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Tag: assists

  • Kings’ Zach LaVine set for season-ending hand surgery

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    (Photo credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images)

    The Sacramento Kings, leading a tight race to finish with the worst record in the NBA, reportedly will be without their leading scorer for the rest of the season.

    Zach LaVine will have right hand surgery following this weekend’s All-Star break, veteran NBA writer Chris Haynes reported on Friday.

    LaVine missed the Kings’ past three games due to what was described as a tendon injury to his right pinkie.

    The 30-year-old veteran has appeared in 39 games (37 starts) for Sacramento this season, averaging 19.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists. All of those figures are his lowest in the past eight seasons.

    The Kings acquired LaVine from the Chicago Bulls as part of a three-team deal at the February 2025 trade deadline. Sacramento picked up three first-round picks and three second-rounders in that transaction, which saw De’Aaron Fox go from the Kings to the San Antonio Spurs.

    Over 12 NBA seasons, LaVine has averages of 20.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 693 games (602 starts) with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Chicago and Sacramento. He was an All-Star for the Bulls in 2020-21 and 2021-22.

    The Kings (12-44) are battling with the Washington Wizards (14-39), New Orleans Pelicans (15-41), Indiana Pacers (15-40), Brooklyn Nets (15-38) and Utah Jazz (18-37) at the bottom of the league standings. The Pacers and Jazz were fined by the NBA on Thursday for holding players out of games in an apparent attempt to tank.

    Teams reportedly are keen to be in the draft lottery this year with a highly rated class set to enter the NBA.

    Sacramento returns from the All-Star break on Thursday with a home game against the Orlando Magic.

    –Field Level Media

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  • No. 1 Arizona looks to rebound against flashy No. 16 Texas Tech

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    (Photo credit: Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

    Top-ranked Arizona will look to bounce back after suffering its first loss of the season when it hosts No. 16 Texas Tech in a Big 12 game on Saturday at Tucson, Ariz.

    Arizona (23-1, 10-1 Big 12) had a program and Big 12 record start of 23 consecutive wins snapped Monday with an 82-78 loss at No. 9 Kansas.

    Texas Tech (18-6, 8-3) enters the game with wins over West Virginia and Colorado after losing against UCF and then-No. 11 Kansas.

    A key matchup will be in the paint with Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas and reserve Tobe Awaka matching up against JT Toppin, who leads the Red Raiders with 21.5 points and 10.9 rebounds a game.

    Krivas had 14 points, 15 rebounds and six blocked shots against Kansas, but Jayhawks post player Flory Bidunga countered with 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and had 10 rebounds.

    Awaka got in early foul trouble and finished with only six points and a season-low three rebounds.

    Texas Tech’s Lejuan Watts, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward, is second on the team with 6.4 rpg.

    He will be matched against Arizona freshman Koa Peat, who averages 14.3 ppg but is coming off a six-point performance on 2-of-11 shooting from the field against Kansas.

    ‘In this league, you don’t have time to feel sorry for yourself,’ Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. ‘We played a tough game in a tough environment, but our focus has to be on the next one. Texas Tech is a disciplined, physical team that doesn’t beat themselves.

    ‘We have to be better on the glass and more connected defensively if we want to protect our home court.’

    Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland, an assistant coach of Lloyd’s with the gold medal-winning Team USA U19 World Cup team last summer, also used the word ‘connected’ when describing how his team must play against Arizona.

    Keeping the teams connected could come down to the play of Texas Tech point guard Christian Anderson (19.1 ppg, 7.7 assists per game) and Arizona counterpart Jaden Bradley (13.5 ppg, 4.5 apg).

    Bradley struggled at Kansas with a season-low six points on 2-of-8 shooting from the field and 2 of 4 from the free-throw line.

    ‘The effort is matching the intelligence that we need to understand scheme and not just physicality or how hard you play,’ McCasland said of the wins over West Virginia and Colorado. ‘JT Toppin and Christian Anderson are really the anchors to what we’re doing.

    ‘Arizona is as talented as it gets. You can’t just play hard; you have to play smart, communicate, and stay connected for all 40 minutes.’

    Anderson is coming off 11 assists against West Virginia and seven against Colorado.

    Arizona freshman guard Brayden Burries had 25 points against Kansas, his eighth game with at least 20 points.

    He leads the Wildcats in scoring at 15.7 ppg while shooting 50.8% from the field.

    Both teams have an eight-player rotation with all but one player averaging double figures in minutes played.

    Texas Tech has attempted 705 shots from 3-point range, while Arizona is at 395. The Red Raiders have made 276 (39.1%) while Arizona has converted 141 (35.7%).

    –Field Level Media

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  • Top 25 roundup: Joel Foxwell’s 27 points help Portland upset No. 6 Gonzaga

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    (Photo credit: James Snook-Imagn Images)

    Joel Foxwell tied his career high with 27 points as host Portland upset No. 6 Gonzaga 87-80 on Wednesday night, handing the Bulldogs their first West Coast Conference loss of the season.

    James O’Donnell added 16 points off the bench, Cameron Williams scored 14 points despite battling foul trouble, Jermaine Ballisager Webb added 13 points and nine rebounds, and Garrett Nuckolls scored 11 for the Pilots (11-14, 4-8 WCC), who snapped a string of 20 straight losses in the series. Portland last beat Gonzaga on Jan. 9, 2014.

