconds later, Mantha scored on a breakaway. Crosby struck 15 seconds after that, deflecting a pass from the slot into the net.
Evgeni Malkin had a goal and an assist, Rickard Rakell, and Egor Chinakhov also scored and Arturs Silovs made 30 saves. The Penguins have won three straight and are 10-2-2 in their last 14 to get to 25-14-11.
Jake Walman and Matthew Savoie scored for Edmonton, and Tristan Jarry made 16 saves against his former team. The Oilers have lost two in a row and four of six to fall to 25-19-8.
Connor McDavid was held pointless in consecutive games are the first time this season. The last time he went two games without a point was Feb. 7 and Feb. 22, 2025, a pair of matches broken up by the 4 Nations Face-Off.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tyrese Maxey scored six of his 36 points in overtime, Joel Embiid had 32 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists and the Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Houston Rockets 128-122 on Thursday night.
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 26 points for the 76ers, who evened their home record at 12-12. Paul George returned to the lineup for Philadelphia after missing two straight games due to left knee injury management and had 10 points.
Kevin Durant scored 36 points for the Rockets, who had won three in a row. Amen Thompson added 17 for Houston.
The 76ers scored the first five points of the extra session, on George’s 3-pointer and VJ Edgecombe’s follow from close range after he grabbed an offensive rebound, to take control.
Philadelphia had a chance to win it in regulation, but Durant blocked Maxey’s driving layup attempt with 13.2 seconds left. Maxey added 10 assists.
The 76ers opened up a 94-88 lead early in the fourth quarter, but it took 3:23 for Philadelphia to score another point. Reed Sheppard’s third 3-pointer of the quarter put Houston up 105-96 with 6:25 remaining. The 76ers tied it twice late in regulation, the last on Maxey’s layup with 40.1 seconds left.
HORNETS 124, MAGIC 97
ORLANDO (AP) — LaMelo Ball returned to Charlotte’s starting lineup and had 16 points, seven assists and six rebounds in a win over Orlando.
Ball, who a night earlier had one of the worst shooting performances of his career when he came off the bench as part of a plan to manage his minutes, went 6 for 12 from the field and 4 for 8 from 3-point distance against Orlando. In a loss to Cleveland on Wednesday, the No. 3 pick in the 2020 draft finished with two points on 1-of-15 shooting, including 0 of 10 from 3-point range.
Brandon Miller scored 20 points to lead Charlotte’s balanced effort. Collin Sexton came off the bench and scored 12 of his 19 points in the first half, Kon Knueppel and Tidjane Salaunadded added 13 apiece, and Miles Bridges, Moussa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner each scored 10.
Paolo Banchero scored 23 points, and Desmond Bane added 21 for the Magic. Moritz Wagner scored 14, Noah Penda added 13 and Jeff Howard 10.
NUGGETS 107, WIZARDS 97
WASHINGTON (AP) — Peyton Watson scored a career-high 35 points to lead short-handed Denver to a victory over Washington.
Jamal Murray added 24 points for the Nuggets, who avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season. Jonas Valanciunas had 16 points in his return after missing 11 games with a strained calf. Aaron Gordon also scored 16 points.
Nikola Jokic missed his 13th consecutive game for Denver with a hyperextended left knee.
Kyshawn George scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Washington, which lost its eighth in a row. Tre Johnson added 19 points for the Wizards, who dropped 14 consecutive games from late October to early December.
Washington shot a season-worst 38.1% (32 of 84) to sink to 10-33, one game ahead of last-place Indiana in the Eastern Conference. The Wizards never never led after halftime, but pulled into an 83-all tie after Alex Sarr’s free throw early in the fourth quarter.
MAVERICKS 123, WARRIORS 115
DALLAS (AP) — Naji Marshall tied his season highs with 30 points and nine assists, and Dallas beat Golden State, winning a season-best fourth consecutive game while dropping the Warriors to 0-2 since Jimmy Butler’s season-ending knee injury.
Stephen Curry scored 38 points and was 8 of 15 from 3-point range on the night the Warriors’ superstar became the first in NBA history to attempt 10,000 shots from beyond the arc. He’s now 4,222 of 10,007 from deep.
Cooper Flagg had 21 points and a career-high 11 rebounds in 30 minutes when Dallas’ rookie No. 1 pick was supposed to be limited to 20-25 minutes in his second game back since missing a pair with a sprained left ankle.
Max Christie also had 21 points, Brandon Williams scored 19 off the bench and Dwight Powell had 10 points and 12 rebounds. Klay Thompson hit two first-half 3s for six points against his former team.
The Warriors were up one midway through the fourth quarter when Draymond Green was called for a flagrant foul that had him arguing with the officials. Less than a minute later, another foul by Green was reviewed but not called flagrant.
Green argued anyway as he went to the bench after the second foul, and the Mavs continued on an 11-0 run that started after the flagrant foul. Green fouled out with 3:50 remaining.
BULLS 120, TIMBERWOLVES 115
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Coby White scored 22 points, Josh Giddey added 21 off the bench, and Jalen Smith converted two clutch free throws late to lift Chicago to a win over Minnesota.
Chicago overcame a 14-point, first-half deficit and also withstood a 13-0 run from Minnesota in the fourth quarter. White hit a clutch 3-pointer from the corner to keep it a one-point game with 1:06 to play.
After White’s corner 3-pointer, Minnesota committed a pair of costly turnovers in the final minute. Jaden McDaniels lost the ball out of bounds for Minnesota, and Chicago’s Tre Jones made a layup at the other end with 31.1 seconds to play. Smith then converted at the line with 11 seconds remaining, and Minnesota failed to hit a shot in its next possession.
Julius Randle, who was on the injury report with left foot soreness, had a team-high 30 points for Minnesota, but also committed a late turnover. Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid each added 20 points, and McDaniels scored 16 in the loss.
After White was whistled for a travel with 2:08 to play, both teams traded baskets in the ensuing possessions. Edwards hit a shot in the lane and Smith responded with a dunk. McDaniels then converted a corner 3-pointer to put Minnesota up 115-111. But that ended up being the last points scored by the Timberwolves. Chicago went on a 9-0 run in the final 1:06.
The loss was a season-high fourth in a row for Minnesota. Chicago has won three straight.
SPURS 126, JAZZ 109
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — De’Aaron Fox scored 31 points, Victor Wembanyama had 26 points and 13 rebounds and San Antonio defeated Utah.
