Suns guard Devin Booker scored 35 points as Phoenix earned its eighth straight win, beating the 76ers, 114-104, on Sunday in Phoenix. Rick Scuteri/Associated Press
PHOENIX — Devin Booker scored 35 points, Chris Paul had 19 points and 14 assists and the NBA-leading Phoenix Suns won their eighth straight game, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 114-104 on Sunday.
It was an intriguing matchup between two teams with an eye on the NBA finals. The Suns have wrapped up the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and best record in the league, while the 76ers are fighting Milwaukee, Boston and Miami for the top spot in the East. The loss left the 76ers tied with the Bucks, a half-game behind the Celtics and Heat.
Phoenix is 61-14, a win shy of trying the franchise season victory record. The 76ers had their three-game winning streak snapped despite another big game from Joel Embiid, who had 37 points and 15 rebounds.
Philadelphia’s other star, James Harden, had a tough game, shooting 2 of 11 from the field. He had 14 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
The Suns took a 91-86 lead into the final quarter. They pushed that advantage to 101-90 by midway through the quarter, but the 76ers scored 10 straight points – highlighted by two 3-pointers from Tyrese Maxey – to get back it it.
But Booker responded by making another tough jumper while getting fouled by Danny Green and the Suns pulled away for the victory. Booker shot 13 of 22 from the field, including 3 of 5 from 3-point range, in one of his more efficient games this season.
The 76ers took a 39-37 lead into the second quarter despite Booker’s 22 points in the first on 8-of-11 shooting. When Booker went to the bench to start the second quarter, the 76ers responded with a 12-0 run.
Philadelphia led the entire second quarter and took a 64-60 lead into the break. Embiid had 19 points and eight rebounds before the break, while Tobias Harris added 15 points.
HORNETS 119, NETS 110: LaMelo Ball had 33 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and Charlotte spoiled Kyrie Irving’s first home game of the season, beating Brooklyn.
Irving misfired for 3 1/2 quarters, finally warmed up to give the Nets the lead, and then the Hornets regained control with clutch 3-point shooting to give them a victory that tied them with Brooklyn for eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
Irving finished with 16 points and tied his season high with 11 assists but shot 6 for 22 from the field. He hadn’t been able to play at home this season until Mayor Eric Adams last week exempted athletes and performers from the New York City’s coronavirus vaccine mandate.
Miles Bridges scored 24 points and PJ Washington had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Hornets, who won for the seventh time in eight games. They beat the Nets for the second time in three meetings this season, clinching a potential head-to-head tiebreaker.
Kevin Durant had 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, playing the entire second half on the second night of a back-to-back. He shot just 9 for 24. Andre Drummond had 20 points and 17 rebounds.
WIZARDS 123, WARRIORS 115: Corey Kispert scored 16 of his career-high 25 points in the first half, and Washington beat struggling Golden State in Washington.
Golden State has lost five of its last six, and the Warriors never led. Golden State was without Stephen Curry (left foot sprain) for a fifth straight contest, and Andre Iguodala (low back injury) was also out. James Wiseman (right knee injury) is done for the season.
Washington is not exactly healthy either, with Bradley Beal (left wrist surgery) and Kyle Kuzma (right knee tendinitis) missing this game, but the Wizards won their second straight – their first back-to-back victories since a three-game streak from Jan. 9-12.
Kispert made six 3-pointers, also a career high. That gives him 96 this season, surpassing the franchise’s rookie record of 91 set by Beal in 2012-13. Kristaps Porzingis scored 23 points for Washington and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 22.
Jordan Poole scored 26 for the Warriors. Klay Thompson contributed 25 and Andrew Wiggins had 23.
KNICKS 104, PISTONS 102: Alec Burks hit a 3-pointer for New York’s final points and finished off the Pistons with a last-second steal in the Knicks’ victory in Detroit.
R.J. Barrett led New York with 21 points, Julian Randle scored 20 and Burks and Immanuel Quickly had 18 each.
Trailing by two, the Pistons called a timeout to set up a final play with 6.6 seconds left. Killian Hayes inbounded the ball to Cade Cunningham, but Burks stripped the ball as he tried to drive.
Marvin Bagley III led Detroit with 27 points, and Cunningham added 18.
PELICANS 116, LAKERS 108: Brandon Ingram scored 26 in his return from a 10-game absence, and New Orleans rallied from 23 points down late in the second quarter to defeat visiting Los Angeles in a game with postseason implications for both clubs.
New Orleans got an enormous boost from rookies Trey Murphy III and Herb Jones. Murphy, drafted 17th overall, scored all of his 21 points in the second half. Jones, a second-round draft choice, had 16 points and a career-high six steals.
LeBron James hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 39 points, but hit just two of eight shots in the fourth quarter for four points, missing three times from deep after hitting seven of his first 10 from 3-point distance.
The victory lifted the Pelicans (32-43) a half-game ahead of the Lakers (31-43) for the ninth seed – and the first of two play-in spots – in the Western Conference.
MAVERICKS 114, JAZZ 100: Luka Doncic scored 32 points, and Dallas won at home for the inside track to home-court advantage in what could be a first-round playoff matchup.
The Mavericks (46-29) moved a game ahead of the Jazz (45-30) for the fourth seed in the Western Conference and earned a split of the season series, with the home team winning all four games.
Dallas would have to finish a game ahead of Utah if the Jazz keep their 1 1/2-game Northwest Division lead over Denver. The Mavericks and Jazz have seven games remaining.
Rudy Gay scored 18 points for the Jazz, who lost their fourth in a row on a season-long, six-game trip that ends Tuesday night in Los Angeles against the Clippers.
Defensive stalwart Rudy Gobert was a late scratch for Utah because of the 7-foot-1 center’s right leg contusion, and another 7-footer, Hassan Whiteside, sat for the second consecutive game because of a right foot sprain.
NOTES
TIMBERWOLVES: The NBA fined Minnesota forward Taurean Prince $15,000 for making an obscene gesture on the court.
It stemmed from an incident that occurred at the end of the third quarter during the Timberwolves’ 116-95 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night. Prince and Dallas’ Luka Doncic got technical fouls for barking at each other.
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