Online Reporter
AUSTIN Reaves had 31 points, eight assists and seven rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers earn a 134-127 victory over the host Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.
Luka Doncic recorded 29 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for the Lakers (45-29), who won their second game in three outings and wrapped up a four-game road trip. LeBron James added 25 points, eight dimes and six boards, while Gabe Vincent contributed 15 points off the bench, starter Rui Hachimura scored 13 and reserve Dorian Finney-Smith chipped in 11.
Memphis (44-30), playing in its first game since firing head coach Taylor Jenkins on Friday, was led by Desmond Bane’s 29 points. Assistant coach Tuomas Iisalo is serving as interim head coach.
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 24 and Ja Morant recorded 22 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds. Reserve Scotty Pippen Jr. added 16 points, starter Zach Edey tallied a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double, and starter Jaylen Wells had 11 points as the Grizzlies lost their fifth game in six tries.
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Klay Thompson had 20 points and hit two critical free throws with 6.7 seconds left as the visiting Dallas Mavericks took down the host Chicago Bulls 120-119 on Saturday night.
Dallas (37-38) has won four of its last five games and is ninth in the Western Conference, which would qualify for the play-in tournament. The Mavericks are also 4-0 when Anthony Davis plays.
Davis was 7 of 23 from the floor Saturday and finished with 18 points in 30 minutes.
Chicago fans were hoping for another miracle finish after the Bulls’ dramatic win over the Lakers on Thursday.
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Jayson Tatum hit for 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the visiting Boston Celtics easily handled the San Antonio Spurs 121-111 on Saturday while producing their season-best eighth straight victory.
The Celtics (55-19) dominated San Antonio throughout, leading by 12 points at halftime, by 17 late in the third quarter and 94-81 and heading into the final period.
Boston did more than enough to get to the finish line, never letting the Spurs closer than seven points while building on its league-best road record (31-7) and drawing to within four games of idle Cleveland for the best record in the Eastern Conference with eight contests left in the regular season.
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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points to lift the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 132-111 home win over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.
The Thunder have won nine consecutive games, keeping alive the chance of becoming the third team in NBA history to win 70 games.
Oklahoma City (62-12) would need to win out to join the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors and 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.
The Thunder are two wins away from tying the franchise mark for most wins in a season, set in 1995-96 when the team was in Seattle.
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Tyler Herro scored 30 points and Alec Burks chipped in 20 as the Miami Heat smashed the host Philadelphia 76ers 118-95 on Saturday in the opener of a three-game road trip.
Long-range shooting fueled the fourth straight win for Miami (33-41), which knocked down 20 of 43 shots (46.5 percent) from beyond the arc. Burks made six 3-pointers, while Herro drained five and Haywood Highsmith knocked down three 3-pointers off the bench en route to 13 points.— Reuters.
