Pistons rout Portland, win 4th straight
DETROIT — Andre Drummond had 17 points and 17 rebounds, and the Detroit Pistons beat the Portland Trail Blazers 111-91 on Monday night for their fourth straight victory.
Detroit has won three in a row with Blake Griffin in the lineup after acquiring him in a trade last week. The victory Monday pulled the Pistons back to .500 and even with Philadelphia for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Griffin had 21 points, nine rebounds and six assists, and did a good bit of his offensive damage from the perimeter, making three 3-pointers. Anthony Tolliver added 15 points for Detroit, and Reggie Bullock and Langston Galloway contributed 13 apiece.
Damian Lillard scored 20 points and C.J. McCollum added 14 for the Blazers, who lost again after falling at the buzzer at Boston on Sunday. Portland was without Evan Turner on Monday because of a left calf injury.
Detroit led by 13 in the second quarter and was up 49-43 at halftime. The Pistons pushed the lead to double digits again in the third. A 9-0 run capped by Luke Kennard’s 3-pointer made it 75-57.
Detroit was never seriously threatened in the fourth, and the game ended with several seldom-used reserves on the court.
WIZARDS 111, PACERS 102
In Indianapolis, All-Star guard Bradley Beal scored 21 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 15 to help Washington hold on for a victory over the Pacers.
The Wizards have won five straight overall, all without John Wall, and four in a row over the Pacers.
Bojan Bogdanovic scored 29 points for the Pacers, trying to spur a fourth-quarter rally. Joe Young added 17 as Indiana’s six-game home winning streak ended.
Without starting guards Victor Oladipo (illness) and Darren Collison (left knee surgery), the Pacers were out of sync all night. The Wizards took full advantage. Indiana missed its first six shots, allowing Washington to jump out to a 17-8 lead. The Wizards took control with a 13-0 run to make it 55-39 with 3:13 left in the first half. The Pacers never got closer than seven again. They cut the deficit to 58-50 at the half, then Washington scored the first two baskets of the second half to make it a 12-point game. A 9-0 run late in the third gave the Wizards a 79-62 lead, forcing the Pacers to scramble the rest of the night.
They never got closer than eight again.
JAZZ 133, PELICANS 109
In New Orleans, Rodney Hood scored 30 points in his second game back from a lower leg bruise and the surging Jazz extended their winning streak to six with a victory over the Pelicans.
Ricky Rubio had 20 points and 11 assists, and Rudy Gobert added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Jazz, who made 14 of 21 3-point attempts and shot 58.4 percent (52 of 89) overall their highest-scoring game this season.
Jrue Holiday scored 28 points, and Anthony Davis had 15 points and 11 rebounds for New Orleans, which has lost four of five since losing All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins to a seasonending left Achilles tear on Jan. 26.
The Jazz led by double digits most of the way and led by as many as 20 when Rubio’s driving layup made it 116-96 in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Utah had six players score more than 10, including Derrick Favors with 19, Joe Ingles 18 and Royce O’Neale with 13.
MAGIC 111, HEAT 109
In Miami, Mario Hezonja scored 20 points, Jonathan Simmons made the tiebreaking dunk with 1:31 remaining, and Orlando beat the Heat.
The Heat appeared to tie the game after Tyler Johnson was credited with a basket when Orlando’s Bismack Biyombo was called for goaltending with 2.8 seconds remaining. A video review overturned the call.
Starting for the injured Aaron Gordon, Hezonja shot 7 of 14 from the field and 4 of 9 3-pointers as the Magic won their third road game in the last 24.
Marreese Speights’ consecutive 3-pointers capped a 12-2 surge and his second one extended Orlando’s lead to 99-89 with 11 minutes remaining. Speights finished with 12 points.
NUGGETS 121, HORNETS 104
In Denver, Gary Harris scored 27 points, Nikola Jokic had 15 points and 16 rebounds, and the Nuggets beat Charlotte.
Will Barton and Jamal Murray scored 18 apiece for Denver, which had seven players in double figures. Murray played 34 minutes and attempted a game-high 15 shots while playing with a bruised right thigh sustained Saturday against Golden State.
Kemba Walker led Charlotte with 20 points and Dwight Howard had 19 points and seven rebounds. The Hornets had won three straight and four of six.
KINGS 104, BULLS 98
In Sacramento, Calif., Bogdan Bogdanovic made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 52 seconds remaining and the Kings overcame a dismal start with a strong finish to beat Chicago.
The Kings scored just nine points in the first quarter, trailed by as many as 21 and were down by seven with 10 minutes left before rallying to complete a season sweep of the Bulls.
After Zach LaVine’s follow shot tied it at 93 with less than 4 minutes left, Sacramento’s Buddy Hield and Chicago’s Bobby Portis exchanged 3-pointers. Bogdanovic then hit the go-ahead bucket for the Kings on an uncontested shot beyond the arc.