Lowry comes up big for tough Raptors
Point guard scores 24 as Toronto take care of San Antonio at home with first win in two years
>> TORONTO: Kyle Lowry scored nine of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, DeMar DeRozan added 21 and the Toronto Raptors beat San Antonio 86-83 on Friday night to snap a fourgame losing streak against the Spurs.
Jonas Valanciunas had 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Raptors improved to 17-3 at home, the secondbest home record in the NBA behind San Antonio’s mark of 19-2.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 17 points and 14 rebounds, Pau Gasol scored 15 points and Patty Mills had 13 as San Antonio lost for the fourth time in six road games. The Spurs are 11-15 away from home.
It had been more than two years since Toronto last beat San Antonio. The Raptors won 97-94 at home on Dec 9, 2015.
San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili missed his second straight game because of a sore right thigh.
In Detroit, Bradley Beal and Kelly Oubre Jr had 26 points apiece, and Washington scored 45 in the third quarter before holding off Detroit 122-112.
The Pistons cut a 20-point secondhalf 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.
Andre Drummond had 14 points, 21 rebounds and eight assists for the Pistons, who have lost four straight.
Wall finished with 16 points and 11 assists.
In New York, DeMarre Carroll scored 26 points, Spencer Dinwiddie had 15 and Brooklyn beat Miami 101-95.
The Nets snapped a five-game skid at Barclays Center and a seven-game home losing streak to the Heat.
Caris LeVert and Joe Harris each added 12 points for the Nets. D’Angelo Russell played 14 minutes and went 0 for 5 from the field in his first action after missing 32 games following left knee surgery.
Hassan Whiteside had 21 points and 13 rebounds, and Goran Dragic scored 17 for the Heat.
LeVert made an acrobatic lay-up to give the Nets a 95-91 lead with 57.8 seconds remaining and then a stepback jumper to ice the game at 97-91.
In Memphis, Dillon Brooks scored a career-best 22 points, Ben McLemore had a season-high 21 and Memphis beat skidding Sacramento 106-88 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. The team showed a tribute video between the first and second quarters.
Randolph finished with four points and six rebounds for the Kings, who have lost seven straight.
Tyreke Evans added 14 points for Memphis. De’Aaron Fox led the Kings with 16 points and six assists.
In Denver, Devin Booker scored 30 points and TJ Warren had 25 to lead Phoenix past Denver 108-100.
Josh Jackson and Isaiah Canaan added 16 points apiece off the bench for Phoenix, who snapped a sevengame losing streak to the Nuggets that stretched back to Nov 20, 2015.
Jamal Murray scored 30 in his return to the line-up and Nikola Jokic had 14 points and 17 rebounds for Denver. Murray missed Wednesday’s game at the Los Angeles Clippers with concussion symptoms.
In Los Angeles, Reserve guard Jordan Clarkson sparked an undermanned Lakers team with 33 points to lead Los Angeles over Indiana 99-86.
The Lakers, missing three injured starters, snapped a two-game skid despite making just two of 14 free throws. They shot 14.3 percent from the line, a franchise low.
Victor Oladipo led the Pacers with 25 points. Domantas Sabonis added 15 points and 14 rebounds.
Three other Lakers scored i n double figures besides Clarkson. Julius Randle had 14 points, Kyle Kuzma added 13 and Larry Nance Jr 10.
The Pacers had won five of seven. In Salt Lake City, Tim Hardaway Jr scored 31 points and New York rallied to beat Utah 117-115.
Hardaway was 6 for 7 from behind the arc as the Knicks shot 55 percent from 3-point range.
The Jazz missed three straight three-pointers on one possession with less than 30 seconds left that would have tied the game at 115 after a late 11-2 run.
Courtney Lee’s 13-point third quarter helped the Knicks rebound from a 10-point deficit to take an 85-78 lead into the fourth. Lee and Kristaps Porzingis each scored 18 points.
Rudy Gobert had 23 points and 14 rebounds for the Jazz in his first game since Dec 15 due to a sprained knee. Rodney Hood added 18 points.