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TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Massamba Diop scored 17 points, Santiago Trouet had a double-double and Arizona State used a late 9-0 surge to help beat Oklahoma State 85-76 on Tuesday night.

After a Kanye Clary 3-pointer pulled the Cowboys within 69-68, Arizona State scored the next nine points for a 10-point lead with 1:25 left. Maurice Odum hit a 3-pointer and Noah Meeusen scored the last four points during the stretch. Then the Sun Devils sealed it from the free-throw line.

Diop shot 6 of 10 from the floor and 5 of 6 from the line. Trouet scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Arizona State (13-12, 4-8 Big 12). Odum added 13 points and Meeusen chipped in with 12.

The Sun Devils shot 40% (26 of 65) from the floor and missed 16 of their 21 attempts from beyond the arc, but were 28 of 35 from the free-throw line. They also scored 26 points from 17 Oklahoma State turnovers.

Anthony Roy and Parsa Fallah scored 16 points apiece to lead Oklahoma State (16-8, 4-7). Clary finished with 11 points. Roy was 2 of 10 from distance.

Oklahoma State tied it twice in the second half before Arizona State used a 13-5 surge for a 60-52 advantage with 10:37 left.

The Cowboys led just twice, each time inside the first four minutes of the game.

Up next

Oklahoma State hosts TCU on Saturday.

Arizona State is at home against No. 16 Texas Tech on Tuesday.

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The Dallas Mavericks (19-34) rolled their tank into Mortgage Matchup Center on Tuesday and offered little to no resistance against the Phoenix Suns (34-22) in a fart-and-fall-down 120-111 loss, the team’s eighth in a row. Naji Marshall scored 11 of his team-high 31 points in the fourth quarter in the fakest comeback attempt the NBA has seen this year. Cooper Flagg added 27 points and five rebounds in the loss.

The early returns for Tyus Jones as starting point guard are not pretty, folks. The Suns held the Mavericks without a field goal for the first 5:45 of the game, including two early misses from 3-point range from Jones. His second was an unsightly airball from the right wing. Finally, mercifully, Max Christie found an open driving lane with 6:14 left in the first for the Mavs’ first bucket of the contest, pulling Dallas to within 16-6. Christie followed that bucket up with another airball on his next 3-point attempt.

The Hateable Dillon Brooks shot 7-of-9 from the floor through the first nine minutes on his way to a game-high 15 points after one quarter. It was Brooks’ highest-scoring first quarter of his career, but Brooks scored just eight points the rest of the way in the Suns’ win. Jalen Green scored nine more off the bench in the first, as Phoenix tried to put the Mavs to bed early, extending their lead to 36-16 at the end of the first. The Mavs shot an anemic 6-of-22 (27.3%) from the field in the frame. The 16 points are a new season-low in any quarter this year.

The Mavs made Phoenix reserve Ryan Dunn look like an All-Star early in the second, as he made mincemeat of the Dallas defense with 8:20 left in the half on a basic give-and-go along the baseline for an easy dunk to put the Suns ahead 47-20. The Suns coasted to a 65-48 lead at the half. The Mavericks backed themselves into a corner before storming back with an 18-1 run late in the second to make it that close.

At some point in the third quarter, as the Mavericks gave back all the ground they gained with that second quarter run, the utter futility of watching this team flail forced your faithful correspondent to devour an entire pint of Ben and Jerry’s Americone Dream. It was a far more productive exercise than anything the Mavs were perpetrating on the court. As the last creamy bite slid down my gullet, I looked up at the television screen to see Dunn finish off an alley-oop slam from Isaac Ighodaro to put the Suns ahead 96-74. Phoenix led 96-75 going into the fourth.

The fourth quarter was barely worth mentioning, as the Suns played just bad enough to give the Mavericks some hope and just well enough to keep Dallas at arm’s length down the stretch. To add insult to injury, Phoenix used up all five of its fourth-quarter team fouls in the first four minutes and change of the fourth, putting the Mavs in the bonus and extending the game with meaningless free throws and extra stoppages. Pain.

