Karl-Anthony Towns scored a franchise-record 60 points and grabbed 17 rebounds and the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves pulled away in the second half for a 149-139 win over the stumbling San Antonio Spurs on Monday.
The career-high total for Towns is also an NBA high this season. His previous career best (also the franchise mark) was 56, set in March 2018. He reached that point on Monday by the end of the third quarter, a period in which he had 32 of Minnesota’s 46 points and scored his team’s final nine points.
Patrick Beverley added 20 points and eight assists for the Timberwolves, who have won two straight and eight of their past nine games. D’Angelo Russell added 19 points.
Keldon Johnson scored a career-best 34 points for San Antonio. Dejounte Murray contributed 30 points and 12 assists, Lonnie Walker IV put up 22 and Jakob Poeltl added 21 points.
Nuggets 114, 76ers 110
Nikola Jokic had 22 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists and Bones Hyland scored 21 points as Denver rallied from a 19-point, second-quarter deficit to defeat host Philadelphia.
Will Barton added 20 points, Monte Morris contributed 11 and JaMychal Green had 10 for the Nuggets, who snapped a two-game losing streak.
Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 34 points and nine rebounds. James Harden added 24 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds as Philadelphia fell for the third time in five games.
Warriors 126, Wizards 112
Draymond Green reunited with birthday boy Stephen Curry for a powerful offensive performance as Golden State beat Washington in San Francisco.
Returning from a disc injury in his back that kept him out since January, Green contributed six points, seven rebounds and six assists to Golden State’s fourth straight win. Curry, who turned 34 on Monday, shot 16-for-25 overall and 7-for-14 from 3-point range in scoring 47 points. He also had six rebounds and six assists.
Kristaps Porzingis amassed 25 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who completed a winless four-game Western swing.
Hawks 122, Trail Blazers 113
Trae Young scored 46 points as host Atlanta came back from a 15-point, third-quarter deficit to beat Portland.
Young sank five 3-pointers, shot 11-for-11 at the line and had 12 assists as the Hawks won their third straight to climb back to the .500 mark (34-34) for the first time since mid-December. De’Andre Hunter scored 20 points for Atlanta.
Josh Hart led Portland with 31 points. Trendon Watford added 22 points and nine rebounds, Brandon Williams scored 20 points and Drew Eubanks had 16 points and 10 boards for the Trail Blazers, who have lost seven of their past eight games.
Bucks 117, Jazz 111
Giannis Antetokounmpo totaled 30 points and 15 rebounds, Jrue Holiday scored 29 points, Khris Middleton added 23 and Milwaukee defeated Utah for its first win in Salt Lake City since 2001.
The Bucks, winners of seven of their past eight overall, had lost 19 straight games in Utah and had not beaten the Jazz anywhere since Nov. 25, 2019.
Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley each scored 29 points and combined for 15 assists as the Jazz lost for the fourth time in seven games. Rudy Gobert added 18 points and 14 rebounds in the defeat.
Raptors 114, Lakers 103
Pascal Siakam had 27 points and 11 rebounds for Toronto, which led all the way at Los Angeles. Siakam has scored at least 20 points in a career-best seven consecutive games.
Gary Trent Jr. scored 28 points and Scottie Barnes had 21 for the Raptors, who have won four straight and are 4-1 with one game to go on their six-game road trip.
LeBron James had 30 points and nine rebounds for the Lakers, who have lost two in a row and four of their past five. Talen Horton-Tucker added 20 points.
Hornets 134, Thunder 116
Terry Rozier scored 30 points on 11-of-17 shooting to lift Charlotte to a win at Oklahoma City. The Hornets turned the ball over a season-low five times and scored 27 points off of the Thunder’s 18 giveaways.
Miles Bridges (27 points) and LaMelo Ball (21 points) also made key contributions for the Hornets, who overcame an 18-point deficit to prevail for the fourth time in six games. The Thunder have lost six consecutive games overall and 10 straight home games.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points, scoring 30 or more for the eighth time in 10 games since the All-Star break. He also had a team-best eight rebounds. Darius Bazley added 25 points.
Cavaliers 120, Clippers 111 (OT)
Evan Mobley scored a career-high 30 points and Darius Garland overcame a slow start to finish with 24 points and a game-high 13 assists as host Cleveland defeated Los Angeles.
Mobley has solidified himself at the center spot since All-Star Jarrett Allen went down with a fractured finger earlier this month. Mobley added six rebounds and two blocks. Isaac Okoro added 20 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Ivica Zubac paced the Clippers with 24 points and a game-high 14 rebounds before he fouled out in overtime. Amir Coffey added 19 points, and Terance Mann had 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Kings 112, Bulls 103
De’Aaron Fox recorded 34 points, six rebounds and six assists as Sacramento halted a four-game losing streak with a victory over visiting Chicago.
Domantas Sabonis added 22 points and seven rebounds to help the Kings win for just the third time in their past 12 games. Davion Mitchell scored 16 points and Donte DiVincenzo had 15 points and seven rebounds for Sacramento.
Zach LaVine registered 27 points and six assists and Nikola Vucevic contributed 23 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulls, who fell for the sixth time in their past eight contests.
–Field Level Media