    Graham Ike led Gonzaga (22-2, 10-1) with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Mario Saint-Supery added 12 points and Davis Fogle scored 10.

    Foxwell, a freshman guard from Australia, might have bested his career high if not for leg cramps that limited him over the final five minutes. Still, he shot 11 of 18 from the field — including 3 of 8 from 3-point range — dished out a game-high eight assists and grabbed four rebounds.

    No. 5 Illinois 84, Northwestern 44

    Andrej Stojakovic scored 17 points to lead five Fighting Illini players in double figures as Illinois blitzed the Wildcats in Champaign, Ill., to earn its 12th straight win.

    Torrid long-range shooting (17 of 38) and effective ball movement boosted Illinois (20-3, 11-1 Big Ten). Ben Humrichous, Zvonimir Ivisic and Keaton Wagler each scored 13 points.

    Northwestern struggled to 29.2% shooting while falling 14 points shy of its previous season low. Tre Singleton paced Wildcats (10-13, 2-10) with eight points. Big Ten scoring leader Nick Martinelli managed four points on 2-for-10 shooting.

    No. 8 Houston 79, UCF 55

    Kingston Flemings scored 18 points as the Cougars cruised to a home win over the Knights in a Big 12 Conference tilt.

    Chris Cenac Jr. tallied a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Milos Uzan added 12 points for Houston (20-2, 8-1 Big 12), which won its third straight game.

    Riley Kugel led UCF (17-5, 6-4) with nine points. Themus Fulks, John Bol, Jamichael Stillwell and Jordan Burks all added eight points for UCF, which had its three-game winning streak snapped.

    Minnesota 76, No. 10 Michigan State 73

    Jaylen Crocker-Johnson recorded 22 points and seven rebounds and the Golden Gophers halted a seven-game slide with an impressive upset victory over the Spartans in Big Ten play at Minneapolis.

    Cade Tyson scored 17 points and Langston Reynolds added 14 points and eight assists as the Golden Gophers (11-12, 4-8 Big Ten) never trailed during the surprising takedown of the Spartans. Bobby Durkin had 13 points and eight rebounds and Isaac Asuma added 10 points for Minnesota, which got its first victory since Jan. 6.

    Coen Carr scored 16 points, Jordan Scott added 15 and Trey Fort had 12 on four 3-pointers for Michigan State (19-4, 9-3), which lost its second consecutive game. Jeremy Fears Jr. had 10 points and 11 assists for the Spartans.

    Oklahoma State 99, No. 16 BYU 92

    Anthony Roy scored a season-high 30 points and Jaylen Curry added 18 as the Cowboys upset the Cougars in Stillwater, Okla.

    The Cowboys (16-6, 4-5 Big 12) shot 54.7% from the field and forced 16 turnovers that resulted in 21 points. Oklahoma State’s Parsa Fallah added 13 points and seven rebounds. Vyctorius Miller, who didn’t take a shot in the first half, scored 14 in the second half for the Cowboys on 5-of-7 shooting from the field.

    AJ Dybantsa led the Cougars (17-5, 5-4) with 36 points, but he couldn’t keep BYU from losing its third straight game. Richie Saunders contributed 20 points and eight rebounds, and Robert Wright III put up 15 points.

    No. 20 Clemson 66, Stanford 64

    Nick Davidson scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds as the Tigers extended their Atlantic Coast Conference road winning streak to 13 games with a victory over the Cardinal.

    Davidson made two free throws to put Clemson (19-4, 9-1 ACC) ahead 64-62 with 23 seconds left. The Tigers maintained the lead after the Cardinal’s Ebuka Okorie missed a 3-point try with 7.1 seconds remaining. Ace Buckner added two free throws with 3.7 seconds left to help Clemson win for the 12th time in the past 13 games. Buckner finished with 11 points and Chase Thompson added a career-high 10 for the Tigers, who won despite not making a field goal in the final four minutes.

    Aidan Cammann led Stanford (14-9, 3-7) with a career-high 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Okorie added 18 points, and Oskar Giltay had 11 rebounds.

    No. 24 Louisville 76, Notre Dame 65

    A late first-half run and solid bench play led the Cardinals to a home win over the Fighting Irish.

    Isaac McKneely led the Cardinals (16-6, 6-4 ACC) with 13 points, hitting four 3-pointers. Sananda Fru, Ryan Conwell and Khani Rooths each had 12 points, and Rooths grabbed 12 rebounds. J’Vonne Hadley exited early due to an apparent aggravation of a back injury.

    Notre Dame (11-12, 2-8) got 18 points from Cole Certa but lost for the eighth time in nine games.

    –Field Level Media

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  • NBA roundup: Nikola Jokic’s return sparks Nuggets past Clippers

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    (Photo credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images)

    Nikola Jokic returned from a 16-game absence to produce 31 points and 12 rebounds, leading the host Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Clippers 122-109 on Friday night.

    Jokic, who had been sidelined since sustaining a left knee injury at Miami on Dec. 29, shot 13-for-17 from the foul line to help Denver win its second in a row. The Nuggets went 10-6 while he was out.

    Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 22 points, Peyton Watson contributed 21 and Jamal Murray finished with 20 points for Denver.

    The Clippers were led by James Harden, who recorded 25 points and nine assists. Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points as Los Angeles saw its three-game win streak end.

    Lakers 142, Wizards 111

    Luka Doncic punctuated his sixth triple-double of the season with 37 points as visiting Los Angeles rolled past Washington.

    Doncic showed no ill effects from the injury he sustained when falling off Cleveland’s elevated court on Wednesday, reaching a triple-double by halftime with 26 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. He finished with 13 assists and 11 boards.

    Los Angeles’ Deandre Ayton posted 28 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while LeBron James chipped in 20 points and six assists. Malaki Branham scored 17 points as the Wizards failed in a bid for their first three-game winning streak of the season.

    Celtics 112, Kings 93

    Payton Pritchard tossed in a game-high 29 points and Neemias Queta had 10 points and 15 rebounds to lead Boston to a victory over visiting Sacramento.

    Pritchard made 12 of 16 shots from the field, including 5 of 6 3-point attempts. Anfernee Simons and Baylor Scheierman each added 16 points for the Celtics, who didn’t have leading scorer Jaylen Brown (hamstring/knee).

    Zach LaVine scored 17 points and Maxime Raynaud logged 14 points and 14 rebounds, but the Kings lost their eighth game in a row.

    Knicks 127, Trail Blazers 97

    Karl-Anthony Towns posted 14 points and 20 rebounds New York, which continued surging with a wire-to-wire win over visiting Portland.

    Jalen Brunson scored a team-high 26 points for the Knicks, who ended the month with five straight wins following a 2-9 skid that began Dec. 31. OG Anunoby (24 points) and Josh Hart (20) also contributed to New York’s offense.

    Shaedon Sharpe scored 26 points for the Trail Blazers, who concluded a winless three-game East Coast road trip as they lost their fourth straight overall.

    Pistons 131, Warriors 124

    Cade Cunningham scored 29 points and handed out 11 assists as Detroit withstood a fourth-quarter rally to beat Golden State in San Francisco.

    Jalen Duren added 21 points and 13 rebounds for the Pistons, who earned their third win four games. Duncan Robinson scored 15 points on five 3-pointers.

    Golden State star Stephen Curry exited the game late in the third quarter due to right knee soreness and did not return. He scored a team-high 23 points.

    Magic 130, Raptors 120

    Desmond Bane scored 16 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter and sank a season-best seven 3-pointers, lifting host Orlando to a victory over Toronto.

    Anthony Black scored 25 points and hit all 14 of his free-throw attempts for the Magic, who outscored the Raptors 44-21 in the fourth quarter. Wendell Carter Jr. chipped in with 23 points and seven rebounds.

    Brandon Ingram led all scorers with 35 points, while Scottie Barnes totaled 19 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four blocks, but Toronto’s road winning streak ended at four games.

    Suns 126, Cavaliers 113

    Dillon Brooks scored 17 of his 27 points in Phoenix’s 45-point third quarter as the host Suns handled Cleveland.

    Jordan Goodwin put up 17 points and made five 3-pointers while Collin Gillespie added 16 points for the Suns, who won their third straight. Phoenix sank a season-high 23 3-pointers in 48 attempts.

    De’Andre Hunter scored 17 points and Donovan Mitchell and Jaylon Tyson added 16 points each for the Cavaliers, who had won a season-high five straight. Mitchell committed eight turnovers.

    Pelicans 114, Grizzlies 106

    Rookie Derik Queen scored 22 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished out seven assists as New Orleans turned a dominant third quarter into a victory over visiting Memphis.

    Saddiq Bey added 22 points and eight rebounds and Zion Williamson scored 21 as the Pelicans defeated the Grizzlies for the second time in eight days, marking their third win in four games overall.

    Jaren Jackson Jr. and Cam Spencer each scored 16 points for the Grizzlies, who have lost five in a row.

    Nets 109, Jazz 99

    Egor Demin scored 25 points and collected 10 rebounds to lead Brooklyn past Utah in Salt Lake City.

    Cam Thomas added 21 points to help the Nets end a seven-game losing streak. Day’Ron Sharpe chipped in 16 points and nine rebounds.

    Keyonte George posted 26 points and seven assists while Kyle Filipowski had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Jazz, who lost their fifth straight game and fell to 1-9 in their past 10.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Ja Morant dazzles in return, Grizzlies rout Magic in London

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    (Photo credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images)

    Ja Morant returned to the lineup after missing the previous six games with a right calf contusion and had 24 points and a season-high 13 assists to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 126-109 victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday in London.

    Morant, the subject of trade discussions ahead of the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline, made 7 of 13 shots, including 3 of 4 from long range. He was appearing in just his 19th game of the season.

    Jock Landale came off the bench to contribute 21 points and eight rebounds for the Grizzlies, while Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 17 points and five boards. Rookie Cedric Coward scored 13 points.

    Orlando, which beat Memphis 118-111 Thursday in Berlin, was led by Anthony Black with 19 points and six assists. Wendell Carter Jr. had 18 points and seven boards and Paolo Banchero finished with 16 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Franz Wagner had 14 points.