This team has packed it in

The Mavericks’ complete lack of effort and desire on either end of the floor was evident from the game’s opening tip. The starting lineup reflected the business decision made, and the Mavs’ footwork on defense bolded the point in all caps.

Dallas didn’t so much fail to close out Suns’ offensive possessions on the defensive glass as much as they simply didn’t care to try. The Mavs’ effort was an affront to the game, but hey, it may net them another lottery ball or two, am I right? The recent additions to the roster continued to simply take up space on Tuesday

The Mavericks gave up 17 offensive rebounds in the loss, turned the ball over 16 times and got beat 26-10 on the fast break.

Cooper Flagg: Still doing his thing

As ugly as this game was early on, Flagg showed off his wheels in the open floor, gliding down the court in transition for opportunistic scores while the rest of the Mavs’ offense looked completely lost. He sealed off his defender in close to the basket late in the second and scored on the receiving end of a nice find from Naji Marshall to pull Dallas to within 62-40 and led the Mavs with 15 points in the first half. His final bucket of the first half was at the end of a fast break when Flagg reared back and stuffed it in Brooks’ face to inch Dallas back to within 62-45.

Flagg and Marshall combined for 27 of the Mavs’ 48 points in the first half. Flagg scored eight of his 10 second-quarter points during the 18-1 run that opened the door for a second-half comeback. He scored seven more in the third before canning a baseline jumper through Amir Coffey’s foul with nine minutes left to play to bring the Mavs to within 13, down 102-89.

Negative three

Dallas shot a putrid 1-of-15 from 3-point range through the first three quarters against the Suns. Marshall finally hit the Mavs’ second 3-ball of the game with 10:40 left in the fourth quarter. Middleton knocked down another one on the Mavericks’ next possession, but it was far too little, far took late.

The Mavs made four of their seven attempts from deep in the fourth quarter to finish a paltry 5-of-22 (22.7%) in the loss. Phoenix outscored Dallas 48-15 from 3-point range in the win. 48-15, for the love of God. On the other side of that coin was the Mavs’ plus-35 differential in free-throw attempts in the loss. The Mavs went 32-of-44 from the line in the loss, while the Suns shot just nine in the win and made six of them.

We’ll keep watching these games as the 2025-26 season wears on, Mavs fans, so you don’t have to.

NEW YORK (AP) — Chicago Bulls guard Collin Sexton has been fined $35,000 for making an inappropriate hand gesture during a game, the NBA said Tuesday.

The incident happened during Chicago's 123-115 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Monday. He made the gesture after making a free throw with 1:31 remaining in the third quarter.

Sexton scored 21 points in the game, but made just 7 of 18 field goals.

___

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

The Pacers (14-40) brought a conference-worst record into Madison Square Garden tonight. They average 110 points per game, practically the worst in the league. Their hosts, the New York Knicks (34*-20), had won nine of their last ten and were climbing up the power rankings again. Games don’t get more lopsided than this. Still, somehow, the dregs of the league always want to stick it to the Knicks, playing like it’s the deciding game of a playoff series and some degenerate gambler has their dog at gunpoint. It took 39 lead changes, the most in an NBA game this season, and an overtime period to declare a victor: Pacers, 137-134.

Quoth RandleTripleDouble: “I hate the Pacers. That’s all.”

Congratulations to Josh Hart, who moved into third place for most triple-doubles in franchise history. He was New York’s most consistent player, finishing with a team-high +13, 15 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, and two steals on 5-of-8 shooting.

In a fast-paced first quarter, the Pacers got three-pointer fever. Indy averages 36.5 attempts from deep and tried 17 in the first period alone, swishing seven of them. Andrew Nembhard (24 PTS, 10 AST) and Ben Sheppard (10 PTS, 7 RBS) combined for five of those dingers. Meanwhile, the Knicks whiffed on five of their seven triple-tries, and although Brunson recorded 11 points in the frame, he struggled to find the touch from range, missing thrice. Jalen finished the night with a stat-line of 40 points, eight assists, five boards, and 15-of-31 FG, 4-of-14 3PT.

