Post Up: MLK Day

Hawks 108 (24-17), Knicks 107 (18-24)

Another day, another rough loss for the Knicks. After Dennis Schroder nailed a trey with just over 22 seconds remaining, New York had a chance to win this one. Here was their final possession:

Schroder dropped a total of 28 points. Carmelo had 30 for the Knicks, who have fallen in 11 of their last 13. Atlanta has won their last five road games.

Wizards 120 (21-19), Trail Blazers 101 (18-25)

Washington shot lights out from downtown (13/23) to secure their 12th straight home victory. Bradley Beal posted 25 and John Wall had 24 and 7 dimes.

Lillard and McCollum both struggled from the field, shooting a combined 11 of 29 for the game.

76ers 113 (13-26), Bucks 104 (20-20)

Don’t look now, but the 76ers are rolling. They have won four of their last five and six of their last seven that Embiid has played in. The Process had another impressive performance, recording 22 points, 12 rebounds, and 5 blocks. He has scored 20+ in nine straight outings.

Giannis scored 21 points in the first half, and had another highlight slam, but battled foul trouble in the last two periods. He scored just 2 points in 11 minutes after the break.

Pacers 98 (21-19), Pelicans 95 (16-26)

Jeff Teague did a little bit of everything in this one (16p/10a/8r) as the Pacers got the narrow victory over the Pelicans at home. They have now won five of their last six. AD led the Pelicans in scoring with 16, but had to leave the game in the third quarter after injuring his hip and thumb. Fortunately, X-rays came back negative.

Nuggets 125 (16-23), Magic 112 (17-26)

Nikola Jokic recorded a career-high 30 points, Emmanuel Mudiay dished out a career-high 13 assists, and the Nuggets shot 58.4% from the field for the game.

This was Denver’s first contest since returning from London, where they dominated the Pacers. The Magic, who have lost four of their last five, were led by Elfrid Payton (20p/12a).

Celtics 108 (26-15), Hornets 98 (20-21)

Isaiah Thomas has been unstoppable in the fourth quarter this season. Tonight, the rising star dropped 17 of his 35 in the final period, helping the Celtics to close out the Hornets. It was the 25th time in a row that Thomas has scored 20+.  The opposing point guard, Kemba Walker, had 24 for Charlotte. Boston has won nine of their last eleven.

Warriors 126 (35-6), Cavaliers 91 (29-11)

It was a highly anticipated rematch between the Cavs and the Warriors, after the two teams had an epic game on Christmas. This one wasn’t as close, however.

Golden State dominated from the start, shooting 50.5% from the field and 44.1% from three, compared to Cleveland’s 35.2% and 26.5% respectively. It was a collective effort, with Draymond notching a triple-double (11p/11a/13r) and Steph, Klay, and Durant all scoring 20+.

Things got a bit chippy in the 2nd quarter after Draymond Green fouled LeBron in the open floor. He then mocked LeBron’s reaction to the contact. Peep the entire altercation here. Overall, round 2 belonged to the Bay.

Jazz 106 (27-16), Suns 101 (13-28)

Utah veteran Joe Johnson came through in the clutch, posting 10 of his 15 points in the final twelve minutes and drilling the go-ahead three-pointer with just under 50 seconds remaining.

Big man Rudy Gobert contributed 18 points and 17 boards, and had a key block down the stretch. For Phoenix, guard Eric Bledsoe flirted with a triple-double (31p/9r/9a).

Clippers 120 (29-14), Thunder 98 (25-18)

Chris Paul left this one early with a sprained thumb, but not before he put Sabonis in the blender.

Even without their star point guard for most of the game, Los Angeles cruised to a victory. DeAndre Jordan had 15 points and 19 boards. Mo Buckets added 23 and 10 off the bench. Russ struggled to get going for OKC, scoring just 24 points on 7/19 from the field.  The Clips have won seven straight.