Fox shot 10 of 13 from the field with six 3-pointers. Wembanyama — along with five blocks — shot 9 of 14 with four 3s one game after a 5-of-21 performance in a loss to Houston.
Keldon Johnson added 21 points and Stephon Castle had 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as the Spurs won their fourth game in their last five.
Utah’s Jusuf Nurkic had 17 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds for his second triple-double in as many games, and third of his career. The Jazz went more than 15 seasons (2008-24) without a single triple-double until the consecutive performances by Nurkic.
The center became the first Jazz player to have back-to-back triple doubles since Pete Maravich in January 1975.
Most of Nurkic’s 14 career-high assists came on back-door passes from the high post and resulted in dunks and layups for his teammates — but they didn’t do enough on the defensive end.
Ace Bailey scored a career-high 25 points and Keyonte George had 23, but none in the fourth quarter as the Spurs finished on a 27-10 spurt and handed the Jazz their fifth loss in the last six games.
The Mavericks took care of business tonight in what was probably their most impressive win and offensive performance without Anthony Davis this season, beating the Golden State Warriors 123-115 in Dallas.
The Mavericks won behind an absurd performance from Naji Marshall, who scored 3o points on 10-for-12 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds and nine assists. Cooper Flagg also had another impressive night with a 21-point, 11-rebound double-double. It was a full-team effort, with six players finishing in double digits. The Warriors tried to keep up behind another all-world performance from Steph Curry, who finished with 38 points on eight made threes and 14-for-27 overall from the field. Without Jimmy Butler, Curry’s supporting cast did very little to help. DeAnthony Melton had 21, but no other player had more than 12 on Golden State.
Let’s get to the numbers.
+22: Mavericks’ rebounding differential.
The rebounding gap told the entire story of this game. Dallas finished with 65 total rebounds to Golden State’s 44, including 11 offensive boards that turned into 24 second-chance points, while the Warriors managed just four offensive rebounds and five second-chance points. That difference showed up all night in the play-by-play: every Curry jumper that missed became a Mavericks reset, and every Dallas miss was followed by a put-back, a kick-out three, or another possession entirely. It’s why Golden State could never turn its shooting runs into real momentum, and why Dallas kept scoring even when shots didn’t fall.
This wasn’t just winning the glass; it was owning the game’s economy, creating nearly five times as many second-chance points, and suffocating Golden State’s ability to play on even ground.
56: Mavericks paint points
Dallas didn’t just beat Golden State with shooting, they bludgeoned them at the rim, piling up 56 points in the paint as the Warriors’ point-of-attack defense completely collapsed, especially in the fourth quarter. Naji Marshall and Brandon Williams walked into the lane possession after possession, finishing through contact or drawing fouls while Golden State’s help defense arrived late or not at all. Even with 21 Dallas turnovers, it barely mattered because the Warriors couldn’t stop anything once the Mavericks got downhill, allowing drives, cuts, and dump-offs to turn into automatic points.
When a team gives up that kind of interior access late in a close game, no amount of ball pressure or perimeter shooting can save them, and that’s how Dallas turned a tight contest into a controlled finish.
-24: Caleb Martin’s plus/,inus
Caleb Martin finished -24 in just 19 minutes in his fourth start of the season, a hilarious number in a game the Mavericks otherwise controlled from start to finish. Even as Dallas dominated the paint, the glass, and the possession battle, the lineups featuring Martin were the rare stretches where Golden State was able to breathe, generating quick scores before the Mavericks could reset. It wasn’t about one blown coverage or missed shot, but how his minutes coincided with the Warriors’ only real offensive pockets, when Dallas’ spacing tightened and stops didn’t turn into transition. In a night defined by control and physicality from the Mavericks, Martin’s plus-minus stood out as the lone statistical red flag.
21: Cooper Flagg points
Cooper Flagg quietly put together one of his more complete offensive nights, finishing with 21 points while looking far more under control than he has in recent games. Instead of forcing his way into traffic, Flagg picked his spots, attacking the rim when lanes were there and sliding into open space off the ball for easy finishes when the defense collapsed. Flagg also showed off his versatility, scoring on cuts, straight-line drives, and quick finishes, rather than the rushed pull-ups that have stalled his efficiency at times this season.
In a game where Dallas was winning through pace and interior pressure, Flagg fit seamlessly into that rhythm, playing within the flow and turning good spacing into efficient production.
On a freezing cold Thursday night in Minneapolis, the Minnesota Timberwolves desperately needed a win. They had lost their previous three games and had fallen to seventh place in the Western Conference. They were unable to get it as they were taken down by the middling Chicago Bulls 120-115.
Just like the previous game against the Utah Jazz, the Wolves got out to a great start. They took a 14-point lead a little more than eight minutes into the game on the back of hounding defense. Minnesota forced misses on 10 of the first 12 Chicago shots, allowing them to get easy baskets on the other end of the court.
As the game went on, though, that defensive intensity went away. The largest indicator for this was the Wolves’ inability to avoid fouling. So often, the Wolves were not in the correct position to defend their man. Instead of moving their feet to defend properly, they either committed blocking fouls or reached in and made contact with a Bulls player’s arms.
In the second quarter, the Bulls were in the bonus with 8:48 left. In the third quarter, they were in the bonus with 6:56 remaining. Overall, Minnesota committed 27 fouls (plus a Naz Reid technical foul), which led to 33 Chicago free throws.
“Our inability to contain drives right now is really hurting us,” Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said about his team’s defesive performance. “Kind of over helping in places that we didn’t want to over help in, and a readiness to contain the next drive.”
The Wolves trailed by three points heading into the fourth quarter, and as they have so often this season, they came storming back. Midway through the fourth quarter, the defense finally started to get some stops, and the offense found a rhythm as a Naz Reid dunk gave them a six-point lead with five minutes left.
The Wolves were unable to put the game away from that point, as they missed their next four shots, allowing the Bulls to cut the lead to one. The Wolves stopped the bleeding there, though, after an Anthony Edwards floater and a 3-pointer from Jaden McDaniels, the Timberwolves found themselves up four with a minute and a half left.
That is when the game came crumbling down for the Wolves, as Edwards fell asleep guarding his man in the corner. Coby White drilled the 3-pointer from the corner to cut the Minnesota lead to just one.
