NBA roundup: 20/3/23

Keldon Johnson had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Devin Vassell added 29 points as the San Antonio Spurs came back from 24 points down to beat the visiting Atlanta Hawks 126-118 on Sunday afternoon.

Atlanta led by 22 points at halftime but gave most of it back in a ragged third quarter, heading to the final period up just 103-100. The Hawks were still ahead at 114-108 until San Antonio forged a 16-0 run behind six points from Zach Collins and five from Blake Wesley to move to the front at 124-114 with 1:54 to play.

 

Dejounte Murray led the Hawks with 22 points in his return to San Antonio after being traded by the Spurs in the offseason. Onyeka Okongwu added 17 points, with Clint Capela racking up 15 points and 12 rebounds. Trae Young had just nine points on 4-of-15 shooting from the floor for Atlanta.

Atlanta went into the break with a commanding 83-61 lead, but the Spurs roared back in the third quarter behind Vassell (14 points in the period) and Johnson (12) to pull within three.

 

Lakers 111, Magic 105

Austin Reaves set a career high with 35 points and D'Angelo Russell added 18 as Los Angeles ended a two-game losing streak and helped its playoff chances with a victory over visiting Orlando.

Anthony Davis finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks as the Lakers pulled even with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz at the bottom of the play-in tournament chase in the Western Conference.

Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner each scored 21 points and Cole Anthony added 17 as the Magic were unable to pull off a weekend sweep at Los Angeles after defeating the Clippers 113-108 on Saturday.

Thunder 124, Suns 120

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points to lead host Oklahoma City to a victory over Phoenix.

Gilgeous-Alexander's performance and the Thunder's comeback overshadowed Devin Booker's 46-point game. Chris Paul added 14 points and 13 assists in the loss. Phoenix led by 10 in the early moments of the fourth quarter before the Thunder turned up the heat defensively and converted at the other end.

 

The Thunder ripped off an 18-2 run to grab control, turning a 100-90 deficit into a 108-102 lead with 5:46 left to play. Luguentz Dort gave Oklahoma City its first lead since the game's opening moments with his 3-pointer with just under seven minutes remaining, then Gilgeous-Alexander found Josh Giddey for an alley-oop on the next possession to keep the run going.

Nuggets 108, Nets 102

Nikola Jokic totaled 22 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists for his league-leading 28th triple-double as Denver took control in the first quarter and led virtually the entire way in a victory over Brooklyn in New York.

Michael Porter Jr. led all scorers with 28 points to go along with nine boards, while Jamal Murray supplied 25 points for the Nuggets. Mikal Bridges scored a team-high 23 points for the Nets, who dropped their third straight and fell 2 1/2 games behind the fifth-place Knicks in the Eastern Conference.

After the Nets ripped off a 17-2 run to get within 100-93, Murray found Porter, who hit a corner 3-pointer when Cameron Johnson left him uncovered with 3:23 remaining. The Nets missed another chance at inching closer when Johnson missed an open triple with 2:16 to go, and Denver iced it when Aaron Gordon made a layup and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit a trey.

Heat 112, Pistons 100

Jimmy Butler had 26 points and 10 assists, and visiting Miami used a late 12-0 run to down Detroit.

Bam Adebayo supplied 22 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three blocks for Miami. Tyler Herro had 19 points and six rebounds, Caleb Martin tossed in 13 points and Kevin Love added 12 points and eight rebounds.

James Wiseman led Detroit with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Cory Joseph had 16 points, Rodney McGruder contributed 15 points and nine rebounds and Marvin Bagley III added 14 points after missing three games due to a sore ankle. Killian Hayes chipped in a double-double with 13 points and 11 assists.

Pelicans 117, Rockets 107

CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram combined for 52 points as visiting New Orleans earned a much-needed victory over Houston.

McCollum finished with 26 points, six rebounds and five assists while making 4 of 7 3-pointers. Ingram paired 26 points with a team-high nine assists as the Pelicans snapped a skid of three losses in four games to remain in the chase for a spot in the West play-in tournament.

The Rockets' starting backcourt of Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. combined for 65 points on 18-of-37 shooting from the floor and 22-of-22 shooting from the free-throw line. Green had 40 points, his fourth 40-point game this season, but the Rockets did not have a third double-digit scorer until Tari Eason sank two free throws with 8:08 left.

Bucks 118, Raptors 111

Giannis Antetokounmpo shot a perfect 9-for-9 from the floor and recorded a triple-double of 22 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists as Milwaukee dominated the fourth quarter en route to a come-from-behind victory over visiting Toronto.

Milwaukee's defense proved overwhelming in the closing 12 minutes. The Bucks outscored the Raptors 29-16, regrouping from a third quarter in which they surrendered 39 points.

Brook Lopez scored a game-high 26 points for the Bucks. Fred VanVleet's 23 points led four Raptors scoring at least 18. VanVleet also dished a game-high 11 assists.

Clippers 117, Trail Blazers 102

Paul George recorded 29 points, nine rebounds and four steals and Kawhi Leonard added 24 points to lead Los Angeles past host Portland.

Eric Gordon had 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting off the bench and Ivica Zubac added 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Clippers won for the fifth time in six games. Los Angeles moved within a half-game of the fourth-place Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference.

Jusuf Nurkic registered 23 points and 11 rebounds for Portland, and Damian Lillard scored 21 points to top 20 for the 31st consecutive regular-season contest. Lillard also had nine assists and seven rebounds but was just 4 of 17 from the field.