Harden scores 59 to help Rockets hold off Wizards
James Harden scored 59 points and made one of two free throws with 2.4 seconds to play to give the Houston Rockets a 159-158 victory over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.
Bradley Beal scored 46 points for Washington, hitting three throws with 8.1 seconds left to tie it at 158.
Harden was 18 of 32 from the field, 6 of 14 from 3-point range, and made 17 of 18 free throws. He also had nine assists in 37 minutes.
Russell Westbrook had just three points in the first three quarters, then scored 14 in the fourth quarter and finished with his second triple-double of the season.
Rui Hachimura had 23 points in his home debut for the Wizards, Davis Bertans added 21 and Washington shot 62.6% from the field. EMBIID, TOWNS EJECTED >> Joel Embiid scored 19 points and got into a brawl with Karl-Anthony Towns that sent both players to the showers early, and the host Philadelphia 76ers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 117-95 for their fourth straight win to begin the season.
The Sixers were leading 75-55 midway through the third quarter when Embiid and Towns went at it. The two big men have a history of talking trash to each other. After they got tangled under the basket, Embiid shoved Towns, who answered with a punch that missed as both men fell to the floor. Ben Simmons jumped in and forcefully held Towns down as other players and coaches ran onto the court to separate everyone.
PACERS BEAT NETS FOR
FIRST VICTORY OF SEASON >> Domantas Sabonis scored 29 points, Jeremy Lamb added 25, and the Indiana Pacers beat the Brooklyn Nets 118-108 on the raod for their first victory on five games this season.
Kyrie Irving led Brooklyn with 28 points, Spencer Dinwiddie had 20, and Caris LeVert 15. The Nets have lost two in a row to fall to 1-3.
WALKER SCORES 32 POINTS
AS CELTICS BEAT BUCKS >> Kemba Walker had 21 of his 32 points in the second half, and the Boston Celtics rallied to beat the Milwaukee Bucks 116-105. Jayson Tatum added 25 points, Gordon Hayward had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Marcus Smart finished with 19 points and six assists.
Khris Middleton led the Bucks with 26 points. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 22 points and 14 rebounds, but the reigning MVP lost his composure late, first picking up a hard foul on Smart and then a technical foul in the final minute.
Milwaukee dominated in the first half, leading 19. But the Celtics responded in the third quarter, using a 26-7 run over the final 6:38 of the period to take an 80-76 edge into the fourth.
LILLARD LEADS TRAIL BLAZERS PAST THUNDER >> Damian Lillard had 23 points and 13 assists to help the Portland Trail Blazers hold off the Oklahoma City Thunder 102-99 on the road. Lillard made 4 of 15 shots the first three quarters, but he made three 3-pointers in an 86-second flurry in the fourth that turned a three-point deficit into a five-point lead.
HAWKS’ YOUNG OUT UNTIL NEXT WEEK >> Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young has been ruled out of tonight’s game against the Miami Heat with a sprained right ankle. Young underwent treatment at the team’s training complex after being hurt Tuesday in a 112-97 loss to the Heat — the first of two straight games between the division rivals. He will be re-evaluated at the beginning of next week to determine if he’ll miss any additional games.
DALLAS RENAMES STREET
NOWITZKI WAY TO HONOR DIRK >> Retired Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki joined a few hundred people Wednesday at a ceremony to rename a city street as Nowitzki Way in his honor.
The big German accepted the gesture with characteristic humor and humility.
“It’s sort of surreal,” he said. “From my first year, the city probably wouldn’t have named a Dumpster after me.”
Nowitzki, now 41, retired after last season, his 21st with the franchise. The 14-time All-Star is easily the greatest player in Mavericks history and the highest-scoring foreign-born player in NBA history. The 2007 NBA MVP will forever be beloved around here for helping Dallas win its only championship in 2011 when he was NBA Finals MVP.
Nowitzki Way is the former 2900-3000 block of Olive Street south of the American Airlines Center, where Nowitzki played 18 of his NBA-record 21 seasons with only one franchise.