Hornets top Knicks; Wizards win at home

Gordon Hayward’s

$120 million contract looked like money well spent Monday.

Hayward scored 28 points in the first half — the highest-scoring half of his 11-season NBA career — in leading the Charlotte Hornets to a 109-88 home victory over the New York Knicks.

This was the 6-5 Hornets’ fourth consecutive victory, something they didn’t achieve at any time last season. The last fourgame win streak was late in the 2018-19 season, when the Hornets just missed the playoffs.

Hayward finished with 34 points. After opting out of the last $34 million season on his contract with the Boston Celtics, Hayward agreed to come to Charlotte in the biggest free-agent signing in franchise history.

The Hornets (6-5) looked sharp from tipoff, committing just two firsthalf turnovers and opening a lead of as many as 17 points.

Devonte Graham added a season-high 19 points and added seven assists.

Kevin Knox had 19 points to lead the Knicks, and Mitchell Robinson had 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Wizards 128, Suns

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107: Bradley Beal scored 34 points as Washington snapped its three-game losing streak and won at home for the first time this season.

The Wizards (3-8), who had lost five straight at home, played without guard Russell Westbrook. He will miss at least a week with a left quadriceps injury.

Beal, the NBA’s leading scorer, had eight rebounds and nine assists. Davis Bertans had 18 points for Washington, all on three-pointers.

Devin Booker lead Phoenix (7-4) with 33 points. Chris Paul had 14 points and 11 assists. Mikal Bridges also had 14.

Grizzlies 101, Cava

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liers 91: Dillon Brooks scored 21 points and Memphis recovered after blowing a 16-point lead to beat Cleveland.

Brandon Clarke scored 15 points and Tyus Jones had 13 points, seven assists and three steals for the Grizzlies, who won their second straight and improved to 3-1 on the road.

Memphis led 73-57 late in the third quarter, but Cleveland responded with a 27-8 run capped by Damyean Dotson’s basket with 6:43 remaining in the fourth to go ahead by three.

A three-pointer by De’Anthony Melton put the Grizzlies back in front for good at 89-86 with 4:40 remaining.

Cavaliers center Andre Drummond had 19 points and 14 rebounds for his 11th straight double-double to start the season. Dotson added 14 points and six assists, and Cedi Osman had 14 points.

Bucks121, Magic 99:

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Giannis Antetokounmpo returned from a onegame absence because of a minor back injury and scored 22 points as Milwaukee won in Orlando.

Antetokounmpo, the reigning two-time NBA MVP, started slowly and battled through secondhalf foul trouble before coming alive in the fourth quarter. Milwaukee won a second straight and beat Orlando for a fifth consecutive time in the regular season.

Khris Middleton finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds for the

Bucks, while reserve Bobby Portis played well for a second straight game, scoring 20 points.

Nikola Vucevic had 28 points and 13 rebounds to lead the short-handed Magic, who have lost three straight since Markelle Fultz was lost to a season-ending knee injury. Aaron Gordon had 21 points, eight assists and five rebounds and contributed solid defense against Antetokounmpo.

●Hawks 112, 76ers 94: Trae Young scored 26 points, including the first three baskets of host Atlanta’s dominant start to the second half, as the Hawks beat short-handed Philadelphia.

De’Andre Hunter and Brandon Goodwin had 15 points as the Hawks snapped a four-game losing streak. Clint Capela added 12 points and 10 rebounds as six Atlanta players scored in double figures.

Joel Embiid led Philadelphia with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Isaiah

Joe had 18 points.

ELSEWHERE

●Two games postponed: The NBA cited its coronavirus health protocols in postponing two more games, bringing the total number of games postponed for this reason to four.

The affected games were Monday night’s matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans, and Tuesday’s Boston Celtics-Chicago Bulls game.

The league said that it would be meeting with the NBA players’ union “about modifying the league’s health and safety protocols.”