“Josh Giddey made a good pass,” Edwards said about the play. “I wasn’t expecting that pass. So my reaction was like Bones [Hyland] said I was stuck in quicksand when he caught the ball. It felt like it. So, I couldn’t really get a contest. I know I’mma get cussed out about that one.”
The Wolves followed that up with turnovers on their next two possessions, allowing Tre Jones to streak to the rim off an inbounds pass to give Chicago a one-point lead. With the game on the line, on the next possession, Ant used up most of the shot clock and threw up a heavily contested three that came nowhere close to going in.
That would be as close as the Wolves would come to winning the game, as a pair of Jalen Smith free throws and an Edwards on a game-tying 3-pointer, the game was out of reach.
Edwards finished with just 20 points, struggling to find his shot as he finished the game 9-25 from the field. Julius Randle led the Wolves in scoring with 30 points to go along with seven rebounds and six assists. Naz scored 20 points, including four 3-pointers, but aside from him, the Wolves’ bench scored eight points on 3-14 shooting.
The loss was the Wolves’ fourth straight. The first two against the Houston Rockets without Edwards, and against the San Antonio Spurs on the second night of a back-to-back, were understandable. These last two versus the Jazz and Bulls, on the other hand, do not come with nearly the same benefit of the doubt.
“We know what we have to do to be better in that department,” Julius Randle said about the team’s energy. “It’s a long season. There’s going to be ups and downs. A week ago we could’ve looked like the best team in basketball and this week we can look like the worst. We just gotta find a way to find a consistency.”
There is still plenty of season left, but this recent stretch may have cost the Wolves a top seed in the Western Conference, and they are now fighting to just stay out of the Play-In Tournament.
The Wolves did this all a season ago. They struggled for most of the regular season, but turned in on late and made the Western Conference Finals after finishing as the sixth seed. They still have the ability to go on a similar run, but maybe that is what is holding this team back. It doesn’t seem like the Wolves feel the urgency in fighting for a top seed because last year proved they don’t need it. At least that’s what it feels like they think.
Up Next
With the local temperatures set to dip below negative ten over the weekend, the Timberwolves stay home for a pair of games against the Golden State Warriors. The first is a Saturday matinee at 4:30 PM CT at Target Center. Wolves fans can watch the game on ABC.
After blowing a 16-point lead and completely falling apart in Houston likely left the Spurs with a bad taste in their mouths for the last 48 hours ago, they made sure it didn’t happen again against the Utah Jazz tonight, although they still made everyone sweat a little first. After the Spurs got ahead by as much as 15 in the first half, the Jazz came all the way back in the third quarter. Things were still tied several minutes into the fourth, but Utah could never gain the lead, and the Spurs finally turned things back on in the final seven minutes to but the young but pesky Jazz away, 126-109.
De’Aaron Fox led five Spurs in double figures with 31 points on 6-9 from three, Victor Wembanyama had 26 points with four threes, and Keldon Johnson scored 21 off the bench. For the Jazz, Ace Bailey had on of his best games of his young career with 25 points while continuously slicing through the Spurs defense, and Jusuf Nurkic had a 17-11-14 triple-double.
Observations
Recent events have conditioned me to not get excited when the Spurs are hot from three, but they did it again tonight, hitting 5 of their first 6, with two from Julian Champagnie and Fox and one from Wemby. Of course, they then went 2-8 for the rest of the first quarter, although a third from Champagnie helped them tie things back up a 31 apiece after they had gone cold when the bench came in and gave up a 7-point lead.
Jordan McLaughlin got some minutes to start the second quarter for unclear reasons other than Mitch Johnson either wanted to make a point or find a spark after the slow end to the first quarter, but whatever the reason, they got the memo and came out with much more energy and aggressiveness, building the lead up to 15 with him on the floor. He recorded three rebounds, two assists and a steal and is just one of those players who doesn’t make mistakes and does the little things that can help steady the ship.
Luke Kornet joins Devin Vassell with adductor tightness, and the Spurs missed him badly. Kelly Olynyk got the back-up center minutes in the first half, and while he didn’t do much, good or bad, he was a net negative for a reason. It seemed like everything bogged down every time Wemby left the floor. Jeremy Sochan, who was questionable with an illness, got the back-up center minutes in the second half, and unsurprisingly the energy level and feistiness was higher.
It’s not a Spurs game without a blown double-digit lead. In a reverse from the first half, this time it was the starters that gave up the entirety of what was once a 15-point lead, and the bench unit that did the stabilizing. They never allowed the Jazz to take the lead and even got it back up to 8 before a Kyle Filipowski three before the third quarter buzzer got it down to five. Overall, the Spurs were outscored 39-32, so it was definitely a turd quarter on defense, but credit to the bench for getting the offense going again and preventing it from being a full-blown turn quarter.
Similar to their loss in Houston, the Spurs opened the fourth quarter by carelessly jacking up threes, missing their first five before Wemby finally got one to fall. Fortunately for them, while the Jazz again tied things back, unlike Houston, they couldn’t hit any shots that would have given them the lead before the Spurs got their act back together and pulled back up by 10 with 7 minutes left. Fox and Wemby then traded haymakers to put the Jazz away. Overall, they finished on a 22-9 run after that Wemby three.
Stephon Castle’s shots continue to be short. I wonder how much that thumb is bugging him, especially after he re-aggravated it in Houston. Still, other than shooting 4-12, he had a solid night by getting to the line for 16 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and just 1 turnover.
Random thought that jumps in my head every time three seconds is called, offensive or defensive: I get why the rule exists, but it’s dumb because it’s almost never called more than once a game, sometimes not at all, but it probably happens on at least 25% of possessions. It just feels like something that is called when the refs feel like they need to remind everyone that it exists. It’s like they need to meet an allotment by calling it every so often.
Wild stat that was revealed during the game: Wemby is the Spurs’ franchise leader in three-pointers made per game at 2.2. That shocks me. I know it’s a small sample size, and there have certainly been players that averaged more makes than that in a single season, but it’s so hard to imagine that shooting specialists like Bruce Bowen, Danny Green, Patty Mills, etc. didn’t average more across their Spurs careers. I guess it’s just a combination of the rise in attempts since their playing days, not being in the main rotation the entire career meant small appearances hurt their career averages, etc.
One look at the injury report, and it was clear that the Utah Jazz were welcoming Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio into the Delta Center for a 48-minute formality. We can do the whole song and dance, or you can kindly take your victory and go.