    Morant played at an All-Star level from the outset. He had six assists in the opening six minutes and finished the first half with 20 points and 10 assists in 15 minutes to pace the Grizzlies to a 72-53 lead at the break.

    While Memphis led by 19 at halftime, it had built a 33-point cushion midway through the second quarter with a 23-7 run. Orlando regrouped to finish the half on a 23-9 run.

    But in the second half the Grizzlies, who had squandered large leads in their previous three games, never allowed the Magic to close the gap. Although Orlando trimmed the Memphis advantage to 16 points to start the third quarter on a 3-pointer from Black, the Grizzlies consistently pushed their lead to 20 or more until the waning minutes.

    The London matchup had an All-Star Game feel. Commissioner Adam Silver was in attendance, as were former league All-Stars Isaiah Thomas, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Pau Gasol and Detlef Schrempf.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Hornets carry modest momentum into clash with Magic

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    (Photo credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images)

    Hot-shooting rookie Kon Knueppel and the Charlotte Hornets look to continue a surge when they visit the Orlando Magic on Friday night.

    Charlotte has won three of its last five games and Knueppel, the No. 4 overall pick out of Duke, leads all rookies in scoring with 19.4 points per game and is shooting 41.9% from 3-point range.

    ‘We’re just going to take one game at a time, compete and try to get a win every night,’ Knueppel said following Tuesday night’s 126-109 win over the Washington Wizards. ‘And going forward, I think if we play our brand of basketball and play the way we want to play, we’re going to have a good chance to do that.’

    Knueppel was one of eight Hornets in double figures with 19 points against the Wizards, sinking 5 of 9 shots from behind the arc.

    LaMelo Ball has been in and out of the Hornets’ lineup, appearing in 20 of 30 games this season dealing with ankle injuries. He is averaging 19.6 points and 8.7 assists, which would rank fifth in the NBA if he had played enough games to qualify.

    Ball had a team-high 23 points with nine assists against Washington. Brandon Miller added 20 points, and Moussa Diabate delivered 12 points and 18 rebounds.

    Second-year Charlotte coach Charles Lee believes the team is turning the corner due to its increased defensive intensity.

    ‘I feel like our defense continues to get better,’ he said on Tuesday. ‘The games that we win, our defensive rating is usually in a really good spot. And then offensively, I feel like ever since the game at Brooklyn (a 116-103 loss on Dec. 1), we’ve done such a better job of trusting the pass, playing the pass.’

    Defense has been the Magic’s calling card for the last few years under coach Jamahl Mosley. That and injuries, unfortunately.

    The Magic’s leading scorer, Franz Wagner, is currently dealing with a left ankle sprain and has missed the last two weeks, and Moritz Wagner is still out after tearing his ACL last season.

    ‘Whoever is out there on the floor, you’re asked to play Magic basketball, and that is playing hard, playing together, playing defense, playing for one another,’ Mosley said Tuesday. ‘This group will continue to show that as we get bodies back, whenever that may be.’

    Orlando has won two of its last three games, most recently a 110-106 win in Portland on Tuesday. Desmond Bane scored 23 points, and Anthony Black added 22.

    Orlando continues to rank among the worst 3-point shooting teams in the NBA at 34.3%, 27th in the league. Bane, brought over in a monster offseason trade with the Memphis Grizzlies, is shooting a career-worst 36.6% from downtown, but is coming off making a season-high four 3-pointers on seven attempts against the Trail Blazers.

    Orlando defeated the Hornets 123-107 on Oct. 30 in Charlotte. The Magic have swept the last five meetings and won 10 of the last 11.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Themus Fulks helps UCF slide past Florida Atlantic

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    (Photo credit: Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images)

    Themus Fulks totaled 24 points and 12 assists and made crucial late jumper, and UCF overcame a first-half deficit to reach double figures with their 10th straight win, rallying past Florida Atlantic 85-80 on Tuesday afternoon in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

    The point guard made 9 of 14 shots, all five of his free throws and added three rebounds as the Knights (11-1) turned flipped a five-point halftime deficit into an early lead in the second half following an 11-point run.

    Riley Kugel had 18 points, six rebounds and four steals. Jamichael Stillwell and Jordan Burks had 15 and 14 points, respectively, plus six rebounds apiece. John Bol grabbed 11 boards.

    UCF shot 49% (32 of 65) and held a 23-6 edge in fastbreak points.

    Playing without its best player and leading scorer Devin Vanterpool, the Owls (8-5) got 20 points and four rebounds from Xander Pintelon, who sank 4 of 8 long shots.

    Kanaan Carlyle posted 15 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Isaiah Elohim and Devin Williams had 11 points each.

    In the neutral-site matchup, Florida International had better jump from the start against the Big 12 school and led 17-10 early in the first half behind six points by Pintelon.

    UCF coach Johnny Dawkins called a timeout after Maxim Logue’s dunk at 11:50 to regroup his bunch after the Owls’ 9-0 run and a stretch of seven straight field-goal misses by his team.

    Amar Amkou made the half-high lead 14, 30-16, with 6:17 to play, but the Knights whittled away at the deficit and trimmed it to 35-33 on a dunk by Burks. However, the first half ended with Elohim canning a 25-footer for a 38-33 lead.

