Raptors hold off Spurs
TORONTO Kyle Lowry scored 24 and added three assists as the Toronto Raptors held on for an 86-83 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Friday.
DeMar DeRozan had 21 points, six assists and seven rebounds for Toronto (31-13), which has only lost at Air Canada Centre three times this season. Centre Jonas Valanciunas had a doubledouble with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
LaMarcus Aldridge led San Antonio (30-17) with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Most of his scoring came in the third quarter as the Spurs mounted a comeback.
The sellout crowd of 19,800 gave DeRozan a standing ovation in the first quarter when it was announced that he would be competing in his fourth NBA All-Star Game, his second straight year as a starter for the Eastern Conference.
NETS 101, HEAT 95
NEW YORK — DeMarre Carroll scored 26 points, Spencer Dinwiddie had 15 and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Miami Heat.
Brooklyn snapped a five-game losing skid at Barclays Center and a sevengame home losing streak to the Heat.
WIZARDS 122, PISTONS 112
DETROIT — Bradley Beal and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 26 points each, and the Washington Wizards scored 45 points in the third quarter before holding on for a 122-112 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Friday night.
The Pistons cut a 20-point second-half deficit to four in the fourth quarter, but John Wall made a big 3-pointer to put the Wizards up 107-100. Oubre added a four-point play a few possessions later to push Washington’s lead to nine.
GRIZZLIES 106, KINGS 88
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Dillon Brooks scored a career-best 22 points, Ben McLemore had a season-high 21 and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the skidding Sacramento Kings 106-88 on Friday night for their third consecutive win.
The game marked Zach Randolph’s first return to Memphis since spending eight years as a key figure in the Grizzlies’ success. The power forward received a standing ovation when he was introduced with the starting lineups.
SUNS 108, NUGGETS 100
DENVER — Devin Booker scored 30 points, T.J. Warren had 25 and the Phoenix Suns defeated the Denver Nuggets.
Josh Jackson and Isaiah Canaan added 16 points apiece off the bench for Phoenix, which snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Nuggets.
The Suns benefited from an earlier arrival than their last game in Denver. Mechanical issues delayed their flight for the Jan. 3 game until five hours before the opening tip, and the Nuggets raced to a 134-111 win.