Jazz Injury Report:
OUT – Elijah Harkless (G League – Two-Way)
OUT – Walker Kessler (left shoulder; injury recovery)
OUT – Lauri Markkanen (return to competition reconditioning)
OUT – Georges Niang (left foot; fourth metatarsal stress reaction)
No Lauri Markkanen, as he is still absent with the bubonic plague, or polio, or smallpox, or whatever illness has kept him sidelined for the past chunk of games. Cody Williams and Svi Mykhailiuk were officially in the starting lineup for this one, but with Keyonte George fresh off a 43-point season-high, and Jusuf Nurkic having just posted a triple-double in the same century win for head coach Will Hardy.
But that was the only win Utah had picked up without the Finnisher to that point in the season, and it took all-world performances from George, Nurkic, and a 15-point fourth quarter comeback. Still, with all the confidence of a wild west gunslinger standing 20 paces from Fingerless Floyd at high noon, Keyonte George is enjoying the type of season where he can seemingly beat anybody when he’s on his game.
Keyonte George is often on his game these days.
So, it’s sort of challenging to define expectations for the Utah Jazz as the 2nd-best team in the West, San Antonio, entered the Salt Lake Valley with their full lineup of Fox, Castle, Harper, and some French fellow named Victor all available. The Spurs are both young and legitimate threats for the title this year — well ahead of schedule and joining Oklahoma City as the youthful leaders of the Western Conference, with a disturbingly wide window for contention.
Utah’s situation is… different. It’s been a slow burn, but the youth of Utah are beginning to find solid ground. George and Sensabaugh, especially, are giving observers reason to believe in their upside. Those players are in their third seasons — the fifth pick in the 2025 draft, however, is really beginning to put it together.
Squaring off against his old Rutgers teammate, Ace Bailey started hot, knocking down his first four shots in the first quarter and tallying 10 points in the opening frame.
Then, in the second half, in the midst of a San Antonio separation act, Cody Williams uncorked the Delta Center with a coast-to-coast yam in rush-hour traffic.
It feels like Cody is good for a pair of dunks per game these days, but that? No, your honor, I cannot identify Cody Williams in that video, but I believe I spotted Giannis Antetokounmpo wearing number 5 in white.
But Cody’s flight was but a gentle distraction as the Spurs pushed their lead to double-digits and entered halftime with a 12-point advantage.
I say this with only the slightest hint of irony: Jusuf Nurkic may actually be the love child of Nikola Jokic and 2016-17 Russell Westbrook. For the second straight game, the Bosnian Beast posted a triple-double. His dominance was so potent that even as the Spurs carried a double-digit advantage in the fourth quarter, they sent double-teams on his late-game touches.
If this were the first basketball game someone had ever watched, they might think that Nurkic was the best player on planet Earth. Victor Wembanyama was not enough to neutralize his offensive powers. 17 points, 14 assists, and 11 rebounds. Yeesh.
Meanwhile, Ace Bailey messed around and posted yet another career high, notching 25 points just after his previous high. He’s high-flying as always, feasting off a healthy helping of off-ball movement and cuts to the rim, while being more selective with his jump shots.
The Golden State Warriors lost their second game in a row on Thursday night, and unfortunately, it was distinctly different than their Tuesday loss to the Toronto Raptors. In that game, the Warriors played decently — you could even argue they played well — but an outlier shooting performance from the Canadians doomed the Dubs. But on Thursday, the Warriors lost 123-115 to the Dallas Mavericks because they simply didn’t play all that well. Which is, in fairness, the most common way to lose a basketball game.
So let’s grade the group that moved the Dubs to 0-2 in the post-Jimmy Butler III era. As always, grades are based on my expectations of each player, with a “B” grade representing the average performance for that player.
Note: True-shooting percentage (TS) is a scoring efficiency metric that accounts for threes and free throws. Entering Thursday’s games, league average TS was 58.1%.
A pretty solid game for Moody, who continues to shoot very efficiently. In his last six games, Moody is shooting 29-for-48 from the field, including 21-for-37 on threes. I would stop short of calling his defense great, but it’s been reliably good, bordering on very good. This was just a very solid all-around game for Moody.
Santos got to partake in the starting lineup, and that was fun to see. His energy on the glass was necessary to keep the Warriors in the game, though he had some struggles on offense.
I don’t know if it’s a generic slump or if he’s feeling deflated following the Butler news, but Green did not look like Green in this one. He just didn’t appear to be moving at his usual speed, especially with his decision-making. He had some very rough turnovers, and fouled out despite playing less than half the game. His defense wasn’t up to his standard, and the game shifted a bit when he collected a flagrant foul. Just a bad game. No two ways about it.
Podziemski is more of a do-the-little-things player than a go-to scoring option, but sometimes he plays like he should be the secondary scorer. Occasionally that works out well, but often it does not. On Thursday, it did not, as he could not buy a bucket, though he kept trying.
In Podz’s defense, he also played the role of elite playmaker, with a 10-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio that the Warriors will take eight days a week. He really showed off his quarterbacking chops in this game, and also played some really strong defense. Honestly, it was a really good game minus the atrocious shooting. We’ll call it even.
Grade: B Post-game bonus: Led the team in assists.
This game was the ultimate display of things changing and things staying the same. There was Steph, donning his hero’s cape, just like old times. There was Steph, draining an absurd number of threes, while carrying the team and putting up a gaudy points total, just like old times. And there were the Warriors, losing to a bad team despite his efforts, unlike old times. And there was his running mate Klay Thompson, scoring just six points while coming off the bench for the opposing team, very unlike old times.
Enjoy Steph while he’s still doing it, folks. He’s a treasure, even in an increasingly lost season.
Payton’s minutes weren’t as bad as his plus/minus would suggest, but they weren’t particularly good, either. He’s been doing some good things on offense lately, but not so much in this game, and his defense wasn’t very impactful.
Grade: C– Post-game bonus: Worst plus/minus on the team.
Something I’ve been wondering lately: if the Warriors season fully falls apart post-Butler, and they completely turn their attention to the 2026-27 season, will Richard get a bigger role? It might be worth playing him 30 minutes a night and seeing what happens.
Anyway, his offense has really disappeared since his hot rookie start, but his defense was utterly blissful in this game. He was so active, and seemed to deflect everything. That will get you minutes on a Steve Kerr team.