    In the second half, Fulks’ driving layup at 17:05 capped an 11-0 run as UCF led 44-38 and took control of the matchup for the first time.

    The Knights’ advantage was as much as seven points with over seven minutes left, but the Owls trailed just 74-72 on Niccolo Moretti’s layup at 2:56.

    With a one-point lead, Fulks sank a hook shot with 1:17 left, and Pintelon – an 89% foul shooter – missed the front end of a 1-and-1.

    Fulks then fed Kugel for a breakaway dunk, and the Knights hung on for the hard-fought win.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Celtics sink free throws, keep Pistons from 14th straight win

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    (Photo credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images)

    Jaylen Brown had 33 points, 10 rebounds and five assists to help the host Boston Celtics end the Detroit Pistons’ 13-game winning streak with a 117-114 victory on Wednesday in an NBA Cup game.

    After Anfernee Simons extended Boston’s lead to 115-112 by making two free throws with 6.3 seconds on the clock, Cade Cunningham was fouled attempting a 3-pointer with 4.4 seconds remaining, but he missed the third free-throw attempt after he made the first two.

    Boston’s Payton Pritchard made two free throws with 2.4 seconds left and then the Celtics came up with a steal on Detroit’s final possession.

    Detroit would have set a franchise record by winning its 14th straight game.

    The Pistons also won 13 straight games in 1989-1990 and 2003-04. Detroit won the NBA title both seasons.

    Derrick White added 27 points and seven rebounds for Boston. Pritchard made four 3-pointers and finished with 16 points.

    Cunningham scored a game-high 42 points and collected eight rebounds and five assists. He made 14 of 16 foul shots in the loss.

    Jalen Duren added 12 points and 16 rebounds for Detroit, which also received a 12-point performance from Tobias Harris.

    The loss dropped Detroit’s road record to 7-2.

    The Celtics played without center Neemias Queta, who exited Sunday’s game against Orlando in the first quarter with a left ankle sprain and did not return. Queta is averaging career-highs in points per game (9.3) and rebounds per game (7.9) this season.

    The Pistons led 30-24 after one quarter and 58-57 at halftime, but Boston had an 86-83 lead entering the final quarter.

    It was the second time Boston and Detroit have played this season. The Pistons defeated the Celtics 119-113 in Detroit on Oct. 26. Brown scored a game-high 41 points in the loss. Cunningham led the Pistons with 25.

    Detroit is 2-1 in East Group B. Boston is 2-2.

    –Field Level Media

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  • NBA roundup: Lakers win 5th straight, clinch West Group B

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    (Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images)

    Luka Doncic scored 24 of his 43 points in the first quarter and finished with 13 assists and nine rebounds as the host Los Angeles Lakers notched a 135-118 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday to clinch West Group B of the NBA Cup.

    Austin Reaves scored 18 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter and collected nine rebounds for the Lakers, who won their fifth consecutive game. LeBron James added 25 points, six rebounds and six assists, and Rui Hachimura had 13 points.

    The Lakers improved to 3-0 in NBA Cup play while the Clippers fell to 2-1. The Clippers are still in the running for a wild-card spot.

    James Harden recorded 29 points and nine assists and Kawhi Leonard and Kris Dunn scored 19 points apiece for the Clippers, who have lost 11 of their past 13 games. John Collins posted 18 points, and Ivica Zubac added 10 points and 10 rebounds.

    Wizards 132, Hawks 113

    CJ McCollum scored a season-high 46 points on 10 3-pointers, leading Washington to a rare victory over visiting Atlanta in NBA Cup group play.

    Alex Sarr had 27 points and 11 rebounds, while Corey Kispert totaled 19 points for the Wizards, who led by as many as 33 points and snapped a 14-game losing streak. Khris Middleton had 10 points and 12 assists and Bub Carrington scored 10 for Washington, which never trailed in the win.

    Kristaps Porzingis led Atlanta with 22 points, followed by Onyeka Okongwu’s 20 and Zaccharie Risacher’s 17. Dyson Daniels finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Hawks, who had their two-game winning streak snapped. Vit Krejci tallied 10 points in the loss.

    Magic 144, 76ers 103

    Anthony Black scored a career-high 31 points to highlight Orlando’s annihilation of host Philadelphia in an NBA Cup game.

    Black scored 27 points in the first half, including a 20-point second quarter as Orlando set a franchise record for points in any quarter with 51 in the stanza. The team also set a franchise mark with 86 points in the first half. Despite continuing to play without Paolo Banchero (groin), the Magic had nine players score in double figures, including Franz Wagner (21) and Desmond Bane (15). The team compiled 82 bench points — the top total in the NBA this season.

    Tyrese Maxey scored 20 points to pace Philadelphia, while Jared McCain pitched in with 15 points. The Sixers played without Joel Embiid, Paul George and VJ Edgecombe, among others.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Magic ride balanced scoring to win over road-weary Warriors

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    (Photo credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images)

    Desmond Bane had a team-high 23 points, Anthony Black led a strong bench performance with a season-best 21 and the Orlando Magic took advantage of a road-weary Golden State Warriors team to claim a 121-113 home win on Tuesday night.

    Franz Wagner chipped in with 18 points and Wendell Carter Jr. logged a double-double with 17 points and a game-high 12 rebounds for the Magic, who won for the fourth time in their last five games.

