Doncic near triple-double leads Mavs to victory
Jazz lose for second time in their last three games
ORLANDO, Fla. — Luka Doncic had 33 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, Kristaps Porzingis played a nearly flawless second half and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Orlando Magic 130-124 on Monday night.
Jalen Brunson scored 17 of his 24 points in the second half as the Mavericks broke open a close game. Dallas has won four of its last five and nine of 12.
Nikola Vucevic had 29 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists for the Magic, who dropped their fourth straight.
The Mavs shot 52.2% from the floor and made 17 of 46 3-point attempts. They improved to 13-4 when leading at the half and 5-1 when shooting better than 50%.
Doncic, who turned 22 on Sunday, made 12 of 22 shots and five 3-pointers.
Porzingis missed his final eight shots of the first half, but responded after halftime by making four straight shots, two 3-pointers and four free throws. He finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
TRAIL BLAZERS 123, HORNETS 111: In Portland, Ore., Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points, Damian Lillard had 23 points and 10 assists and Portland snapped a four-game losing streak.
Robert Covington had a season-high 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Blazers, who got off to a sluggish start but led by as many as 19 points in the final quarter.
Portland finished with a franchiserecord 24 3-pointers, led by Lillard and Anthony with six apiece.
LaMelo Ball had 30 points for the Hornets, who have not won in Portland since March 2008. The Blazers are 25-6 against Charlotte in Portland.
76ERS 130, PACERS 114: In Philadelphia, Shake Milton scored 26 points, Furkan Korkmaz had 19 and the reserves sparked Philadelphia.
The Sixers followed one of their worst losses of the season to the struggling Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday with a smackdown of the mediocre Pacers. Joel Embiid had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and Ben Simmons had 18 points and six rebounds.
PELICANS 129, JAZZ 124: In New Orleans, Zion Williamson had 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and the Pelicans held off a late Utah charge.
Brandon Ingram scored 26 points, Lonzo Ball added 23 and JJ Redick had 17, highlighted by a pair of four-point plays on 3-pointers as he was fouled.
Bojan Bogdanovic hit seven 3s and finished with a game-high 31 points for Utah (27-8), which lost for just the eighth time this season, but the second time in three games.
New Orleans led by 14 with 3:54 left, but had to survive the Jazz cutting their deficit to a point in the final minute.
NETS 124, SPURS 113 (OT): In San Antonio, James Harden had 30 points, 15 assists and 14 rebounds and Brooklyn overcame a collapse in the final seconds of regulation to beat the Spurs, snapping a 17-game losing streak in San Antonio.
Kyrie Irving added 27 points and Bruce Brown had 23 for Brooklyn.
The Spurs closed the fourth quarter on a 10-0 run to force overtime.
NUGGETS 118, BULLS 112: In Chicago, Nikola Jokic dominated with 39 points and 14 rebounds, and Denver beat Chicago.
Jokic scored 17 in the fourth quarter to help the Nuggets come away with the win after blowing a 15-point lead. He finished with nine assists, just missing his 50th career triple-double.
Jamal Murray scored 24. Michael Porter Jr. added 17 points and 15 rebounds, and the Nuggets won for the third time in four games.
All-Star Zach LaVine led Chicago with 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
CAVALIERS 101, ROCKETS 90: In Houston, Collin Sexton scored 39 points and Cleveland handed hapless Houston its 12th straight loss.
The Cavaliers have won four straight after losing their previous 10 games. It’s Houston’s longest losing streak since dropping 15 in a row in 2001, and the first time the Rockets have lost five straight at home since March 2006.
Notes
HAWKS FIRE COACH: Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce was fired less than halfway into a season that began with heightened expectations but was beset by injuries.
Hawks president Travis Schlenk announced the move on Monday.
The Hawks are 14-20 and 11th in the Eastern Conference, following a 109-99 loss at Miami on Sunday night. It was the Hawks’ 11th loss after holding a fourth-quarter lead.
Pierce, 44, gave no indication that he thought he was in trouble after Sunday’s loss. He ran the Hawks’ practice on Monday morning in Miami.
The Hawks named Nate McMillan interim coach. McMillan, the former Indiana Pacers coach, was added to Pierce’s staff in the offseason. McMillan has a 661-588 record with Seattle, Portland and Indiana.
GAME PUSHED BACK: Toronto’s game against Detroit that was scheduled for Tuesday is being postponed until Wednesday, but the league cautioned that Wednesday is a tentative date, “pending additional test results.”
Tuesday’s game becomes the 31st postponed this season because at least one team was unable to play in accordance with the league’s health and safety policies.
The Raptors have been without coach Nick Nurse and five other staff members since late last week because of virus-related issues. Starting forward Pascal Siakam has also been placed on the team’s protocols list.