I know Kerr loves having Melton lead the second unit, but I think it’s time to start him, assuming he’s enough recovered from his ACL injury that he can play 30 minutes a night (which, admittedly, may not be the case). Kerr can still stagger Melton and Curry’s minutes enough so that one is always on the court, but you might as well start with your best players. And this game was yet another data point supporting the increasingly obvious: with Butler out, Melton is the team’s second-best player.
Grade: A+ Post-game bonus: Best plus/minus on the team.
If the Warriors could just build the entire team out of Curry, Melton, and Horford, they’d be in pretty darn good shape. Those guys are good. Everyone else? TBD.
Grade: A- Post-game bonus: Led the team in rebounds.
Kuminga’s game was a mixed bag. He entered in the first quarter and immediately set to work, quickly recording two dynamic and-ones that were a strong reminder as to how gifted he is offensively. He gave great effort on the glass and played tremendous defense. The Warriors were so much better when he was on the court.
And then he got hurt in the second quarter, appeared to injure his ankle, and was ruled out for the rest of the game with knee soreness. He’s scheduled for an MRI, and we all nervously await the results.
Post was not only removed from the starting lineup for this game, but nearly removed from the rotation entirely. He’s been struggling lately, and this game was no exception.
Grade: C-
Thursday’s DNP-CDs: Trayce Jackson-Davis, Pat Spencer
Thursday’s inactives: Jimmy Butler III, LJ Cryer, Seth Curry, Malevy Leons
The relationship may be “fractured beyond repair,” but the professionalism has clearly been maintained.
At the 3:48 mark of the first quarter of the Golden State Warriors’ game against the Dallas Mavericks, the Amazon Prime broadcast cut toward Steve Kerr calling a play for Jonathan Kuminga, called “Thumb up.” Simply put, the play is a high pick-and-roll for the ball handler, with the name Kerr calls out playing the role of the screener. In this instance, Kerr calling out “Thumb up JK” means that he wants Kuminga to set the screen for Brandin Podziemski, with everyone else spreading the floor to create as much room as possible for the two-man action.
Warriors┃ "Thumb up"
Kerr calls for "Thumb up" for JK. It's his playcall for a high PnR, with the name he calls out being the ball screener.
The lack of weak-side help in the form of “tagging” is apparent, with Will Richard making himself a threat to catch a potential kick-out. Kuminga gets all the way to the rim after Podziemski dishes him the pocket pass, and is fouled in the process of making the layup.
While Kuminga played nine minutes and 28 seconds on the floor due to suffering what was deemed as a left ankle sprain and left knee soreness, the limited minutes he played turned out to be highly impactful. The Warriors outscored the Mavericks by a total of 18 points, with an offensive rating of 130.4 and a defensive rating of 54.5 that combined for a net rating figure of plus-75.9.
With Butler out of the rotation for obvious reasons, Kerr inserted Kuminga into the role that Butler played: that of an advantage creator in isolation and pick-and-roll whose ability to pick at mismatches allowed the Warriors to create efficient offense off of a defense being placed on a blender due to the initial advantage.
Inverted PnR for JK gets him the mismatch on Nembhard. Horford's relocation creates the rotation situation, Dubs move the ball around and Melton attacks the closeout for the layup. pic.twitter.com/EHKxaPGycw
Kuminga may very well never replicate the kind of consistent all-around play that Butler was able to provide for the Warriors. But left with no choice in terms of which secondary scorer and advantage creator to pair with Steph Curry, Kerr deemed it necessary to reintroduce the embattled Kuminga into the rotation. Not only has Kuminga played two consecutive games of positive hoops — he has somewhat increased his value to the team, and by extension, his value to potential suitors who may be looking for a player profile that Kuminga fits.
That was probably the driving reason behind Kuminga being sidelined after tweaking his ankle and knee, an effort to maintain his health and fitness to prevent the sudden drop in value that a more serious injury would’ve brought. Kuminga reportedly receiving an MRI could be cause for concern, but in all likelihood it may be a precaution to rule out a more serious injury. But all indications have pointed toward Kuminga’s injury not being especially debilitating.
However, while Kuminga may continue this stretch of inspired play, it remains paramount that the Warriors move his contract, if only to resolve a situation that has outlived its welcome. Kuminga and the Warriors aren’t a fit long-term — that much is clear. For all parties to move on, the separation must be finalized.
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Anton Lundell and Sam Reinhart beat Connor Hellebuyck in a shootout to help give the Florida Panthers a 2-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.
Winnipeg shooters Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele came up empty against Daniil Tarasov in the tiebreaker.
Sam Bennett scored in regulation, and Tarasov stopped 17 shots for two-time defending champion Florida. Matthew Tkachuk had an assist for his first point of the season in his second game back from adductor muscle surgery.
The Panthers are 4-2-0 in their last six to improve to 26-20-3.
Cole Perfetti scored for Winnipeg, and Hellebuyck stopped 19 shots. The Jets are 5-1-2 in their last eight to get to 20-23-7.
Bennett scored his 18th of the season with a one-timer with 1:11 left in the second. Perfetti tied it at 5:24 of the third.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sarah Strong scored 25 points, Azzi Fudd had 19 in her final collegiate appearance before a hometown crowd, and top-ranked UConn overwhelmed Georgetown 83-42 on Thursday night.
The defending national champion Huskies are 20-0 for the first time since the 2017-18 squad won its first 36 games before losing in the Final Four of the women’s NCAA Tournament. UConn (10-0 Big East) has won 36 straight dating to last season and has only one ranked foe left on its regular-season schedule — the Huskies host No. 17 Tennessee on Feb 1.
Fudd grew up across the Potomac River in Arlington, Virginia, and was a prep star at St. John’s College High School in Washington. Her parents — mom Katie played at Georgetown — and Georgia Amoore of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics were among a pro-UConn crowd at CareFirst Arena, the Mystics’ home.
Fudd missed her first seven 3s as UConn began 1 of 13 from deep, but the Huskies made their next four — two by Fudd and two by Strong. Fudd finished 8 of 19 from the field and 3 of 12 from 3.
UConn forced seven turnovers in the first seven minutes and jumped to a 20-2 lead. The Huskies then went nearly five minutes without a basket before Fudd found Strong for a layup to start a 21-2 run for a 41-12 advantage.
The Huskies had 15 steals in the first half, five by Ashlynn Shade, as they led 51-20 at halftime. Strong had 21 points at the break.
