Ball, Bridges each score 23 to lead Hornets over Mavs

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges each scored 23 points and the Charlotte Hornets held on to beat the Dallas Mavericks 110-105 on Monday to extend their winning streak to a season-high three games.

Nick Smith Jr. added 19 points and Mark Williams overcame foul trouble to finish with 13 points and 13 rebounds for Charlotte (11-28).

Kyrie Irving had 33 points and Daniel Gafford added a career-high 31 points and 15 rebounds for the Mavericks (23-20), who’ve lost four of their last five games.

The Mavericks trailed entering the fourth quarter but Irving — who had 26 points after halftime — began the take over, knocking down two quick 3s while adding another three points on free throws after luring Josh Green into fouling him on a 3-point attempt.

But the Hornets would battle back to take the lead for good on Smith’s corner 3 with 4:16 left.

Ball, who had 20 points on five 3s in the first half, had a chance to put the game away with 13 seconds left but missed the tail end of a one-and-one. Klay Thompson tried to send the game into overtime, but missed a 3 from the right wing. Green added two free throws to seal the Charlotte win.

PISTONS 107, ROCKETS 96

HOUSTON (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 32 points, nine rebounds and seven assists to lead Detroit to a win over Houston.

Cunningham was 12 of 22 from the field. He scored 19 points in the third quarter as the Pistons built a 90-80 lead after three.

Jalen Duren had 16 points and 14 rebounds, Malik Beasley added 17 points off the bench, and Ausar Thompson had 11 points and nine rebounds for the Pistons, who shot 48% and were 10 of 27 on 3-pointers.

Fred VanVleet scored 20 points, and Jalen Green scored 19 points. Amen Thompson, who missed the game at Portland on Saturday with left calf soreness, added 17 points for Houston, which shot 39% and struggled from 3, connecting on 11 of 39.

GRIZZLIES 108, TIMBERWOLVES 106

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaren Jackson Jr. had 24 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, and Desmond Bane added 22 points as Memphis used a late rally to beat Minnesota.

Jackson, who was 6 of 8 in the final quarter, added 10 rebounds and a pair of blocks for Memphis, which won its third straight. Ja Morant finished with 19 points, despite going 5 of 16 from the field.

Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with 32 points, while Naz Reid finished with 29 points, including 15 in the fourth as Minnesota tried to thwart the Memphis rally. Edwards had a chance to win the game, but his 3-point attempt with Bane and Jackson guarding him was off the mark.

Memphis outscored Minnesota 37-30 in the fourth.

Minnesota announced before the game that guard Donte DiVincenzo will be out with a big toe injury.

KNICKS 119, HAWKS 110

NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 34 points to lead New York to a win over Atlanta.

It was the 68th 30-plus point game in Brunson’s career as a Knick, and it helped New York improve to 28-16. Mikal Bridges added 26 points, while New York swingman Josh Hart chipped in with 14 points. Hart had suffered a cervical compression in the neck in the Knicks’ 116-99 loss to the Timberwolves on Friday night.

Despite Trae Young leading seven Hawks in double-figure scoring with 27, Atlanta fell to 22-20 and had its three-game winning streak snapped. De’Andre Hunter added 22 points off the bench.

In a 16-second span midway through the fourth quarter, Brunson converted a backdoor layup to give the Knicks a 107-100 lead and on the ensuing possession drew a charge from Dyson Daniels. New York cruised the rest of the way.

CAVALIERS 118, SUNS 92

CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points — 23 in the second half — and Darius Garland added 16 as Cleveland began the season’s unofficial second half by dominating Phoenix in a Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee.

The Cavs, who opened the season with 15 straight wins, improved the NBA’s best record to 36-6 — tied for the eighth-best start in history. They’re also 21-2 at home and 13-1 against Western Conference teams.

Cleveland had little trouble handling the Suns despite missing three rotational players as forwards Evan Mobley (calf), Isaac Okoro (shoulder) and guard Caris LeVert (wrist) sat out with injuries.

Kevin Durant scored 23 to lead Phoenix, which had won five of six. Devin Booker added 15 — 10 below his average — and had six turnovers.

Suns guard Bradley Beal returned after missing the last two games with left ankle sprain and scored just five points in 25 minutes.

CELTICS 125. WARRIORS 85

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 22 points, Kristaps Porzingis had 18 and Boston handed Golden State their most lopsided home loss in 40 years with a victory.

The Celtics built a double-digit lead early and put the game away with a 43-24 edge in the third quarter.

Jaylen Brown added 17 points and Payton Pritchard scored 14 for Boston.

Stephen Curry scored 18 points to lead Golden State. The Warriors shot 34.8% for the game, with Andrew Wiggins making just 1 of 11 shots.

The Warriors lost by at least 40 points at home for the sixth time since moving to California in 1962 and first since a 149-104 loss to Dallas on Jan. 15, 1985.

PELICANS 123, JAZZ 119, OT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — CJ McCollum scored six of his 45 points in overtime and New Orleans orchestrated the largest comeback in franchise history, overcoming a 25-point deficit to beat Utah.

Dejounte Murry had 26 points and 11 assists, and Trey Murphy III added 24 points for the Pelicans, who won for the fifth time in six games despite playing without forward Zion Williamson and center Yves Missi (both non-COVID illnesses).

Keyonte George scored 23 points and Isaiah Collier had 20 points and 11 assists for the Jazz. Walker Kessler had 19 points and 13 rebounds and Kyle Filipowski added 17 rebounds and 11 points.

A 24-3 run gave the Pelicans their first lead on Jose Alvarado’s transition 3 from the left corner, which made it 90-89.

Utah went back up 99-92, but McCollum, who had 25 points in the second half, pulled the Pelicans back with three clutch 3s in the last six minutes of regulation.

Kessler’s putback put Utah in front with 33 seconds left, but Murray’s layup tied it at 110, setting up overtime.

BULLS ,112 CLIPPERS 99

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Zach LaVine scored 35 points and Chicago defeated Los Angeles to snap a five-game skid.

Talen Horton-Tucker added 18 points off the bench. Josh Giddey had 18 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Bulls improved to 2-6 in back-to-backs this season.

The Clippers’ four-game winning streak ended without starters Kawhi Leonard and Ivica Zubac. Norman Powell scored 27 points and James Harden added 17 points and 10 assists.

The Clippers closed to 101-92 on a three-point play by Derrick Jones Jr. before the Bulls ended the game on an 11-7 surge.

The Associated Press