Jayson Tatum racked up a season-high 51 points, including a pair of 3-pointers in the last 64 seconds, and the Boston Celtics defeated the host Charlotte Hornets 130-118 on Monday.
Tatum shot 15-for-23 from the field, making seven 3-pointers, and connected on all 14 of his free-throw attempts. He holds the franchise record for regular-season games with 50 or more points at five.
Jalen McDaniels pumped in a career-high 26 points and LaMelo Ball poured in 25 for the Hornets. Mason Plumlee scored 19 points, P.J. Washington added 17 points and Terry Rozier finished with 14.
Boston, which won its seventh game in a row, led by 17 points in the first half, but the margin was down to 100-98 with about nine minutes left. A 7-0 run increased the Celtics’ lead to 110-101. The gap swelled to 121-110 on a pair of Tatum free throws and Derrick White’s basket off a drive as Boston pulled away.
Raptors 123, Knicks 121 (OT)
O.G. Anunoby scored six of his 10 points in overtime as Toronto won at New York. RJ Barrett put up 32 points for the Knicks, including a buzzer-beating dunk to force overtime.
Anunoby’s second 3-pointer of the overtime gave Toronto a five-point lead with 2:48 to play. New York cut into the deficit, but Jalen Brunson (26 points) missed a 3-point attempt in the final second of overtime.
Fred VanVleet scored 33 points for the Raptors, who won for the fourth time in five games. Toronto’s Scottie Barnes added 26 points, and Pascal Siakam had 20 points, eight rebounds and nine assists before fouling out in OT. Randle had 21 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Knicks, who had their three-game winning streak end.
Grizzlies 136, Suns 106
Ja Morant scored 29 points and Desmond Bane added 28 as Memphis routed visiting Phoenix to extend the NBA’s longest current winning streak to 10 games.
Jaren Jackson Jr. had 18 points, eight rebounds and six blocks for the Grizzlies, who outscored the Suns 68-41 in the second half. The win moved Memphis into a tie with the Denver Nuggets atop the Western Conference standings.
Mikal Bridges tallied 21 points and seven assists to lead Phoenix, while Deandre Ayton added 18 points. The Suns have lost three straight and 12 of their past 14.
Warriors 127, Wizards 118
Draymond Green provided an offensive spark down the stretch, and Golden State rallied for a victory at Washington.
Stephen Curry finished with a game-high 41 points and Jordan Poole added 32 for the Warriors, who won on the second day of a back-to-back while resting Klay Thompson.
Kristaps Porzingis poured in a team-high 32 points for the Wizards, who were hoping to see the return of injured guard Bradley Beal from a hamstring injury, but he was deemed unready to play after a pregame examination.
Bucks 132, Pacers 119
Jrue Holiday scored 35 points and dished out 11 assists, Bobby Portis went for 21 points and 11 rebounds and Milwaukee rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit to beat visiting Indiana.
The Bucks outscored Indiana 39-21 in the final period thanks to a 14-of-18 shooting effort over the final 12 minutes. Holiday scored 11 points of his game-high total in the fourth quarter, while Grayson Allen knocked down a pair of 3-pointers early in the period en route to eight of his 17 points during the stanza.
The Pacers’ Myles Turner returned to the lineup after a three-game hiatus caused by back issues and scored a team-high 30 points. T.J. McConnell came off the bench to score a career-high 29 points.
Jazz 126, Timberwolves 125
Jordan Clarkson hit a game-winning free throw with four seconds remaining and scored 21 points to lead Utah to a victory over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Rookies Walker Kessler and Ochai Agbaji each played pivotal roles in helping the Jazz win their third game in four outings, and seven Utah players scored in double figures to make up for the absence of leading scorer Lauri Markkanen. Kessler finished with 20 points and a career-high 21 rebounds, while Agbaji added 17 points off the bench, including nine in the fourth quarter.
Anthony Edwards led all scorers with 29 points, but the Timberwolves couldn’t hold a 10-point, fourth-quarter lead and lost for the second time at home to Utah this season.
Hawks 121, Heat 113
Dejounte Murray and Trae Young each scored 20-plus points for the second straight game and Atlanta held on to beat visiting Miami.
It was the third straight win for the Hawks, who never trailed and broke the Heat’s three-game winning streak. Atlanta improved to 21-11 overall on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, including a 19-9 clip at home.
Murray scored 28 points on 11-for-17 shooting and had seven assists. Young scored 24 points, going 9-for-11 from the free-throw line, with eight assists and four steals. Miami was led by Jimmy Butler with 34 points, while Bam Adebayo had 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Pelicans 113, Cavaliers 103
Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen had double-doubles and host Cleveland used a dominant fourth quarter to defeat New Orleans.
Garland had 30 points and 11 assists, Allen had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Evan Mobley added 19 points for the Cavaliers, who have alternated wins and losses over their past seven games.
CJ McCollum scored 25 points and Jonas Valanciunas added 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Pelicans. New Orleans finished 2-3 on its longest road trip of the season after getting outscored 35-22 in the fourth quarter.
–Field Level Media