LeBron James had a triple-double as the visiting Los Angeles Lakers overcame the absence of All-Star forward Anthony Davis and defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 122-114 on Sunday night.
Davis, who averaged 36 points as the Lakers won the first three meetings with his former team, sat out because of knee soreness one night after a 105-88 loss at Memphis in which L.A. had a season-low point total.
James, who had 40 points in a 118-109 home victory against the Pelicans on Tuesday, finished with 34 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds. Kyle Kuzma added 20 points, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 13, and Danny Green, Avery Bradley and Markieff Morris had 10 each.
Rookie Zion Williamson led the Pelicans with a career-high 35 points, marking his 11th consecutive game with 20-plus points. Lonzo Ball scored 19, Brandon Ingram had 15 on 5-of-23 shooting, Derrick Favors had 12 points and 14 rebounds, Jrue Holiday scored 11 and Nicolo Melli added 10.
Los Angeles Clippers 136 – Philadelphia 76ers 130
Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points, and Los Angeles rallied for a victory over visiting Philadelphia.
Paul George, Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams each scored 24 points for the Clippers, who won their fourth in a row. Williams also had eight assists, while Harrell pulled down nine rebounds. Reggie Jackson added 13 points.
Shake Milton scored a career-high 39 points by making 7 of 9 3-pointers and 14 of 20 shots from the floor for the Sixers, who dropped their eighth straight on the road. Former Clipper Tobias Harris contributed 25 points, while Alec Burks added 15 points. The Sixers lost starting guard Josh Richardson early in the second quarter to a concussion after initially terming the injury a nose contusion.
Milwaukee Bucks 93 – Charlotte Hornets 85
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 41 points to go with 20 rebounds as Milwaukee defeated host Charlotte.
Antetokounmpo sank 17 of 28 shots and added a team-high six assists and 18 rebounds. Brook Lopez added 16 points, and George Hill had 11 for the Bucks, who won their sixth straight.
Devonte’ Graham’s 17 points paced the Hornets, who had a two-game winning streak snapped. Terry Rozier had 13 points, P.J. Washington scored 12, Cody Martin had 11 and Willy Hernangomez added 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Denver Nuggets 133 – Toronto Raptors 118
Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 18 rebounds and 11 assists, Jamal Murray used a hot start to finish with 22 points, and host Denver beat Toronto.
Torrey Craig had a season-high 17 points off the bench, Jerami Grant scored 16 and Gary Harris finished with 15 for the Nuggets, who had eight players score in double figures.
OG Anunoby had a career-high 32 points, Norman Powell scored 24, Kyle Lowry added 17 and Pascal Siakam finished with 16 for Toronto. The Raptors have lost three straight for the first time in nearly three months.
Dallas Mavericks 111 – Minnesota Timberwolves 91
Kristaps Porzingis scored 38 points, Seth Curry added 27 points, and Dallas beat Minnesota at Minneapolis.
The Mavericks played without All-Star Luka Doncic, who wore a splint on his thumb in a loss Friday at Miami. Doncic injured the thumb on Feb. 26 against San Antonio. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 19 points, and Dorian Finney-Smith grabbed 11 rebounds for the Mavericks.
D’Angelo Russell led the Timberwolves with 16 points and flirted with a triple-double, registering nine rebounds and seven assists. Russell led four Timberwolves in double figures scoring, with Malik Beasley adding 14 points, Juan Hernangomez hitting for 12 points, and Jarrett Culver adding another 12 off the bench.
Sacramento Kings 106 – Detroit Pistons 100
De’Aaron Fox had 23 points and seven assists as Sacramento won for the fifth time in six games by downing visiting Detroit.
Buddy Hield supplied 19 points and six rebounds, and Bogdan Bogdanovic had 15 points for the Kings. Harry Giles contributed 12 points and seven rebounds, Harrison Barnes had 10 points and Alex Len powered for eight points, 13 rebounds and five blocks.
Christian Wood led the Pistons, who have lost eight of their past nine games, with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Brandon Knight had 16 points and seven assists. Detroit point guard Derrick Rose left the game in the second quarter with an ankle injury. He finished with nine points.
Washington Wizards 124 – Golden State Warriors 110
Bradley Beal broke the franchise record for consecutive 25-point games with his 18th straight, a game-high 34-point performance that lifted Washington over host Golden State in San Francisco.
Beal shot 10 for 24 from the field and 7 for 9 on 3-pointers for the Wizards, who are 1-1 on a four-game Western swing. He broke Walt Bellamy’s record of 17 games, set in 1962, and also had a team-high eight assists and five steals in 35 minutes.
Andrew Wiggins had a team-high 27 points for the Warriors, who were seeking their first winning streak since the last time they saw — and beat — the Wizards on Feb. 3 in Washington.
–Field Level Media