    Stephen Curry poured in a game-high 34 points and Jimmy Butler III scored 33 for the Warriors, who were playing their fifth road game in eight days, with a trip-ending sixth contest looming Wednesday night at Miami.

    Using 18-for-18 success at the free-throw line in the second quarter, Orlando built as much as a 15-point lead before settling into a 67-60 advantage at the break. The Warriors never got closer than five in the second half.

    Attempting to extend a three-game winning streak, Golden State got within 99-94 with 9:09 remaining on a layup by Butler. But Black converted a driving layup and then a dunk into four consecutive points, extending the margin to nine while keeping the visitors at arm’s length.

    Black hit eight of his 13 shots on a night in which the Magic shot 51% (43 of 85) from the field and enjoyed a 35-22 scoring advantage off the bench.

    Bane shot 7-for-7 at the line, Carter made all six of his attempts, Jalen Suggs buried five straight and Wagner went 4-for-4, helping the hosts enjoy a 27-for-29 night at the stripe. Orlando outscored Golden State 27-22 at the line despite getting just one more attempt (29-28).

    Bane also found time for five of Orlando’s 14 steals.

    Suggs (13 points), who had a team-high eight assists, and Tristan da Silva (15 points) made it six Magic players in double figures as the team played a third straight game without injured star Paolo Banchero.

    Curry’s 34 points came mostly from beyond the 3-point arc, where he went 7-for-15. His teammates, however, combined to go just 6-for-21 from deep.

    Butler used 13-for-15 success at the foul line as the foundation for his season-high point total, but no other Warrior scored more than 12 and no reserve reached double figures. Butler complemented his big scoring night with a team-high seven rebounds, while Curry also found time for a game-high nine assists.

    Butler and Curry also had three steals apiece.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Warriors’ Jimmy Butler returns to Florida to take on Magic

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    (Photo credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images)

    The Jimmy Butler two-show Florida reunion tour kicks off Tuesday night when the former Miami Heat standout takes center stage as the Golden State Warriors visit the Orlando Magic.

    Dealt early last February from the Heat to the Warriors, Butler joined Golden State in time for both its visits to Florida last season, which came on separate Southeast excursions.

    The first of the two saw him play a complementary role in new teammate Stephen Curry’s 56-point explosion in a 121-115 win at Orlando in late February. Butler had only five points in the game but tied Brandin Podziemski for game-high assist honors with seven.

    Four of Butler’s assists came on Curry 3-pointers as the all-time distance-shooting king buried 12 in all, including four in a 22-point third-quarter flurry.

    Butler assisted on two of the third-quarter threes then a last one that extended Golden State’s lead to 111-104 lead with 2:37 to go.

    Butler himself inflicted pain upon the Magic many times during his days with the Heat, going for 20 or more points on five separate occasions, including 38 in a visit in March of 2023. He has 358 points, 93 assists and 43 steals in games at Orlando in his career.

    Golden State visits Miami on the second night of a back-to-back on Wednesday.

    Butler took time after his last visit to Orlando to describe Curry’s impact on the Warriors.

    ‘It makes everyone want to be great on the defensive side,’ he told reporters after the game, ‘so we can get him the ball back and watch him do something incredible. In a weird way, isn’t it kind of expected?’

    Curry had 46 and 49 points last week when the Warriors, after falling at Oklahoma City, rebounded with a pair of victories at San Antonio. They then won a third in a row Sunday at New Orleans, riding Moses Moody’s 32 points to a 124-106 win.

    The Orlando visit is a reunion of sorts for Moody as well. He played his final two prep seasons at Montverde Academy near Orlando, where he joined Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham and Day’Ron Sharpe on a 25-0 club in 2020.

    The Magic has won three of their last four, seeing a winning streak come to an end in a 117-113 overtime loss at Houston on Sunday night.

    The head-to-head with Golden State will be the first for Desmond Bane since he was acquired from the Memphis Grizzlies via trade in June. He’s averaged 22.3 points over the last four games, connecting on multiple 3-pointers in each of the last three.

    Bane faced the Warriors 22 times during his days with Memphis, including in the 2022 playoffs, when he outshot Curry 48.5% to 32.9% on 3-pointers in the Grizzlies’ 4-2 loss to the eventual champs in the Western semifinals.

    With star Paolo Banchero out for a second straight game with a groin injury, Bane found the ball in his hands with a chance to play hero at the end of regulation at Houston. However, he had his driving attempt blocked by Alperen Sengun with five seconds left and later wished he had it to do over again.

    ‘Something that we’ve talked about — getting the last shot of the game. I went a little bit too fast,’ he admitted to reporters. ‘We had our opportunities. Hopefully we learn from those moments and become better because of it.’

    –Field Level Media

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  • UCF escapes pesky Hofstra for four-point win

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    (Photo credit: Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images)

    Riley Kugel scored 19 points for host UCF, which held off upset-minded Hofstra to earn an 82-78 win in the season opener for both schools Monday night in Orlando, Fla.

    Jordan Burks had 17 points and a team-high seven rebounds for UCF, which didn’t return anyone who scored for the team last season. Kugel transferred to the Knights from Mississippi State while Burks arrived from Georgetown.