Playing without OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson, Coach Brown inserted Landry Shamet in the starting lineup. He finished tonight with 17 points on 6-of-14. Lacking Landry’s punch, the bench scored 18 points.

This was very much a defense optional game from the start. Before the midway point, the Knicks held a seven-point lead, but in a quarter with 12 lead changes, no advantage lasted long. The pesky Hoosiers were determined to give our heroes a fight, and neither team bothered to apply defensive pressure. Then, with two minutes left in the quarter, Jose Alvarado and his trademark hustle made his Madison Square Garden debut. On the Pacers’ final possession of the quarter, Jose stabbed the ball from Pascal Siakam, helping to preserve a 33-32 Knicks lead. Siakam finished with 30 points, six boards, three steals, and shot 11-of-26 FG, 3-of-10 3PT, and 5-of-10 FT.

For the second straight game, Alvarado handled the playmaking duties to start the second quarter, while Tyler Kolek watched from the bench.

The Knicks continued to patiently stand by while their guests rained threes. How hospitable! In a 13-point turnaround, the Pacers went up by seven by the middle of Q2. Siakam led the offense, scoring at all three levels, while Sheppard and Quenton Jackson produced at both ends.

When Brunson returned, he and Towns finally gained some separation late in the half. Towns exerted himself inside, scoring on a dunk and putbacks, drawing fouls, and sweeping the glass. Hart filled in the gaps, dishing nine of New York’s 17 first-half assists. Josh was the only Knick not in double-digit points by intermission, with the Knicks ahead 69-63.

Here’s a beauty of a pass from KAT. He’d finish with a 22-point, 14-board double-double.

Through the first half, the home team shot 59% from the floor and won the glass (22-14), paint (30–20), and fast-break points (16-7). The visitors, who normally shoot 35% from deep, had hit 11-of-25 from three (44%). Go figure.

In the third quarter, the Knicks played better defense, but the game repeated the flip-flop pattern of the first half. Fatigue was setting in. The refs weren’t calling a lot of fouls, so the pace was steady and exhausting through most of the period.

For Indiana, Jackson and Aaron Nesmith hit early threes, and Siakam scored at the line. New York stayed close through Brunson’s shot-making and Hart’s all-around play—he hit pull-up threes, grabbed more boards, and nicked a timely steal. Despite all that, T.J. McConnell sliced up the Knicks defense and cut the score to 94-93 heading into the final frame.

Refusing to quit, Indiana countered every one of New York’s punches in the fourth. McConnell and Jalen Huff scored inside, and the see-saw on the scoreboard persisted. Mikal Bridges answered with a fadeaway, but turnovers proved costly for the home team. Midway through the quarter, Nembhard led Indy on a 9-3 run to go ahead by three.

Down by two with just under five minutes left, our heroes needed someone to provide some pep after such a slog of a game. Enter: Jose. After a juke at the corner, Alvarado snaked his way along the baseline for a sweet layup that brought the crowd to its feet. Jose finished the night with four points on 1-0f-5 shooting and dished three dimes.

Briefly, the momentum teetered in our direction, but was snatched back by Nembhard, Nesmith, and Siakam.

Captain Clutch drove for a layup and converted a free throw after drawing contact to pull the Knicks within one, 121–120, with 1:30 left. Both sides missed (Siakam, Brunson), and with 42 seconds left, a coach’s challenge overturned a Shamet foul. New York got possession from the jump ball, but Cap missed an off-balance 14-footer. At 13 seconds, Siakam made a jumper, pushing Indy’s lead to three.

Out of a timeout, Brunson missed again from beyond the arc. KAT and Potter crashed the boards; Indiana knocked it out of bounds. Bridges was fouled and hit the two freebies. The Hoosiers regained possession with a 1-point lead and six seconds left. New York fouled Siakam, who missed the first free throw. He made the second, the ball reached Shamet, who bricked from deep, which seemed to end the game. But wait! Towns thundered in for the rebound and was fouled by Nesmith with 0.2 seconds left!

