Kevin Durant scored 25 points in three periods as the Houston Rockets snapped the visiting Atlanta Hawks’ 11-game winning streak with a 117-95 victory on Friday.
Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 points and nine rebounds for the Rockets, who blitzed Atlanta from the deep in the third quarter. Houston hit 6 of 11 3-pointers to turn an eight-point halftime lead into a 101-76 cushion after Durant and Reed Sheppard nailed consecutive 3s late in the period.
Durant shot 9 of 15 from the floor and added six assists. Sheppard, starting in place of the scuffling Tari Eason, added 14 points and four 3-pointers. Eason managed a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker paced the Hawks with 21 points while CJ McCollum tallied 17. Zaccharie Risacher scored 16 points off the bench before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Houston led by as many as 34 points before both teams went to their reserves.
Pistons 115, Warriors 101
Jalen Duren scored 23 points and grabbed six rebounds as host Detroit rolled past Golden State, again winning without All-Star guard Cade Cunningham, who was diagnosed with a collapsed lung.
Daniss Jenkins supplied 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds while starting in place of Cunningham as six Pistons in all scored in double figures. Ausar Thompson spearheaded the Detroit defense with seven steals.
Brandin Podziemski’s 15 points led the Warriors, who took their seventh loss in eight games. Gary Payton II and De’Anthony Melton had 14 points apiece, while Gui Santos put up 13. Stephen Curry (knee) remained out.
Knicks 93, Nets 92
Jalen Brunson hit two critical baskets down the stretch to help New York withstand late shaky play and hang on for a victory over host Brooklyn.
Brunson scored 17 while Towns led the Knicks with 26 points and 15 rebounds. OG Anunoby added 16 points as the Knicks survived committing a season-worst 22 turnovers and shooting 40.8%, including 8-for-29 (27.6%) from 3-point range.
Josh Minott scored 22 points off the bench and Ziaire Williams added 17 for the Nets, who dropped their sixth straight and lost for the 16th time in 18 games.
Celtics 117, Grizzlies 112
Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Luke Garza added a season-high 22 — including 11 in the fourth quarter — and Payton Pritchard had 19 to lead Boston past host Memphis for its fourth consecutive win.
Derrick White contributed 14 points for the Celtics, and Jayson Tatum scored 13 (on 3-of-15 shooting) with nine rebounds. Neemias Queta had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Grizzlies got a career-high 23 points off the bench from rookie Tyler Burton but lost for the ninth time in the past 10 games.
Trail Blazers 108, Timberwolves 104
Jerami Grant scored 26 points on 10-for-16 shooting and Portland escaped with a win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Deni Avdija added 25 points and eight rebounds for Portland, which won its third game in a row. Donovan Clingan registered a double-double with 21 points and 12 rebounds.
Julius Randle scored 19 points to lead Minnesota, which fell short in its bid to complete a four-game regular-season sweep of the Trail Blazers. Rudy Gobert (18 points, 15 rebounds) and Ayo Dosunmu (17 points, 10 rebounds) each notched double-doubles while All-Star Anthony Edwards missed his third straight game with a knee injury.
Nuggets 121, Raptors 115
Jamal Murray scored 12 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, Nikola Jokic finished with 22 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, and host Denver rallied to beat Toronto.
Tim Hardaway Jr. went 7-for-10 from 3-point range and finished with 23 points while Aaron Gordon scored 16 points for the Nuggets, who moved into fifth in the Western Conference with their sixth straight win over Toronto. Denver has won four of its past six games overall.
Jakob Poeltl amassed 23 points and 11 rebounds, Brandon Ingram scored 19 points, RJ Barrett contributed 18 points, Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley finished with 15 points each for Toronto, which had a three-game winning streak end and remained in fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
