Nets take down 76ers without pair of stars
NEW YORK — Joe Harris scored a season-high 28 points and the Brooklyn Nets, playing without Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, beat the NBAleading Philadelphia 76ers 122-109 on Thursday night.
Without their two superstars in uniform — blue uniforms, a throwback to 30 years ago in New Jersey — the Nets jumped out quickly and had a doubledigit lead for much of the second half while winning their second straight, both without Durant.
Caris Levert had 22 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, and Jarrett Allen added 15 points and 11 boards for the Nets.
Irving was ruled out Thursday afternoon for personal reasons, though coach Steve Nash said before the game he hadn’t spoken to his point guard and didn’t know the reason for his absence, calling it a personal matter.
The Nets already knew they’d be without Durant for a second consecutive game because of the NBA’S health and safety protocols. Nash said Durant would be able to return Sunday if he continues to test negative for the coronavirus until then.
Joel Embiid started slowly before finishing with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Shake Milton had a season-high 24 points in his first start of the season in place of Seth Curry, who had a sore left ankle, but Ben Simmons was limited to 11 points, four rebounds and two assists.
CAVALIERS 94 GRIZZLIES 90
Andre Drummond had 22 points and 15 rebounds, Larry Nance Jr. added 18 points on 7-for-7 shooting from the field and visiting Cleveland defeated Memphis.
Cedi Osman scored 16
points as Cleveland snapped a two-game skid. Javale Mcgee added 13 points.
Jonas Valanciunas led Memphis with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Brandon Clarke had 14 points. Dillon Brooks scored 11, but was 4 of 13 from the field.
The Cavaliers were without leading scorer Collin Sexton, who sat out with a left ankle sprain. That left Cleveland trying to pick up Sexton’s missing 25.1 points a game.
In the aftermath of Wednesday’s chaos at the U.S. Capitol, and to protest racial and social injustice, the teams paused at the opening tip, went to the sideline, locked arms and took a knee. They were joined by coaches, staff and reserves covering the entire sideline from end line to end line. The three officials knelt at midcourt behind the line of players.
TRAIL BLAZERS 135 TIMBERWOLVES 117
Damian Lillard had 39 points, including seven 3-pointers, and host Portland handed Minnesota its sixth straight loss.
CJ Mccollum added 20 points for the Blazers, who led by 33 in the second half. Jusuf Nurkic had 17 points and seven rebounds before Portland rested its starters in the fourth quarter.
D’angelo Russell and Anthony Edwards each scored 26 points for the Timberwolves (2-6), who continue to struggle without Karl-anthony Towns as he recovers from a dislocated left wrist. He’s missed six games, coinciding with Minnesota’s losing streak.
MAVERICKS 124 NUGGETS 117 (OT)
Luka Doncic finished with 38 points, nine rebounds and 13 assists, leading visiting Dallas past Denver.
Doncic and Josh Richardson provided nearly all the scoring for the Mavericks in overtime. Richardson and Dorian FinneySmith each had 14 points.
Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 38 points and 11 rebounds, including a 19-foot jumper with 0.3 seconds left that sent the game into overtime. Jamal Murray added 21 points.