Doncic, Mavs pound Pelicans
DALLAS — Luka Doncic scored 28 points in 26 minutes, leading Dallas in a rout of New Orleans 130-84 on Saturday.
The Mavericks’ 46-point win wasn’t their largest margin of victory this season — they outscored the Golden State Warriors by 48 last month.
Dallas (18-8) has won five in a row and 10 of 11 for the first time since winning is its only NBA championship in 2010-11. New Orleans is on an eight-game losing streak.
Doncic didn’t play in the fourth quarter after the Mavericks ran up a 38point lead at 104-66.
Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kristaps Porzingis scored 14 and 13 points before taking a seat with Doncic.
Off the bench, Boban Marjanovic had season highs of 15 points and 16 rebounds. Jalen Brunson scored 14.
J.J. Redick led New Orleans with 15 points. Brandon Ingram and Jrue Holiday scored 14 each and Jaxson Hayes had 11.
Dallas led 64-52 at halftime. Doncic had 20 points and Marjanovic 11, nine in the second quarter.
The Pelicans were scoreless for 4:07 of the third quarter while the Mavericks scored 14 points for a 97-60 lead.
76ERS 141, CAVALIERS 94
Ben Simmons hit his second career 3-pointer and scored a career-high 34 points, and host Philadelphia didn’t need Joel Embiid’s help to rout Cleveland.
Simmons made 12 of 14 field goals, including his only 3-point attempt, and hit 9 of 12 free throws to help Philadelphia improve to 11-0 at home. Embiid sat out with a left hip contusion.
PACERS 104, KNICKS 103
Julius Randle missed a free throw with 0.1 seconds left, sending host New
York to a loss to Indiana in the Knicks’ first game since firing coach David Fizdale.
The Knicks were much more competitive under interim coach Mike Miller than they had been in recent games under Fizdale, who was fired Friday. They chased after rebounds and loose balls throughout the fourth quarter, erasing an 11-point deficit and giving themselves a shot at overtime when Randle was fouled while trying to put back the rebound of a scramble.
He calmly made the first free throw but the second was long, sending New York to a ninth straight loss and a 4-19 record.
Domantas Sabonis had 19 points and 15 rebounds for the Pacers.
JAZZ 126, GRIZZLIES 112
Donovan Mitchell scored 22 points and Bojan Bogdanovic, Rudy Gobert and Jeff Green each added 19 as host Utah rolled past Memphis.