Brianna Scott scored eight points for Georgetown (11-8, 4-6), which has lost 41 straight against UConn, with its last victory coming on Feb. 27, 1993.
NO. 16 OKLAHOMA 94, NO. 2 SOUTH CAROLINA 82, OT
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Aaliyah Chavez scored 15 of her 26 points in overtime, and Oklahoma stunned South Carolina.
The freshman guard made 4 of 14 field goals in regulation before hitting 5 of 5 shots in overtime.
Payton Verhulst scored 19 points and Raegan Beers had 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Sooners (15-4, 3-3 Southeastern Conference), who had lost three straight to ranked opponents Ole Miss, Kentucky and LSU since rising to No. 5 in the AP Top 25.
It matched the highest-ranked opponent Oklahoma has ever beaten. Most recently, the Sooners beat No. 2 Kansas State in 2024.
Tessa Johnson scored 19 points and Raven Johnson added 16 for South Carolina (19-2, 5-1), which had its 12-game win streak snapped. Joyce Edwards, who had averaged 20.6 points, finished with 12 on 3-for-12 shooting. The Gamecocks shot just 37% from the field.
NO. 5 VANDERBILT 81, AUBURN 53
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Mikayla Blakes scored 20 points for her 15th 20-plus point performance of the season as Vanderbilt remained undefeated with a win over Auburn.
Sacha Washington had 18 points and 12 rebounds for her sixth double-double of the season.
Vanderbilt went on an 8-0 run in the first quarter and shot 52.6% (10 of 19) from the floor to build a 23-12 lead after the first quarter.
Vanderbilt’s Aiyana Mitchell and Auburn’s A’riel Jackson led all scorers with eight points each in the first half.
Auburn (13-7, 2-4) was led by Harissoum Coulibaly, who finished with 13 points, and Kaitlyn Duhon with 11.
NO. 6 LSU 98, TEXAS A&M 54
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — Milaysia Fulwiley had 23 points and five steals and LSU took advantage of a mistake-filled performance by Texas A&M and cruised to a victory.
LSU (18-2, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) was up by 21 points with about six minutes left in the third quarter before using an 18-0 run to push the lead to 74-35 with two minutes left in the quarter.
Grace Knox got the run going by scoring the first five points and Fulwiley scored seven points to keep it going. Knox had 19 points on 9-for-9 shooting.
The Aggies had four turnovers and missed five shots during that time to help the Tigers, who lead the nation in scoring, put the game out of reach.
The Tigers’ defense harassed Texas A&M (8-7, 1-5) into 25 turnovers, which they turned into 41 points.
It’s the fourth straight victory for LSU after the Tigers lost their only two games of the season in back-to-back contests against No. 11 Kentucky and No. 12 Vanderbilt.
Fatmata Janneh scored 14 points and Ny’Ceara Pryor added 13, but had six turnovers, for the Aggies. Texas A&M lost its third straight and for the fifth time in six games.
NO. 7 MICHIGAN 94, RUTGERS 60
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Syla Swords and Olivia Olson each scored 16 points to help Michigan rout Rutgers.
Mila Holloyway and Te’Yala Delfosse both had 15 for the Wolverines (16-3, 7-1 Big Ten), who jumped all over the Scarlet Knights (9-10, 1-7). Michigan hit 13 of 18 shots (72%) in the opening quarter to go up 31-13.
Swords hit all three of her 3-point attempts to score nine points in the first 10 minutes. Michigan was able to work the ball around efficiently for virtually any shot the team wanted, getting 11 assists on the 13 baskets.
Kaylah Ivey did her best to try and keep Rutgers in the game, hitting three consecutive 3-pointers, including one from the Jersey Mike’s Arena logo about 28 feet from the basket. The Scarlet Knights trailed 43-24 at the half.
NO. 10 IOWA 85, NO. 15 MARYLAND 78, OT
COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Ava Heiden scored 20 points, and Iowa recovered in overtime to beat Maryland after the Hawkeyes blew a 17-point lead in the final three minutes of regulation Thursday night.
Iowa (17-2 8-0) remained unbeaten in Big Ten play, but not without a scare. The Terrapins trailed 66-49 in the fourth quarter before coming all the way back and tying the game at 73 on Oluchi Okananwa’s 3-pointer with 9.3 seconds remaining.
Maryland (17-4, 5-4) briefly led in overtime, but its offense dried up late and the Hawkeyes pulled away again. Maryland lost its second straight after the Terps were beaten 97-67 at UCLA last weekend.
Chazadi Wright scored 18 points for the Hawkeyes, who have won seven in a row. Isimenme Ozzy-Momodu had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Maryland.
NO. 12 OHIO STATE 81, INDIANA 67
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Jaloni Cambridge scored 22 points and Chance Gray and Kennedy Cambridge each added 13 for Ohio State in a comeback win over Indiana.
The Buckeyes (18-2, 7-1 Big Ten) were down 42-32 at halftime. But a 14-1 run in the third quarter, lasting almost three minutes, gave the Buckeyes the lead they would not relinquish. It is the fifth time this season Ohio State has gone into halftime trailing before going on to win the game.
Jaloni Cambridge scored 13 points in the second half and Gray added 10.
Lenée Beaumont scored 20 for Indiana (11-9, 0-8) and Shay Ciezki, the Big Ten’s leading scorer, added 19 before fouling out. Zania Socka-Nguemen had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Ciezki was 7 of 11 from the field, including five made 3-pointers.
Indiana committed 26 turnovers, 15 in the second half, which turned into 34 Buckeye points. The Hoosiers shot 56.4% from the field, including 11 of 17 from 3-point range.
NO. 13 MICHIGAN STATE 74, SOUTHERN CAL 68
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Kennedy Blair scored 21 points, and Michigan State women held off Southern California’s late surge for a victory.
Michigan State opened the fourth quarter on a 13-5 run to stretch its lead to 66-54 with 5:15 remaining. Jazzy Davidson scored the last five points in a 10-0 run to help pull USC to 66-64 with 4:10 left before the Spartans sealed it from the free-throw line. Blair led the Spartans with eight points.
Blair shot 8 of 15 from the floor overall, made 5 of 6 free throws and had five steals. Grace VanSlooten scored 16 points, grabbed nine rebounds for Michigan State (18-2, 7-2 Big Ten), which rebounded from a 75-68 loss to then-No. 10 Iowa. Rashunda Jones scored 16 points and Ines Sotelo added 12 to go with seven rebounds for the Spartans.
