DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points, and Patty Mills had 21 off the bench as the San Antonio Spurs routed the visiting Milwaukee Bucks 126-104 on Monday night to snap a two-game losing streak.
The Spurs led by 10 points after three quarters and ran their advantage to 16 points early in the final period. Milwaukee closed to within 100-89 with 8:12 to play but never made a serious run down the stretch.
LaMarcus Aldridge and Rudy Gay scored 17 points each for the Spurs, with Dejounte Murray scoring 13 points and Trey Lyles pulling down 12 rebounds. San Antonio set its season high with 19 3-pointers (on 35 attempts) in the win.
The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for Milwaukee, which had not lost by more than 12 points all season. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 24 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists but missed all five of his 3-point attempts.
Dallas Mavericks 118 – Chicago Bulls 110
Luka Doncic registered a triple-double for the second straight game, contributing 38 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists to boost Dallas to a victory against visiting Chicago.
Doncic scored a career-high 21 points in the third quarter, capping the flurry with a deep 3-pointer. Dwight Powell (16 points), Tim Hardaway Jr. (15) and Dorian Finney-Smith (11) also finished in double figures for the Mavericks.
Lauri Markkanen scored 26 points to lead six Bulls in double figures. Tomas Satoransky (11 points, 14 assists) notched a double-double for Chicago, which has lost four straight and five of six to fall a season-worst 11 games below .500.
Denver Nuggets 123 – Atlanta Hawks 115
Nikola Jokic scored a career-high 47 points, and Will Barton added a season-high 28 to help visiting Denver outlast Atlanta.
Jokic was 16-for-25 from the field, with four of the made baskets 3-pointers, and surpassed his career previous high of 41 set against the Brooklyn Nets in 2017. His best previous output this season was 31 points against Memphis on Dec. 28. Jokic also had eight rebounds and five assists.
Barton went 12-for-20 from the field, including three 3-pointers, to eclipse his season-best 26 against Philadelphia on Dec. 10. He also added nine rebounds and five assists. Jokic and Barton combined to go 7 of 14 from 3-point range.
Philadelphia 76ers 120 – Oklahoma City Thunder 113
Josh Richardson scored 23 points, and Ben Simmons added 17 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists as host Philadelphia held off Oklahoma City.
Tobias Harris scored 18 points, and Joel Embiid had 18 points, nine rebounds and a season-high eight assists for the Sixers, who improved to 17-2 at home and also snapped a four-game losing streak. Al Horford scored 13 points.
Steven Adams led the Thunder with a season-best 24 points to go along with 15 rebounds, while Dennis Schroder added 21 points. Chris Paul and Danilo Gallinari had 18 points each for the Thunder, who had their five-game winning streak broken.
Utah Jazz 128 – New Orleans Pelicans 126
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 35 points, and visiting Utah knocked off New Orleans to win its sixth straight game.
The Jazz held the Pelicans scoreless for the final 1:27. Rudy Gobert, who finished with 19 rebounds, disrupted Brandon Ingram’s attempted tying layup with one second left. Joe Ingles finished with 22 points, and Donovan Mitchell scored 19 for the Jazz, including the winning bucket with 1:12 to play.
Ingram had 35 to lead the Pelicans, who played without second-leading scorer Jrue Holiday, who has a left elbow contusion. JJ Redick added 23, Lonzo Ball had 21 and E’Twaun Moore came off the bench to score 13.
Indiana Pacers 115 – Charlotte Hornets 104
T.J. Warren helped ignite a big third quarter and finished with 36 points as Indiana won at Charlotte for only its second victory in the last six games.
Warren, a forward playing in his home state, posted 13 points in Indiana’s 37-point third quarter, the most points in a quarter this season for the Pacers. Warren finished 15-for-24 from the field and 6-for-6 on free throws.
Domantas Sabonis racked up 18 points and 12 rebounds, Myles Turner had 15 points and Jeremy Lamb added 11 points for the Pacers.
Washington Wizards 99 – Boston Celtics 94
Ish Smith scored 14 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, and Washington beat visiting Boston.
Jordan McRae added 19 points for the Wizards, and Isaiah Thomas scored 17 against his former team. The undermanned Wizards won their second straight game and have posted home wins against the Miami Heat, Denver Nuggets and Celtics in an eight-day span.
Jaylen Brown had 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Celtics, who never led. Jayson Tatum had 17 points, and Gordon Hayward finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Orlando Magic 101 – Brooklyn Nets 89
Markelle Fultz scored 12 of his career-high 25 points in the fourth quarter, and Orlando made all the plays down the stretch to beat visiting Brooklyn.
Reserve D.J. Augustin added 16 points for the Magic, who outscored the Nets by a 26-18 margin in the fourth quarter. Wes Iwundu contributed 12, while Nikola Vucevic went scoreless until midway through the third quarter but finished with 11 points and 24 rebounds.
Spencer Dinwiddie and Joe Harris scored 16 points apiece to lead the Nets, who continued to struggle in fourth quarters. After getting outscored 38-22 in the final 12 minutes of Saturday’s loss to Toronto, the Nets shot 7 of 23 in the fourth.
Sacramento Kings 111 – Golden State Warriors 98
Trevor Ariza contributed 3-pointers to second- and third-quarter runs that allowed host Sacramento to pull away from Golden State for a blowout, in a game that saw the ejection of Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
Buddy Hield and De’Aaron Fox led five players, including two reserves, in double figures with 21 points apiece as the Kings made quick work of their opponent on the opening night of a back-to-back. Sacramento visits Phoenix on Tuesday.
The Warriors, who rested Draymond Green and had D’Angelo Russell out for the fourth straight game, trailed by as many as 31 before dropping their fifth straight.
—Field Level Media
