Heat Handles Celtics, 115-99
The Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics, 115-99, at American Airlines Arena on Thursday evening.
The Celtics (25-16) came in the much hotter team, but it was the hometown Heat (20-20) that looked like the more prepared squad from the opening tip. After forging a 28-24 first-quarter lead, Miami outscored Boston by a 33-19 margin in the second to build a commanding 61-43 halftime advantage. Although the visitors made a game of it for a time in the third quarter, the hosts took control and never looked back down the stretch. The Heat enjoyed sizable shooting and rebounding advantages, draining 47.9 percent of their attempts, including 46.2 percent from three-point range, while limiting the Celtics to a 40.4 percent success rate. They also won the battle of the boards, 51-37.
Kyrie Irving paced the Celtics with 22 points, a total he supplemented with five rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. Marcus Smart followed with 18 points, two assists, one rebound and one block. Jayson Tatum and Marcus Morris had matching 17-point tallies and brought down four and six rebounds, respectively. Al Horford had just two points over 28 minutes on 1-for-8 shooting.
Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 19 points, adding an assist and a steal. Josh Richardson supplied 18 points, six assists and three rebounds. Derrick Jones, Jr. turned in 14 points, seven boards, two steals and one block. Justise Winslow supplied 13 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. James Johnson registered 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and one block. Tyler Johnson checked in with 11 points, three rebounds and one assist.
The Celtics next head to Central Florida and take on the Orlando Magic on Saturday night, while the Heat remains home to take on the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday afternoon.
The Celtics (25-16) came in the much hotter team, but it was the hometown Heat (20-20) that looked like the more prepared squad from the opening tip. After forging a 28-24 first-quarter lead, Miami outscored Boston by a 33-19 margin in the second to build a commanding 61-43 halftime advantage. Although the visitors made a game of it for a time in the third quarter, the hosts took control and never looked back down the stretch. The Heat enjoyed sizable shooting and rebounding advantages, draining 47.9 percent of their attempts, including 46.2 percent from three-point range, while limiting the Celtics to a 40.4 percent success rate. They also won the battle of the boards, 51-37.
Kyrie Irving paced the Celtics with 22 points, a total he supplemented with five rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block. Marcus Smart followed with 18 points, two assists, one rebound and one block. Jayson Tatum and Marcus Morris had matching 17-point tallies and brought down four and six rebounds, respectively. Al Horford had just two points over 28 minutes on 1-for-8 shooting.
Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 19 points, adding an assist and a steal. Josh Richardson supplied 18 points, six assists and three rebounds. Derrick Jones, Jr. turned in 14 points, seven boards, two steals and one block. Justise Winslow supplied 13 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. James Johnson registered 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and one block. Tyler Johnson checked in with 11 points, three rebounds and one assist.
The Celtics next head to Central Florida and take on the Orlando Magic on Saturday night, while the Heat remains home to take on the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday afternoon.
Nuggets Roll Clippers, 121-100
The Denver Nuggets defeated the visiting Los Angeles Clippers, 121-100, at Pepsi Center on Thursday.
While this wasn't a wire-to-wire win for Denver, it was as dominating as it gets. In fact, the Nuggets rode a 37-25 first quarter to their victory, as they led by at least five points for the final three quarters. The Nuggets continued that momentum in the second half, holding a double-digit lead for the final 20 minutes of action. Rebounding was the difference in the game, with Denver outrebounding Los Angeles, 53-38. The shooting disparity was also critical, with the Nuggets shooting 51 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range while the Clippers hit just 44 percent from the field and 25 percent from long range. Much of that can be attributed to the fact that Denver out-assisted Los Angeles, 29-21.
The Clippers (24-17) were led by Lou Williams, as he provided 19 points and five assists off the bench. Tobias Harris led the starters with 18 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Danilo Gallinari matched those 18 points, adding three rebounds and four assists to his tally. Montrezl Harrell amassed 16 points and six boards off the bench as well.
The Nuggets (28-12) got another triple-double from Nikola Jokic, as he collected 18 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists and two blocks. Jamal Murray led the team in scoring, totaling 23 points, six rebounds and two assists. Malik Beasley started and accrued 15 points, five assists and two steals. Mason Plumlee was a huge spark off the bench, providing 17 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.
Both teams return to action on Saturday, with Los Angeles playing host to the Detroit Pistons and Denver traveling to Arizona to face the Phoenix Suns.
While this wasn't a wire-to-wire win for Denver, it was as dominating as it gets. In fact, the Nuggets rode a 37-25 first quarter to their victory, as they led by at least five points for the final three quarters. The Nuggets continued that momentum in the second half, holding a double-digit lead for the final 20 minutes of action. Rebounding was the difference in the game, with Denver outrebounding Los Angeles, 53-38. The shooting disparity was also critical, with the Nuggets shooting 51 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range while the Clippers hit just 44 percent from the field and 25 percent from long range. Much of that can be attributed to the fact that Denver out-assisted Los Angeles, 29-21.
The Clippers (24-17) were led by Lou Williams, as he provided 19 points and five assists off the bench. Tobias Harris led the starters with 18 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Danilo Gallinari matched those 18 points, adding three rebounds and four assists to his tally. Montrezl Harrell amassed 16 points and six boards off the bench as well.
The Nuggets (28-12) got another triple-double from Nikola Jokic, as he collected 18 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists and two blocks. Jamal Murray led the team in scoring, totaling 23 points, six rebounds and two assists. Malik Beasley started and accrued 15 points, five assists and two steals. Mason Plumlee was a huge spark off the bench, providing 17 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.