Michigan State scored 25 points from 24 USC turnovers.
Kara Dunn scored 23 points and Jazzy Davidson added 21 to lead USC (11-8, 3-5). Kennedy Smith scored 15 points.
NO. 17 TENNESSEE 60, NO. 11 KENTUCKY 58
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Mia Pauldo scored 21 points and Tennessee beat Kentucky 60-58 on Thursday night for its seventh victory in a row.
Pauldo, who hit the 20-point mark for the second time this season, shot 9 of 22 from the field and 2 of 11 from beyond the arc for the Lady Vols (14-3, 6-0 Southeastern Conference).
Ameila Hassett scored 16 points for Kentucky (17-4, 4-3). Jordan Obi had 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Tonie Morgan scored 13. Clara Strack added 14 rebounds and nine points.
NO. 18 MISSISSIPPI 82, MISSOURI 61
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Cotie McMahon scored 33 points to tie a career-high, and she added 12 points and five assists to help Mississippi beat Missouri.
McMahon, who was held to nine points in an 82-59 loss to Georgia on Sunday, was 13 of 23 from the field and 6 of 11 at the free-throw line to match her previous scoring high set on Jan. 21, 2024, against Iowa.
Sira Thienou also had a double-double for Ole Miss (17-4, 4-2 SEC) with 17 points, 10 rebounds and four steals. Latasha Lattimore added 10 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.
Grace Slaughter led Missouri (13-9, 1-6) with 21 points and seven rebounds. Shannon Dowell added 15 points. The Tigers have lost the last five matchup in the series.
PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP) — American-born players Richy Ledezma and Brian Gutiérrez made their debuts and helped the Mexican national team break a six-match winless streak with a 1-0 win over Panama in a warmup match Thursday for this year's World Cup.
Defender Richard Peralta scored an own goal in the 92nd minute to give Mexico its first win since last July, when it beat the United States in the Gold Cup final.
Ledezma, who was born in Phoenix to Mexican parents, made the one-time switch with FIFA after playing official matches with the United States. He started the match and played all 90 minutes.
Gutierrez, who was born in Berwyn, Illinois, did not have to apply for a country switch because he only played friendlies for the U.S. against Venezuela and Costa Rica in January 2025.
“Those were good minutes, I’m taking it one step at a time and now I’ll continue to grow,” Gutierrez said.
Gutierrez, who also was a starter and left the match in the 57th minute, was also on the CONCACAF Nations League roster last March but never got into a game.
Obed Vargas, who was born in Anchorage, Alaska, also was a starter for Mexico.
“Those three guys that were born in the United States and decided to play for Mexico, and for that reason alone they deserve my respect,” said Mexico’s coach Javier Aguirre. “The three started off well, they’re kids with a future, I’m happy.”
Vargas, a midfielder, earned his first cap with the Mexico senior team in October 2024 with a substitute appearance against the United States in a 2-0 victory.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Steven Stamkos broke a tie with 2:13 left with his third goal of the game and the Nashville Predators overcame a three-goal deficit to beat the Ottawa Senators 5-3 on Thursday night.
After Stamkos tied it at 3 with 9:53 left with his second power-play goal of the game, Ryan O’Reilly beat the Senators to the puck behind the goal line and popped it out front to Stamkos, who batted it out of the air past goalie James Reimer.
O’Reilly set up the tying goal, too, firing a cross-crease feed to Stamkos with the man advantage. Nashville got the power play when Tim Stutzle cross-checked Stamkos.
Predators captain Roman Josi, playing his 1,000th NHL game, also assisted on the tying goal. The defenseman is the 84th player in NHL history to play his first 1,000 regular-season games with one franchise.
Stamkos had his second hat trick of the season and 16th overall to push his season goals total to 24. Jonathan Marchessault also scored, and Cole Smith had an empty-netter. Juuse Saros made 23 saves to help Nashville end a three-game losing streak.
Stephen Halliday scored his first NHL goal, and Ridly Greig and Dylan Cozens added goals for Ottawa. Reimer, making his third straight start after signing with the Senators on Jan. 12, stopped 21 shots.
Ottawa closed a three-game trip. It had earned points in five straight games.
Halliday opened the scoring at 6:03 of the first period, knocking in a rebound. With David Perron out after surgery to repair a sports hernia, Halliday was recalled from Belleville of the AHL in the morning. He scored in his 19th NHL game, all this season.
Up next
Senators: Host Carolina on Saturday night to open a four-game homestand.
Stephen Curry got whatever he wanted at American Airlines Center on Thursday, but the Dallas Mavericks (19-26) pulled ahead late in a back-and-forth game to beat the Golden State Warriors (25-21), 123-115. Curry nailed eight 3-pointers and led all scorers with 38 points in the loss, but Cormac Karl “Max” Christie and Naji Marshall keyed a late 24-5 run that proved too much for the Warriors overcome.
Marshall led the Mavs with 30 points on an insane 10-of-12 shooting night to go along with nine assists in the win, while Christie and rookie sensation Cooper Flagg added 21 apiece in a well-rounded and highly satisfying Dallas win. The Mavs overcame 22 turnovers by shooting 51% from the field on their way to the win, which is the team’s sixth in its last nine.
Cooper Flagg: B+
21 PTS / 11 REB / 1 AST / 1 STL / 30 MIN
Flagg was the only defender back early in the first quarter and snuffed out Draymond Green’s transition try before taking the ensuing outlet pass coast-to-coast for the game’s first score and a three-point play opportunity. Two possessions later, he pulled up from near the foul line for a jumper that put the Mavericks up 6-0. Flagg missed his first three tries from 3-point range, though.
Flagg’s turnover on the first possession of the second quarter was the Mavericks’ eighth of the game and led directly to an easy transition dunk from Quinten Post to give the Warriors a 29-24 lead. Two minutes later, Green drew a charge against Flagg on Flagg’s drive through traffic, but Flagg followed Thompson’s missed 3-pointer the next time down for a highlight put-back jam to give the Mavericks a 31-29 lead with 9:20 left before the half. Less than a minute later, Flagg followed Max Christie’s miss in transition with another putback bucket as part of a 12-4 Mavs’ run to open the second. Flagg scored the bucket that gave the Mavs back the lead late in the second as part of another quick 12-0 Dallas run. He scored 11 points and pulled down 9 boards in the first half, as the Mavericks took a 55-50 lead into the break.