KAT made them both send the game to overtime. For as maddening as his offensive fouls and complaining to refs can be, moments like that at the end of the game are sweet redemption.

During bonus basketball, New York looked very thirsty for Gatorade. Hart and Shamet combined for three misses, Towns fouled with a moving screen, and Brunson was blocked by Nesmith at the rim. On the other end, Jackson, Siakam, and Nembhard scored to go up by nine with 50 seconds on the clock. Brunson scored on a drive, and Shamet added a trey to make the deficit four with 12 seconds to go, but it was too little, too late.

Hart fouled Siakam, who missed both free throws. Diawara grabbed the rebound and called a timeout. Nine seconds left. Bridges inbounded to Hart, who got the ball to Captain Clutch—who shook off Nesmith to nail the three. Five seconds left. Out of a timeout, Brunson fouled Jackson. He made both. Three-point game, four seconds left. Shamet got the ball on the next possession, but was fouled before he could attempt a three. He missed both at the stripe. Ballgame.

Up Next

The Knicks zip down to Philly for a scrap with the Sixers tomorrow. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.

Box Score

* Should be one more, but the NBA Cup Final doesn’t count.

After the Los Angeles Clippers traded away James Harden at the NBA trade deadline, the luster of a Rockets versus Clippers matchup in Toyota Center make gave dulled a bit. Especially since the Clippers biggest return in that trade, Darius Garland would not be playing either.

However, for a Rockets team that needs to gain some momentum heading into the All-Star break, a shorthanded Clippers squad was a sight for sore eyes. While the Rockets did build a lead as high as 15 points in the third quarter, the Clippers scrapped and fought as they have all season. In fact they lead at the half 52-51. However, as they have all season, they came up short even after a last ditch effort in the fourth quarter.

The Clippers had to rely heavily on Kawhi Leonard for their offense, but the Rockets were able to key in on him, holding him to 24 points on 7-of-19 shooting, and only allowed one other Clippers player (John Collins) to score in double figures (17 points). The Rockets defense allowed the team to survive a less efficient night for Kevin Durant who had 22 points on 8-of-22 shooting.

The Rockets had four other players in double figures with Alperen Sengun scoring 22 points on 64-percent shooting, Jabari Smith chipping in with 13 points and 10 rebounds, Amen Thompson with 16 points on 60-percent shooting, and Reed Sheppard adding 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists off the bench. The Rockets only allowed the Clippers to score 43 points in the second half of the game and held them to 40-percent shooting from the field and 26.7-percent from the three-point line.

It was by no means the Rockets most impressive win this season, but it was an important win as the Rockets move to 12-1 against sub .500 teams at home. As a team that has let a few games slip that they had no business losing, taking care of Game 1 of this double-dip aganst the Clips was important. These two teams get to run it back tomorrow night, same bat-time, same bat-channel! As always we will be right here on TDS coving the game from every angle with Game Preview, Rockets Discussion during the game, and the post-game recap! See ya tomorrow night!

The Knicks fell short in their back-and-forth battle on Tuesday night, losing in OT to the Pacers, 137-134.

Indiana outscored New York, 13-10, in the overtime period and held on to earn their 14th victory of the season behind Pascal Siakam's 30 points and the team's 18 three-pointers.

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with a game-high 40 points, Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges both scored 22 points, Landry Shamet had 17, and Josh Hart notched a 15-11-11 triple-double, but it just wasn't enough. 

Here are the takeaways...

-- With OG Anunoby (right toe, toenail avulsion) out for a third straight game, Mike Brown inserted Shamet into the starting lineup. After Towns opened the scoring, Bridges scored seven straight points and Shamet drilled his first three-pointer to put the Knicks up early. Bridges kept it going with an acrobatic tip-in, helping Hart record his fifth assist midway through the first quarter.

