(The Sports Xchange) -Kevin Durant scored 42 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 106-98 victory over the Houston Rockets.
It was Durant’s 11th 40-point game of the season.
After the Rockets trailed by 18 at one point, guard James Harden led Houston on a run to cut the Thunder lead to five points with 8:30 left in the fourth quarter.
However, Durant hit back-to-back jumpers to push the advantage back to 10 points.
Harden paced the Rockets with 28 points on 9-for-21 shooting from the field, while Russell Westbrook added 24 for Oklahoma City.
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Spurs 104, Bulls 96
Tony Parker scored 16 of his 20 points in the first quarter as the San Antonio Spurs turned a fast start into victory over the Chicago Bulls.
Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 22 points and forward Kawhi Leonard added 16.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was able to give his starters a rest for much of the second half.
Guard D.J. Augustin led Chicago with 24 points while guard Jimmy Butler added 23 points.
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Trail Blazers 109, Grizzlies 99
Marc Gasol scored 19 points with nine rebounds and seven assists while power forward Zach Randolph scored 18 points with 12 rebounds as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Grizzlies (37-26) won their third straight and have won eight of 11 games since the All-Star break.
Portland lost their third successive game despite 32 points and seven assists from Damian Lillard, who scored 21 in the second half.
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Pacers 94, Celtics 83
David West scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Indiana Pacers to a win over the Boston Celtics and halt the Pacers’ season-worst losing streak.
Pacers forward Paul George and guard George Hill both added 12 points for the Pacers (47-17), who avoided their first five-game losing streak in more than two years.
Indiana center Andrew Bynum, acquired in a trade last month, made his Pacers debut and finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.
Jared Sullinger led Boston with 17 points.
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Timberwolves
112, Bucks 101
Kevin Martin led the Timberwolves with 26 points while Ricky Rubio delivered his 10th double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 assists as Minnesota beat the NBA’s worst team to keep their slim playoff chances alive.
Forward Kevin Love added 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Timberwolves (32-21), who still remain five games behind Memphis for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