After a quiet third quarter, Flagg knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game early in the fourth to bring the Mavs to within 92-89. He made a hard drive to the cup a minute later to keep Dallas connected, down 96-91, then got fouled while rising up for a monster slam the next time down. He turned the ball over four times and went just 4-of-7 from the free-throw line in the win.
Max Christie: A
21 PTS / 4 REB / 2 AST / 1 STL / 36 MIN
Christie lost Steph Curry in the screen game along the perimeter on two of Curry’s three makes from 3-point range in the first quarter. After Curry’s third, Christie cashed in his first 3-pointer on the other end to give the Mavs a 14-9 lead midway through the first. He hit another late in the second from the right corner to pull the Mavs to within 45-44. His third of the first half came with under a minute to play in the second, from the same spot, and extended the Dallas lead to 51-45.
Christie’s fourth 3-ball of the game was another big one with 5:42 left in the third. He rose up from the right wing on a find from P.J. Washington for the score that put the Mavericks up 70-69. He knifed through the lane for his first two-point score of the game less than a minute later to extend that lead to 72-69.
Christie scored his 15th and 16th points of the game on the Mavericks’ second possession of the fourth quarter, a touch bucket inside that pulled the Mavs to within 89-86. He stepped on the sideline while pump-faking a shot in the corner for Dallas’ 18th turnover of the ballgame with 10 minutes left to play. His fifth 3-ball of the contest came as part of a key 10-0 spurt from the Mavs and tied the game, 96-96, with 8:26 left in the game.
Caleb Martin: D+
0 PTS / 2 REB / 1 AST / 2 BLK / 20 MIN
Martin threw away a terrible pass in transition late in the first quarter, then was called for a hook and an offensive foul on the Mavs’ next possession with 3:45 left in the opener. The Warriors took their first lead of the game on the other end as a result, on Jonathan Kuminga’s first two buckets in the Warriors’ last 16 games. Martin got his transition dunk attempt blocked by Buddy Hield with two minutes left in the first to continue his rough start.
Martin started the third quarter, but Mavs head coach Jason Kidd kept him on a much shorter leash in favor of Brandon Williams, who played a brilliant first half against the Warriors.
Marshall was called for a technical foul midway through the second quarter after DeAnthony Melton scored in transition, then lost the ball on the Mavs’ next possession for Dallas’ 11th turnover of the game. He was late getting out to defend Moses Moody along the perimeter on the next Warriors’ possession and gave up a 3-pointer that put Golden State in front, 43-39 with less than five minutes to play before halftime. The lane opened up for Marshall on a drive in secondary transition less than a minute later, and his score brought Dallas to within 45-41.
Marshall picked up his 15th and 16th points of the game on a little flip inside midway through the third to bring Dallas to within 69-67. He hit his first 3-pointer of the game with 2:45 left in the third from the right corner to put the Mavericks ahead 82-77. He scored back-to-back buckets inside as part of a late 12-0 run that extended the Mavs’ lead late to 113-101.
Powell grabbed eight rebounds in the first half (three on the offensive glass) on his way to 12 in the loss. His try-hard modus is as laudable in his 12th season as it was when he got here. Powell slipped past Green, who lost sight of Powell with the ball in his hands, with 7:20 left in the third quarter for his second bucket of the game to keep the Mavs within four after Golden State scored the first eight points of the second half.
Powell’s 3-point play in transition from Marshall with 5:54 remaining put the Mavs up 109-101 and was a huge moment in the back-and-forth affair. It also gave him a double-double on the night. Powell absolutely outworked Green on both ends of the floor as Green fouled out of the game with 3:50 left to play.
Klay Thompson: C-
6 PTS / 6 REB / 0 AST / 1 STL / 23 MIN
Thompson was quiet in the first quarter, bricking his first 3-point attempt from the top of the key nine minutes into the game, before getting his pocket picked the next time down. He turned it over again with a minute left in the first on a play that led to a bucket from Brandon Podziemski on the other end as Golden State took a 27-24 lead at the end of one.
Thompson cashed in his first two 3-point attempts of the second quarter to key the Mavericks’ 12-4 run to start the frame. He went quiet in the third quarter, though, as Golden State pulled back in front late in the frame.
Nembhard was used sparingly, shooting just 1-of-4 from the field in the first half. He turned the ball over on a surprise attack trap to start the fourth, the Mavs’ 17th giveaway of the game. Nembhard canned a step-back 3-pointer near the top of the key with 7:45 left to play to swing Dallas back in front, 99-96.
Moussa Cisse: C
1 PTS / 1 REB / 1 STL / 6 MIN
Cisse saw most of his action in the first half and was a non-factor for the most part against the Warriors, as Powell stole the show.
Brandon Williams: A
19 PTS / 5 REB / 4 AST / 27 MIN
Williams was a blur driving through the lane off the bench against Golden State in the first half. He scored 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting and was decisive on his drives, darting to the hoop past whatever defender was in front of him. His driving bucket split two defenders as the last few seconds of the first half ticked down, and his leaner in the lane gave Dallas its 55-50 lead at the interval.
Williams got to the free-throw line on yet another drive with 4:47 left in the third and the game tied at 72-72 but made just 1-of-2 at the stripe. He came into Thursday having scored 15 or more points in seven of his last 10 games. Williams used a clever little crossover dribble to get to the line again the next time down and cashed in both this time to put the Mavs ahead 75-72. He finished off a lob from Marshall with 3:45 left in the third on a high-flying bucket, before stepping back for a perimeter jumper to put Dallas up 79-72. He was late to get to Melton on a corner 3-pointer that tied the pulled the Warriors back in front, 85-82, with 1:44 left in the third and forced a timeout from Mavericks’ head coach Jason Kidd.
P.J. Washington: B-
10 PTS / 6 REB / 3 AST / 2 STL / 3 BLK / 22 MIN
Washington came in off the bench in the first quarter and got his first bucket on a tough offensive rebound in the lane with 3:30 left in the opener. He hit his only 3-point attempt of the first half, but didn’t have an outsized impact on the proceedings other than that. Washington’s steal as the only man back led to the Max Christie 3-pointer that pulled the Mavs back in front, 70-69, with 5:42 left in the third quarter. His well-defended dunk attempt that somehow fell after teetering on the rim for a second or two brought the Mavs to within 85-84 with just over a minute left in the third. He was tenacious on the defensive end, contributing five stocks in the win.
