Kristaps Porzingis scored 16 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter to lead seven players in double figures as the Washington Wizards rallied to snap a six-game losing streak, beating the visiting Los Angeles Lakers 127-119 Saturday.
The win overshadowed a monumental night for Los Angeles star LeBron James, who had 38 points and passed Karl Malone for second on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
Washington trailed by as many as 16 before taking its first lead of the game at 107-106 on Porzingis’ three-point play with 7:26 left in the fourth quarter.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope posted 18 points and 10 rebounds against his former team while Daniel Gafford added 17 points apiece for Washington, which outscored the Lakers 34-20 in the fourth quarter. Tomas Satoransky had a season-high 16 points, Corey Kispert added 13 and Rui Hachimura had 10.
James scored on a cutting layup with 5:20 left in the second quarter to move past Malone with 36,930 points. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sits atop the league’s all-time scoring list at 38,387 points.
Timberwolves 138, Bucks 119
Karl-Anthony Towns recorded his seventh double-double in the last eight games as Minnesota earned a win over visiting Milwaukee to extend its win streak to four games.
Towns poured in 25 points and 11 rebounds on 6-of-12 shooting to help the Timberwolves sweep the two-game season series with Milwaukee. Anthony Edwards also had 25 points, and D’Angelo Russell chipped in 16.
With Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined due to knee soreness, Khris Middleton paced Milwaukee with 15 points and seven rebounds on 6-of-13 shooting. Brook Lopez and Pat Connaughton also supplied 15 points, Jrue Holiday tallied 14 and Grayson Allen contributed 13.
Cavaliers 113, Pistons 109
All-Star guard Darius Garland had a team-high 24 points and a game-high 12 assists, and teammate Cedi Osman came off the bench for 16 points to power Cleveland to a victory over visiting Detroit.
The Cavs also got 15 points from Lamar Stevens, and 14 points and 10 rebounds from Kevin Love.
Forward Jerami Grant had a game-high 40 points for the Pistons, while Saddiq Bey added 20 points — 31 fewer than he scored in Detroit’s last game against Orlando.
Hornets 129, Mavericks 108
Miles Bridges scored 23 points and P.J. Washington had 22 as Charlotte put on a dazzling display of long-range shooting in a win over visiting Dallas.
Terry Rozier notched 18 points for the Hornets, who launched 42 shots beyond the arc. Kelly Oubre Jr. (17 points), Montrezl Harrell (13) and Isaiah Thomas (11) led the production from Charlotte’s reserves.
The Mavericks’ Luka Doncic poured in 37 points on 13-for-20 shooting, including 8-for-12 on 3-pointers, before sitting out the fourth quarter. Frank Ntilikina was next with 12 points, Jalen Brunson and Marquese Chriss each had 10 points and Maxi Kleber scored nine.
—Field Level Media
