76ers’ win streak now a perfect 10
This pass-happy approach is paying off for the Philadelphia 76ers.
Ben Simmons and the Sixers posted their 10th straight victory for their longest winning string since 2003, beating the Hornets, 119-102, yesterday in Charlotte, N.C.
Playing without injured star Joel Embiid, the Sixers kept sharing the ball. Simmons led the way with 20 points and 15 assists.
The Sixers set a team record with their ninth straight game of 30 or more assists — they had 36 on their 48 baskets.
“We’re having fun on the court and that’s really important for us,” said reserve guard Marco Belinelli, who led Philadelphia with 22 points on 9-for-10 shooting. “For sure, we miss Joel out there on defense. But we know that everybody needs to step up and be aggressive on offense and defense and just play together.”
Spurs 100, Rockets 83 — LaMarcus Aldridge had 23 points and 14 rebounds and Rudy Gay added 21 points as host San Antonio won by holding Houston to its lowest-scoring game of the season.
The Spurs remained fourth in the Western Conference after preventing a season sweep by the Rockets. Houston owns the NBA’s best record.
Thunder 109, Pelicans 104 — Russell Westbrook had a triple-double to lead Oklahoma City over host New Orleans.
Westbrook finished with 26 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists. Paul George scored Oklahoma City’s first 11 points in the second quarter and finished with 27. Carmelo Anthony added 16 and Steven Adams had 14.
Jazz 121, Timberwolves 97 — Ricky Rubio scored 23 points, including a season-high 5-for-6 shooting on 3-pointers, and Donovan Mitchell added 21 points visiting Utah beat Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Dante Exum had 14 points and Jonas Jerebko scored 13 points to help Utah climb a half-game ahead of Minnesota for sixth in the Western Conference.
Warriors 117, Suns 107 — Kevin Durant had 29 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and host Golden State overcame a sloppy start to beat Phoenix in Oakland, handing the Suns their franchise-record 15th consecutive loss.
Bulls 113, Wizards 94 — Rookie Lauri Markkanen scored 23 points and connected on 5-of-8 3-pointers to lead host Chicago to a win over Washington.
Pacers 111, Clippers 104 — Victor Oladipo scored 30 points, Myles Turner added 24 and visiting Indiana rallied to beat Los Angeles for its fifth straight victory.
Hawks 94, Magic 88 — Tyler Dorsey scored 19 points, including back-to-back baskets after visiting Orlando trimmed a deficit to five points late in the game, before Atlanta prevail in this matchup of the Eastern Conference’s worst records.
Cavaliers 98, Mavericks 87 — LeBron James struggled before extending his record double-digit scoring streak to 868 games and host Cleveland had a rough time with Dallas before putting away the lottery-bound club.
Pistons 108, Nets 96 — Reggie Jackson scored 29 points, Stanley Johnson had 17, and Detroit preserved its slim playoff hopes with a victory over Brooklyn in New York.