Thunder steamroll Clippers
James and Love fire for in-form Cavaliers
OKLAHOMA CITY: Kevin Durant scored 29 points to lead the Thunder to a 131108 win on Sunday over the Los Angeles Clippers, who were without All-Star Blake Griffin.
The Clippers announced before the game that Griffin will be out indefinitely because of a staph infection in his right elbow. Without him, the Clippers fell to their most lopsided loss of the season.
Russell Westbrook had 19 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, and rookie Mitch McGary had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder, who shot 52 percent and moved back above the .500 mark.
GRIZZLIES 94, HAWKS 88
Mike Conley had 21 points and six assists, and Marc Gasol finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds as Memphis beat Atlanta.
The game was tied at 86 after Mike Scott’s three-pointer with 3:24 left before Memphis scored the next eight points to put away the game.
Zach Randolph had 11 points and 15 rebounds, while Kosta Koufos finished with 10 points and seven rebounds as Memphis outrebounded the Hawks 55-37.
CAVALIERS 120, LAKERS 105
Kevin Love scored a season-high 32 points and LeBron James flirted with a tripledouble as Cleveland quickly got back to winning.
The Cavs had their 12-game winning streak snapped on Friday, a run that started when they beat the Lakers on Jan 15. This time, Love made five threepointers in the second quarter and two more in the third as Cleveland opened a 26-point lead.
James scored 22 with 10 rebounds and eight assists in three quarters. All-Star guard Kyrie Irving added 28 points and 10 assists.
RAPTORS 87, SPURS 82
James Johnson scored a season-high 20 points in his return to the starting line-up and DeMar DeRozan had 18 as Toronto denied Spurs coach Gregg Popovich his 1,000th career victory.
Amir Johnson added 15 points, Kyle Lowry 12 and Jonas Valanciunas had a season-high 16 rebounds as Toronto improved to 8-2 at home against Western Conference opponents.
Tim Duncan and Marco Belinelli each scored 12 points, Kawhi Leonard had 11 and Tony Parker 10 as the Spurs shot 31 for 93 (.333), their worst performance of the season.
TRAIL BLAZERS 109, ROCKETS 98
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 24 points and Damian Lillard added 23 to help Portland fight off a late charge from Houston.
James Harden tied a season high with 45 points for the Rockets, who are playing without star centre Dwight Howard, out indefinitely with knee swelling.
The Trail Blazers led by 17 in the second half, but a big third quarter helped Houston to a slim lead in the fourth quarter. Portland scored seven straight points to break a tie and take a 92-85 lead midway through the period, with five points from Meyers Leonard in that stretch.
BULLS 98, MAGIC 97
Pau Gasol dunked in the rebound of Derrick Rose’s missed layup with 9.4 seconds left as Chicago rallied to beat Orlando.
Jimmy Butler led the Bulls with 27 points, and Gasol finished with 25 points and 15 rebounds.
Chicago led by as many as 16 points, before finding themselves in a six-point hole with just over two minutes remaining to play.
The Magic had two opportunities to win the game. But Nik Vucevic’s hook rolled off the rim, and Tobias Harris overshot a tip-in as time expired.
PACERS 103, HORNETS 102
George Hill’s baseline lay-up with 4.9 seconds left lifted Indiana to a come-frombehind victory over Charlotte.
CJ Watson had 22 points and David West, Luis Scola and Rodney Stuckey each had 15 as the Pacers battled back from a 21-point, third-quarter deficit for their third straight win.
Al Jefferson had 30 points and 13 rebounds, and Brian Roberts added 19 points in the loss.