Despite shooting 65 percent on offense, New York's defense looked lackadaisical and allowed the Pacers to reclaim the lead, 29-28. Brown called a timeout with 2:05 left in the first and subbed in Jose Alvarado for his home debut to help turn things around.

-- Brunson and Ben Sheppard traded three-pointers after the timeout and then the Knicks' captain gave his team a 33-32 lead at the end of the first quarter. Brunson led the way with 11 points and Bridges had nine plus a quarter-ending block. Indiana made seven threes to keep it close as Siakam led the team with 10 points and Andrew Nembhard had nine points.

-- New York's defense continued to struggle in the second quarter, allowing Siakam and Co. to stay hot. Alvarado's intensity was on full display by diving for loose balls, but he picked up a third foul and was subbed out for Brunson with 7:17 left in the second. Turnovers began to hurt the Pacers as Brunson got a steal and scored his 18th point of the first half to go up 62-59 with about two minutes remaining. Towns then scored six straight points, including a dunk in transition to give him 15 first-half points.

The Knicks led, 69-63, at halftime thanks to 59 percent shooting and a 22-14 lead in the rebound battle through two quarters. Indiana did its best to hang around, shooting 51 percent from the field with 11 three-pointers. Brunson (20) and Towns (15) combined for 35 points at the break, while Bridges and Shamet had 12 points apiece. Hart scored just four points, but already recorded eight rebounds and nine assists.

-- Brunson's big night continued in the third quarter as he sank his third three before Quenton Jackson did the same for Indy to tie the game at 76-76. The game's pace slowed down throughout the third, but the scoring didn't stop. Indiana won the period, 31-24, and took a 94-93 lead heading into the fourth quarter. T.J. McConnell's layup with the clock winding down to put the Pacers ahead was the 33rd lead change of the night.

-- Towns made his first three of the night after four misses, scoring his first points of the second half to give the Knicks a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter. Jay Huff gave the Pacers a 105-104 lead with about seven minutes left in the game, as it was the 35th lead change of the night, tied for the most in an NBA game this season. 

Hart picked up his triple-double on an assist to Bridges, and then Alvarado got his hometown crowd on their feet with a hanging layup to tie the game at 110-110. The season-high 36th lead change of the game came on a Hart layup as the back-and-forth battle continued.

-- Brunson took a bump from Aaron Nesmith and banked in a floater plus the foul to cut the Indiana lead to one point with 1:31 left in the game. The Knicks had a chance to take the lead after winning a coach's challenge and the jump-ball tip, but Brunson missed a forced three-point attempt. Siakam then drained a jumper to put the Pacers up three points with 13.2 seconds left and later up two with 5.2 seconds left, but missed a crucial FT to leave the door open for NY.

Shamet missed a three-point attempt for the win, but Towns was fouled crashing the glass for the putback, placing him on the foul line with 0.2 seconds remaining. The All-Star made both to tie the game and force overtime.

-- Towns fouled out for the fifth time this season with the Knicks down four points in OT. Nesmith then blocked Brunson and Jackson drained a three-pointer to go up seven points, Indiana's biggest lead of the night, which they'd barely hold on to for the win.

Game MVP: Pascal Siakam

Siakam scored 30 points on 11-for-26 shooting with six rebounds, four assists, and three steals in the win. 

Highlights

Mikal with a couple early buckets 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8oygw1M4iz

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 11, 2026

Hart ➡️ KAT 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/ienwWToj0l

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 11, 2026

Jose Alvarado hustling in his MSG debut 😤 pic.twitter.com/9jSnoLItvb

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 11, 2026

Landry Shamet with the 4-point play! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8exayc8NRC

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 11, 2026

Josh Hart for 👌 pic.twitter.com/6bdNKlHu4i

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 11, 2026

What's next

The Knicks head down I-95 to Philadelphia for a matchup with the 76ers on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. It's their last game before the 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend festivities in Los Angeles.