Warriors outlast Cavaliers
OAKLAND, Calif. — Klay Thompson hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:33 left, Kevin Durant turned in another solid all-around performance, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 99-92, on Monday (Tuesday Manila time) in a Christmas Day rematch of the past three NBA Finals.
Durant's block against a driving LeBron James with 24.5 seconds left went to official review and was ruled clean. Durant finished with 25 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots.
Kevin Love had 31 points and a season-best 18 rebounds, while James contributed 20 points, six rebounds and six assists in a rivalry missing one key piece: Warriors star Stephen Curry, who missed his eighth straight game with a sprained right ankle.
Thompson scored 24 points and Draymond Green had a triple-double with 12 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. It was Golden State's 12th win in 13 games.
THUNDER 112, ROCKETS 107
Oklahoma City is starting to have the look of a contender.
Russell Westbrook had 31 points and 11 assists to help the Thunder stay hot with a 112-107 win over the Houston Rockets on Monday night.
Paul George scored 24 points and Carmelo Anthony added 20 for the Thunder, who won their fifth straight game and their 11th in their past 14. Oklahoma City shot 54.4 percent from the field against the Rockets, who entered the day with the best record in the Western Conference.
The Thunder started 4-7 after acquiring George and Anthony in the offseason, but they've charged back to the center of the West's playoff picture as they've figured out how to distribute the ball among their stars.
James Harden led the Rockets with 29 points, but he made just 7 of 18 field goals. The league's leading scorer was coming off back-to-back 51-point games.
WIZARDS 111, CELTICS 103
In Boston, Bradley Beal scored 25 points, John Wall had 21 points and 14 assists, and Washington beat Boston in the Celtics' first Christmas Day home game in franchise history.
Otto Porter Jr. added 20 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. finished with 16, helping Washington take the first meeting between the teams since Boston's Game 7 victory at home in the second round of the playoffs last spring.
Eastern Conference-leading Boston lost for the third time in four games. Kyrie Irving and Jayson Tatum each scored 20 points for the Celtics, and Terry Rozier had 16.
Boston opened a 95-90 lead on Irving's 3-pointer with 6:18 left, but the Wizards responded with a 12-0 run.
76ERS 105, KNICKS 98
In New York, Joel Embiid had 25 points and 16 rebounds, JJ Redick scored 24 points, and Philadelphia snapped a five-game losing streak.
Embiid and Redick were cleared to play after going through pregame warmups, and their presence gave the 76ers just enough to win their first Christmas Day appearance since 2001.
Embiid, who has been battling a bad back, powered through a big-man duel with Enes Kanter, who had a season-high 31 points and a career-best 22 rebounds.
Redick, who missed the last game with right hamstring tightness, helped the 76ers pull away from an 89-all tie midway through the fourth quarter.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 22 points for the Knicks, who fell to 22-30 on Christmas with their fifth straight loss on the holiday.