    Themus Fulks, a transfer from Milwaukee, added 16 points with eight assists and hit the tiebreaking long 2-pointer that gave the Knights the lead for good at 66-64 with 7:38 left.

    Another Milwaukee transfer, Jamichael Stillwell, finished with 10 points.

    The Knights were 22 of 36 from the foul line, including 17 of 23 in the second half.

    Cruz Davis scored 17 points while true freshman Preston Edmead had 16 points and a team-high six assists for Hofstra, a member of the Coastal Athletic Association.

    German Plotnikov finished with 13 points for the Pride. Silas Sunday added 10 points and six rebounds.

    Hofstra took a 16-7 lead to open the game before UCF went on a 29-11 run to take its biggest lead at 36-27.

    The Pride scored the final five points of the first half to begin a 30-18 run that ended with Joshua DeCady’s layup and Edmead’s free throw to put the visitors ahead 57-54 with 10:47 to go.

    UCF scored 10 of the next 14 points before Edmead tied the game for the final time with a 3-pointer with 8:10 left. The Knights expanded their lead to eight points twice, the last at 79-71, before Hofstra got within three points twice in the final minute.

    UCF’s Devan Cambridge missed a pair of free throws with 16 seconds left, but Burks pulled down the rebound and Fulks iced the win by sinking his second free throw six seconds later.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Lynx, minus star player and head coach, in survival mode against Mercury

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    (Photo credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images)

    The Minnesota Lynx are playing to save their season against the Phoenix Mercury in Game 4 of their contentious WNBA semifinal playoff series Sunday, and they will do so without star forward Napheesa Collier and coach Cheryl Reeve.

    Collier was declared out because of a left ankle injury, and Reeve was suspended for her conduct after the play that caused it.

    Collier rolled her left ankle when Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas swooped in to steal her dribble and turn it into an uncontested layup, the decisive basket with 21.8 seconds remaining in 84-76 win Friday that gave the host Mercury a 2-1 edge in the best-of-five series.

    Reeve ran onto the court and confronted referees. She was restrained by members of her staff and unleashed an expletive-laced critique of the officiating in the postgame press conference.

    The Lynx’s climb to their second straight appearance in the WNBA Finals has become exponentially steeper.

    ‘You leave it where it’s at, right?’ Lynx guard Courtney Williams said after Game 3, ‘and you stay locked in.

    ‘We’re still here, and we’re still a great team. Man, when it comes to the playoffs or any game, you can’t get too high. You can’t get too low. We still got a game we have to win.’

    The Lynx, who won a franchise-record 34 games this season, played 11 games without Collier, who missed most of that time with a right ankle injury. They were 27-6 and averaged 88.2 points per game with Collier this season were 7-4 while averaging 79.5 without her.

    Minnesota has lost the last two games of the series. It has not lost three in a row this season.

    Collier, the runner-up in the MVP voting this season, was the first player in league history to shoot at least 50 percent from the floor, 40 percent from 3-point range and 90 percent from the free-throw line while averaging 20 points per game.

    She averaged 22.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in the regular season and has 49 points and five threes in this series. She did not score in the fourth quarter of Game 3 when the Mercury outscored the Lynx 21-9.

    Williams (19.0 points, 6.2 assists) and Kayla McBride (18.0 points) are the Lynx’s other double-digit scores in this series. Guard Natisha Hiedeman had 19 points off the bench in Game 3.

    ‘We just won one game,’ Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts said after taking the series lead. ‘But the one thing that we are is … we are tough, and we’ll fight and compete.’

    The Mercury are attempting to reach their first WNBA Finals since 2021, when they fell to Kahleah Copper and the Chicago Sky. Game 5 of this series would be in Minneapolis on Sunday.

    Copper, now with the Mercury, has been one of the Mercury’s bright lights in this series, which included the Mercury’s record-breaking comeback from a 20-point deficit in an 89-83 overtime victory in Game 2. The Mercury scored the final nine points in Game 3.

    Thomas neared her second playoff triple-double with 21 points, nine rebounds and eight assists Friday. Satou Sabally had 23 points and Copper had 21, her second 20-point game in the series while working against a smaller Lynx backcourt.

    The Mercury, re-made in the offseason when they added Thomas and Sabally, have rallied around an identity as a disrespected underdog. It began when they were not ranked highly in the preseason

    ‘ESPN, all of them, they ranked us really low,’ Sabally said. ‘To me, it’s a disrespect toward those two (Thomas and Copper). That just fuels us. We’re the underdogs. We have something to prove to ourselves more than to others, and I think this is really what bonds us.’

    The Lynx, who led the league in field-goal percentage at 47.2 in the regular season, are shooting 43.9 against the Mercury and are 22 of 81 (27 percent) from distance.

    –Field Level Media

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  • WNBA MVP to be announced Sunday; five finalists revealed

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    (Photo credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images)

    The WNBA announced the five finalists for the Most Valuable Player award Friday in what’s expected to be a close decision.

    Three-time MVP A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces joined Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas, Atlanta Dream guard Allisha Gray and Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell in the top five in voting.

    The league will announced the winner Sunday morning. It has been viewed as a three-woman race among Wilson, Collier and Thomas.