Both teams return to action on Saturday, with Los Angeles playing host to the Detroit Pistons and Denver traveling to Arizona to face the Phoenix Suns.
Aldridge Career-High 56 points Leads Spurs In Double-OT Win
By Dan Bruno
The San Antonio Spurs defeated the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder, 154-147, in double overtime at AT&T Center on Thursday evening.
The Spurs got out to a great start at home, with a 33-23 lead after one quarter. The Thunder chipped away through the second and cut the deficit to seven by halftime. The Spurs maintained control through the third and pushed their lead to 105-93 entering the fourth, but the Thunder would not back down and outscored the Spurs by 12 in the quarter to force OT. The teams matched each other for 11 points each in the first overtime, which led to a second overtime period. The Spurs managed to pull ahead early and held on despite a relentless effort from the visitors. The Spurs held on for the impressive home win, mostly thanks to a career-high 56 points from LaMarcus Aldridge. This marks the third straight loss for the Thunder.
Aldridge led the Spurs with 56 points on 20-of-33 shooting, in 48 minutes. Derrick White followed up with 23 points, eight assists, five rebounds, two steals and one block, while DeMar DeRozan finished with 16 points, 11 assists, eight rebounds, one steal and one block. The Spurs shot 56 percent from the field, including 16-of-19 from long range.
Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 24 points, a career-high 24 assists, 13 rebounds and two steals, in 49 minutes. Paul George followed up with 30 points on 11-of-25 shooting, eight rebounds, three steals and one assist, in 46 minutes, while Jerami Grant tallied a career-high 25 points, along with 12 rebounds, three blocks and one assist.
The Thunder (25-16) and Spurs (25-18) will have a rematch on Saturday.
The Spurs got out to a great start at home, with a 33-23 lead after one quarter. The Thunder chipped away through the second and cut the deficit to seven by halftime. The Spurs maintained control through the third and pushed their lead to 105-93 entering the fourth, but the Thunder would not back down and outscored the Spurs by 12 in the quarter to force OT. The teams matched each other for 11 points each in the first overtime, which led to a second overtime period. The Spurs managed to pull ahead early and held on despite a relentless effort from the visitors. The Spurs held on for the impressive home win, mostly thanks to a career-high 56 points from LaMarcus Aldridge. This marks the third straight loss for the Thunder.
Aldridge led the Spurs with 56 points on 20-of-33 shooting, in 48 minutes. Derrick White followed up with 23 points, eight assists, five rebounds, two steals and one block, while DeMar DeRozan finished with 16 points, 11 assists, eight rebounds, one steal and one block. The Spurs shot 56 percent from the field, including 16-of-19 from long range.
Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 24 points, a career-high 24 assists, 13 rebounds and two steals, in 49 minutes. Paul George followed up with 30 points on 11-of-25 shooting, eight rebounds, three steals and one assist, in 46 minutes, while Jerami Grant tallied a career-high 25 points, along with 12 rebounds, three blocks and one assist.
The Thunder (25-16) and Spurs (25-18) will have a rematch on Saturday.
Kings Defeat Undermanned Pistons, 112-102
The Sacramento Kings defeated the Detroit Pistons, 112-102, at Golden 1 Center on Thursday.
The Kings (21-21) made light work of the visiting team Thursday night and have now won two of their last three games. They opened up a 13-point lead in the first quarter and continued to build on their lead before a late run by the Pistons (17-23) made the final margin a tad smaller. Seven different Kings players managed to score in double figures, with Buddy Hield leading the way with a game-high 18 points. Frontcourt up-and-comers Willie Cauley-Stein and Harry Giles each added 14 points, while Iman Shumpert poured in 13 in just 22 minutes. As a team, it was a very impressive shooting night from the Kings, with the team hitting 41 percent of its three-point attempts and shooting 51.2 percent from the field overall.
As for the Pistons, it was their second loss in as many nights and their fourth loss in a row overall. They were without star forward Blake Griffin (rest) on Thursday night, and their struggles without him were evident. Stanley Johnson came off the bench to be the team's high scorer with just 16 points, while Reggie Bullock and rookie Bruce Brown added 15 points. Andre Drummond was the only other player to reach double figures for Detroit, scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Overall, it was a really poor shooting night for the Pistons, as they shot 28.9 percent from behind the arc and a miserable 42.7 percent from the field. They have now lost seven of their last eight games and continue to fall further out of the playoff picture.
The Kings (21-21) made light work of the visiting team Thursday night and have now won two of their last three games. They opened up a 13-point lead in the first quarter and continued to build on their lead before a late run by the Pistons (17-23) made the final margin a tad smaller. Seven different Kings players managed to score in double figures, with Buddy Hield leading the way with a game-high 18 points. Frontcourt up-and-comers Willie Cauley-Stein and Harry Giles each added 14 points, while Iman Shumpert poured in 13 in just 22 minutes. As a team, it was a very impressive shooting night from the Kings, with the team hitting 41 percent of its three-point attempts and shooting 51.2 percent from the field overall.
As for the Pistons, it was their second loss in as many nights and their fourth loss in a row overall. They were without star forward Blake Griffin (rest) on Thursday night, and their struggles without him were evident. Stanley Johnson came off the bench to be the team's high scorer with just 16 points, while Reggie Bullock and rookie Bruce Brown added 15 points. Andre Drummond was the only other player to reach double figures for Detroit, scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Overall, it was a really poor shooting night for the Pistons, as they shot 28.9 percent from behind the arc and a miserable 42.7 percent from the field. They have now lost seven of their last eight games and continue to fall further out of the playoff picture.