KINGS EDGE CLIPS ON LATE FREE THROW
Domantas Sabonis made two free throws with seven seconds left to cap a neartriple double in the Sacramento Kings’ 128-127 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.
Sabonis had 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists to help the Kings win their fifth straight game.
Paul George missed a 3pointer at the buzzer for Los Angeles. He finished with 28 points, hitting a 3-pointer to give the Clippers a one-point lead with 51.2 seconds left.
Sabonis responded with a layup on the other end, and George made a layup with 33.1 seconds left to take the lead back.
De’Aaron Fox added 33 points for Sacramento for his eighth consecutive 30-point game. Harrison Barnes had 20 points and Kevin Huerter 18.
Russell Westbrook scored 28 points for Los Angeles, and Eric Gordon had 21. The Clippers have lost five straight.
Kawhi Leonard (right knee injury management), Marcus Morris Sr. (left elbow contusion) and Ivica Zubac (calf soreness) were unavailable for Los Angeles.
Warriors 108, Pelicans 99: Klay Thompson scored 27 points and hit the go-ahead 3pointer, helping Golden State wrap up a perfect homestand with a victory over New Orleans. The Warriors went 5-0 on the homestand despite missing injured star Stephen Curry to strengthen their playoff positioning in the ultra-tight Western Conference.
Nuggets 113, Grizzlies 97: Nikola Jokic had 18 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists for his 25th triple-double this season to lead host Denver over Memphis in a showdown of the top two teams in the Western Conference.
Denver won the season series 2-1 and holds a six-game lead — five in the loss column — over Memphis for the top seed in the Western Conference. Sacramento is seven games back.
Timberwolves 110, Lakers 102: Rudy Gobert had 22 points and 14 rebounds, Anthony Edwards scored 19 points and Minnesota completed a two-game Los Angeles sweep with a victory over the short-handed Lakers.
Naz Reid scored 15 for the Wolves, who moved back above .500 and rebounded from an 0-3 stretch with impressive back-to-back wins over the Clippers and Lakers, whose fourth-quarter rally fell just short.
Anthony Davis scored 38 points and Malik Beasley had 15 for the Lakers, who lost for only the second time in six games. Los Angeles couldn’t keep up without injured LeBron James and D’Angelo Russell, who wasn’t able to suit up against the team that traded him Feb. 9 after parts of four seasons in Minnesota.
The Lakers’ playoff fate could be determined before then: This loss to eighthplace Minnesota began a vital stretch of Los Angeles’ season with 10 of 12 games at home. Los Angeles is 5-3 since its flurry of activity at the deadline.
Knicks 122, Heat 107: Julius Randle scored 43 points, the last of them on a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left, and New York extended its winning streak to eight games with a win over at Miami.
Randle was 16 of 25 from the floor, including 8 of 13 from 3-point range. Jalen Brunson scored 25 points, Immanuel Quickley added 21 and RJ Barrett scored 17 for New York.
Jimmy Butler scored 33 points and Tyler Herro scored 29 for Miami, including a layup that put the Heat up by one with 23.1 seconds left.
Nets 115, Celtics 105: Mikal Bridges scored 38 points and visiting Brooklyn overcame a 28-point deficit to stun Boston. Part of the trade that sent Kevin Durant to Phoenix, Bridges has reached 30 or more points in three of Brooklyn’s last six games. He also had 10 rebounds, playing nearly 43 minutes.
Suns 125, Bulls 104: Devin Booker scored 35 points and matched his career high with six 3s, Kevin Durant added 20 points in his second game with Phoenix and the Suns beat host Chicago. Josh Okogie scored 25 and made five 3pointers and the Suns withstood big efforts by DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine to win for the eighth time in 11 games.
Hawks 129, Trail Blazers 111: Dejounte Murray scored a career-high 41 points to help Atlanta overcome Damian Lillard’s 33 points and give new coach Quin Snyder his first win with the Hawks, a victory over slumping Portland at home.
Magic 117, Hornets 106: Paolo Banchero scored 31 points and finally got a couple shots to fall from long range to help visiting Orlando beat Charlotte.
Thunder 129, Jazz 103: Aaron Wiggins scored 27 points and host Oklahoma City defeated Utah to snap a five-game losing streak. The Thunder hadn’t won since Feb. 15 — their final game before the All-Star break. They never trailed in this one.