    Wilson, vying for her fourth WNBA MVP award in eight seasons in the league, also won it in 2020, 2022 and 2024. She helped the Aces end the regular season on a 16-game winning streak, averaging 26.1 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.3 blocks per game in that run.

    In 40 games this season, she averaged a league-high 23.4 points plus 10.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists. Wilson also won co-Defensive Player of the Year alongside Minnesota’s Alanna Smith this week; Wilson ranked second in the league in blocks (92) and third in steals (64).

    Collier, 28, was last year’s Defensive Player of the Year and the 2025 All-Star Game MVP. She became the second woman in league history to post a 50-40-90 shooting season, following Elena Delle Donne in 2019; Collier finished the year shooting 53.1 percent from the field, 40.3 percent from 3-point range and 90.6 percent at the foul line.

    Collier averaged 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.6 steals per contest over 33 games.

    Thomas, who received MVP votes four of the last five seasons and was runner-up in 2023, averaged 15.4 points, 8.8 rebounds and a league- and career-high 9.2 assists over 39 games.

    Mitchell played all 44 games for the Fever and averaged 20.2 points — third in the league to only Wilson and Collier — and 3.4 assists.

    Gray put up 18.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in 42 games for the Dream. She finished third in voting for the Most Improved Player award.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Furious late Storm rally stuns Aces, forces decider in opening series

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    (Photo credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images)

    Dominique Malonga converted the go-ahead three-point play with 31 seconds left and the Seattle Storm closed the game with a 16-4 spurt to post an 86-83 victory over the visiting Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday night to even the first round series at one game apiece.

    Skylar Diggins had 26 points and seven assists and Nneka Ogwumike added 24 points and 10 rebounds for the seventh-seeded Storm, who recovered from a 14-point third-quarter deficit to force a deciding Game 3 on Thursday night at Las Vegas.

    Malonga had 11 points and 10 rebounds and Erica Wheeler scored all 11 of her points in the final quarter for Seattle. Diggins also had 11 fourth-quarter points.

    Jackie Young scored 25 points and A’ja Wilson added 21 points, 13 rebounds and five assists for second-seeded Las Vegas. Jewell Loyd added 13 points but the former Storm star missed a tying 3-point attempt in the final seconds.

    Diggins buried a 3-pointer with 4:03 remaining to start the game-ending run and bring Seattle within 79-73. Wheeler added a trey exactly one minute later to make it a three-point margin.

    The Storm crept within two before Young converted a three-point play to give Las Vegas an 82-77 lead with 1:47 remaining.

    A Wheeler jumper brought Seattle within three with 1:24 left. After Loyd split two free throws, Diggins sank a 19-foot pull-up jumper as the Storm pulled within 83-81 with 53.4 seconds to play.

    Malonga then made the three-point play to put the Storm ahead for the first time since a 37-36 lead in the second quarter. Diggins followed with a jumper in the lane with 4.2 seconds left.

    The loss was the first for the Aces since being pounded 111-58 by the Minnesota Lynx on Aug. 2. Las Vegas finished the regular season with 16 consecutive wins and then routed Seattle, 102-77, in Game 1 of this series.

    Young had 14 points in the third quarter, including 12 during a 16-5 burst that saw Las Vegas increase a one-point to 63-51 with 3:12 left.

    Young nailed another floater with 1.1 seconds left as Las Vegas took a 69-61 lead into the final quarter.

    Wilson scored four straight points early in the fourth to give the Aces a 75-63 advantage with 7:06 left.

    Wilson had 16 first-half points as the Aces led 45-44 at the break. Diggins had 15 and Ogwumike added 13 in the half for Seattle.

    The Storm scored nearly as many points (21) in the first quarter than they did in the first half (25) of their Game 1 loss.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Valkyries G Veronica Burton named Most Improved Player

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    (Photo credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images)

    Golden State Valkyries guard Veronica Burton was named WNBA Most Improved Player by a landslide margin on Monday.

    Burton received 68 of 72 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters after posting career highs of 11.9 points, 6.0 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 steals while starting all 44 games for the expansion franchise.

    Last season, Burton averaged 3.1 points, 1.9 assists, 1.4 rebounds and 0.5 steals in 31 games for the Connecticut Sun. According to the WNBA, she is the first player to increase her averages by at least five rebounds, two assists and two rebounds from one season to the next among players to compete in a minimum of 30 games both seasons.

    Burton, 25, helped Golden State (23-21) become the first WNBA expansion team to the reach the playoffs.

    Azura Stevens (two votes) of the Los Angeles Sparks, Allisha Gray (one) of the Atlanta Dream and Natisha Hiedeman (one) of the Minnesota Lynx also received votes.

    Burton started just 20 games over her first three seasons before breaking out this year.

    Burton was a first-round pick of the Dallas Wings in 2022 and averaged 2.6 points as a rookie and 2.4 points in 2023. She started just once in 31 games for Connecticut last season.

    She was selected in the expansion draft by the Valkyries and things came together. She made 61 3-pointers after making a combined 38 over her first three seasons, and she racked up 50 steals and 27 blocked shots on the defensive side.

    According to the WNBA, Burton will receive $5,150 and a trophy in recognition of the achievement.

    –Field Level Media

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