Kelly Oubre Jr. connected on 10 shots from 3-point range on his way to 39 points and LaMelo Ball had a triple-double as the record-setting Charlotte Hornets overwhelmed the Indiana Pacers in a 158-126 rout Wednesday night at Indianapolis.
The Hornets set a franchise single-game record for points while establishing an NBA season high. The Hornets’ all-time record had come this season in a 146-143 overtime loss to the Houston Rockets on Nov. 27. The Memphis Grizzlies previously held the 2021-22 mark thanks to a 152-79 rout of the Oklahoma City Thunder on Dec. 2.
Oubre tied the franchise record for made 3-pointers, and Ball poured in 29 points to go with 13 assists and 10 rebounds as Charlotte produced a season-high point total.
Miles Bridges posted 22 points to help the Hornets snap a two-game losing streak.
Goga Bitadze and reserve Isaiah Jackson scored 17 points apiece for the Pacers, who lost for the seventh time in nine games.
Cavaliers 115, Bucks 99
Kevin Love and Cedi Osman scored 25 and 23 points off the bench, respectively, to lead Cleveland past visiting Milwaukee.
Love, who also grabbed nine rebounds, sank five 3-pointers, and Osman added six more from beyond the arc. Osman entered the game having made just 1 of 20 attempts from 3-point range over his previous five games. Darius Garland celebrated his 22nd birthday by collecting 19 points and eight assists for Cleveland.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo had 26 points and nine rebounds in his return from a one-game absence caused by right knee soreness. Bobby Portis scored 22 points and Khris Middleton chipped in 21 for the Bucks.
Suns 105, Jazz 97
Devin Booker scored 43 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as Phoenix increased its winning streak to eight with a victory over Utah in Salt Lake City.
Booker scored 21 points in the first quarter, helping the Suns take an early 21-point lead, and then took turns with teammate Chris Paul hitting clutch jumpers down the stretch to thwart Utah’s comeback attempt. Paul finished with 21 points.
Utah absorbed its second loss to Phoenix in three nights and fell for the ninth time in 11 games overall. Jordan Clarkson picked up some of the scoring slack for the Jazz, putting up 26 points and sinking six 3-pointers. Mike Conley contributed 16 points and 10 assists, while fill-in starting center Hassan Whiteside chipped in 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Clippers 111, Magic 102
Amir Coffey had 19 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Los Angeles followed up the largest comeback in franchise history with a win at Orlando.
The Clippers, who trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half, outscored Orlando 35-24 in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles converted 23 of 25 free throws in the final period after having only two total attempts through three quarters. A night earlier, the Clippers erased a 35-point deficit to beat the Washington Wizards
Franz Wagner totaled 21 points and nine assists for Orlando, but the Magic missed an opportunity to post their first two-game winning streak in more than a month.
Mavericks 132, Trail Blazers 112
Kristaps Porzingis scored 22 points to lead seven players in double figures as visiting Dallas led wire to wire in a win over depleted Portland.
Jalen Brunson contributed 20 points, 11 assists and six rebounds for Dallas, which led by as many as 23 and won for the 12th time in 15 games. Luka Doncic recorded 15 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds.
Anfernee Simons paced Portland with 23 points. CJ McCollum scored 20 points and Norman Powell added 19 points and nine rebounds while Jusuf Nurkic tallied 18 points and eight rebounds.
Nuggets 124, Nets 118
Nikola Jokic totaled 26 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as Denver held slumping Brooklyn to five points over the final 5:18 of a victory in New York.
Denver won its third straight and improved to 11-5 in its past 16 games thanks to a balanced offense that placed six in double figures. Reserve Austin Rivers tied a career high with seven 3-pointers and added 25 points — 22 in the second half as Denver erased an 11-point halftime deficit. Will Barton added 21 points and 10 rebounds while DeMarcus Cousins chipped in 13 points before being ejected for disputing a traveling call early in the fourth quarter.
The Nets dropped their third straight game overall and lost for the eighth time in 10 home games. James Harden was sidelined due to left hamstring tightness and the team was down to nine available players. Rookie Cam Thomas scored 25 points and Patty Mills added 21 for Brooklyn, which missed five of its final six shots.
Bulls 111, Raptors 105
DeMar DeRozan produced 29 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and Zach LaVine scored 23 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished eight assists to lead host Chicago past Toronto.
Chicago leveraged a 68-46 scoring advantage in the paint to lead most of the way. Nikola Vucevic contributed 17 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists, and he put the game away with a late 3-pointer.
Gary Trent Jr. scored 32 points for a second consecutive game to lead Toronto. He shot 6 of 10 from the 3-point arc, but he was ejected with 2:02 to play getting hit with his second technical foul.
Heat 110, Knicks 96
Duncan Robinson scored a game-high 25 points, leading host Miami past New York. The Heat never trailed in the game, and they have beaten the Knicks 10 times in their past 12 meetings.
Miami’s Jimmy Butler added 22 points and Tyler Herro — who had missed the past three games due to COVID protocol — scored 21. P.J. Tucker had one of his best games of the season with 20 points.
Obi Toppin 18 points off the bench for the Knicks, who have lost five of their past six games.
Grizzlies 118, Spurs 110
Ja Morant scored 41 points to tie his season high and nailed four big free throws in the final 1:08 as visiting Memphis outlasted San Antonio.
Jaren Jackson Jr. added 22 points for the Grizzlies, with Desmond Bane hitting for 20. Memphis has won two of its past three games and has taken the past six games against San Antonio.
The Spurs’ Dejounte Murray amassed 16 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, racking up his 10th triple-double of the season, second in the NBA to Denver’s Nikola Jokic (11).
Hawks 121, Kings 104
Onyeka Okongwu and Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 18 points apiece, Trae Young added 17 and Atlanta thumped visiting Sacramento.
Returning from a five-day absence caused by a sore right knee, Bogdanovic shot 6-for-11 overall and 3-for-8 on 3-point attempts, helping the Hawks win their fifth straight game.
Harrison Barnes had a game-high 28 points for the Kings, who took their fifth loss in a row. Rookie Davion Mitchell, starting in place of injured De’Aaron Fox, chipped in with 20 points.
–Field Level Media