Aldridge, Spurs halt 8-game losing streak
NEW YORK — LaMarcus Aldridge scored 23 points and the San Antonio Spurs snapped their longest losing skid under coach Gregg Popovich at eight games with a 111-104 victory over the New York Knicks on Saturday night.
The Spurs never trailed, led by as many as 28 and looked like the kind of team Popovich has usually had, not this one that has been one of the NBA’s worst defensively.
DeMar DeRozan added 21 points and nine rebounds for the Spurs, who came in yielding 116.1 points per game but held the Knicks under 100 until the final 10 seconds of the game.
Marcus Morris scored 20 points for the Knicks.
LAKERS 109, GRIZZLIES 108
LeBron James scored on a driving layup with 1:30 left to put the Los Angeles ahead to stay as it held off host Memphis for its seventh straight victory.
James finished with 30 points. Anthony Davis added 22, Rajon Rondo had 14, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 12 and Dwight Howard had 10.
Rookie Ja Morant led Memphis with 26 points. Jae Crowder added 21, Jackson finished with 20, Dillon Brooks had 12 and Anderson scored 10.
BUCKS 104, PISTONS 90
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 28 points and 10 rebounds for his 16th consecutive double-double to help host Milwaukee beat Detroit, the Bucks’ seventh straight victory.
Wesley Mathews added 13 points and Eric Bledsoe scored 11 for the Bucks, who improved their record to an Eastern Conference best 13-3.
76ERS 113, HEAT 86
Josh Richardson scored 32 points and host Philadelphia led from start to finish over Jimmy Butler and Miami.
Joel Embiid added 23 points and 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who won their fourth straight overall while improving to 7-0 at home.
Butler struggled to 11 points, missing nine of 13 field-goal attempts in his return to Philadelphia. He sat out the entire fourth.
Tyler Herro had 20 points to pace the Heat, who had won five in a row.
SUNS 100, T-WOLVES 98
Devin Booker had 35 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, and visiting Phoenix beat Minnesota in a matchup of short-handed teams.
Kelly Oubre Jr. added 25 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who had lost three in a row.
Phoenix was clinging to a 98-95 lead when Minnesota star Karl-Anthony Towns missed a 3-pointer with 9.2 seconds left from just inside the half-court line. Booker went to the line and iced the game with a pair of free throws.
PACERS 11, MAGIC 106
Domantas Sabonis scored 25 points, Aaron Holiday hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 8.7 seconds left, and host Indiana beat Orlando.
Holiday, who finished with 13 points, had missed three other attempts from beyond the arc before breaking a 106-all tie. After his big shot, brother Justin Holiday stole the inbounds pass, was fouled and hit both free throws with 3.6 seconds remaining.
Evan Fournier scored 26 points for the Magic.
BULLS 116, HORNETS 115
Zach LaVine had a career-high 49 points, including the winning 3pointer with 0.8 seconds left to give visiting Chicago the win over Charlotte.
LaVine, who questioned his relationship with coach Jim Boylen the previous night, shot 17 for 28 from the field — including 13 for 17 on 3s to tie an NBA record. Only Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson had previously made 13 from beyond the arc in an NBA game.
RAPTORS 119, HAWKS 116
Pascal Siakam scored 34 points and Fred VanVleet had 25, helping visiting Toronto beat Trae Young and Atlanta.
Siakam has scored at least 30 in six games, one more than last season.
CAVALIERS 110 TRAIL BLAZERS 104
Jordan Clarkson made all six of his 3-point attempts and scored 28 points, and host Cleveland ended a six-game losing streak by beating Portland.
Tristan Thompson scored 25 points while Larry Nance Jr., who replaced the injured Kevin Love in the starting lineup, had 11 points and 12 boards.
JAZZ 128, PELICANS 120
Donovan Mitchell scored a season-high 37 points and Bojan Boganovic added 28 to help host Utah overcome the absence of Rudy Gobert and outlast New Orleans.