Pelicans’ Williamson has an All-Star performance
Zion Williamson scored 32 points in his first game since being named a firsttime All-Star, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Detroit Pistons 128-118 on Wednesday night.
Highlighting his performance with quick dribbling spin moves to elude multiple converging defenders in the paint and set up short floaters and layups, or with thunderous one-handed dunks on cuts down the lane or along the baseline, Williamson made 13 of his 18 shots in reaching the 30-point threshold for the eighth time this season.
Brandon Ingram added 27 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for New Orleans, which trailed most of the first three quarters.
Josh Jackson scored 25, and Mason Plumlee added 21 points for Detroit, which led by 10 in the first half and nine in the third quarter.
CAVALIERS 112, ROCKETS 96
>> Jarrett Allen tied his career high with 26 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked four shots as the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled away for a win over Houston, extending the Rockets’ losing streak to nine games.
Allen, who leads the NBA making 67.2% of his field goals, made 10 of 11 shots from the floor.
John Wall scored 20 points and Victor Oladipo had 17 points and six rebounds in his return from a strained right foot for Houston,
HAWKS 127, CELTICS 112 >>
Danilo Gallinari set an Atlanta franchise record with 10 3-pointers in a 38-point spree that carried the Hawks to a rout of the Boston Celtics.
Gallinari broke the mark of nine 3-pointers by Steve Smith in a 1997 game against Seattle. The Hawks also eclipsed the overall team record by going 23 of 42 beyond beyond the arc.
Trae Young played like an All-Star, adding 33 points as the Hawks built a 27-point lead in the first half. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 17 points.
THUNDER 102, SPURS 99 >>
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a career-high 42 points and Lu Dort hit a
3-pointer as time expired to give the Oklahoma City Thunder a victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
San Antonio turned the ball over with 3.9 seconds remaining, giving Oklahoma City the ball with the score tied. Dort’s corner 3-pointer dropped as the buzzer sounded, and his teammates mobbed him.
HEAT 116, RAPTORS 108 >> Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat are continuing to claw their way back from a brutal start to the season.
Butler scored 27 points, 14 of them in the final quarter, and the Heat won their fourth consecutive game by topping the Toronto Raptors.
Butler also had 10 assists and eight rebounds for the Heat, plus a season-high three 3-pointers — two of them in the final minutes. Bam Adebayo had 19 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, Duncan Robinson added 17 points and Goran Dragic scored 15 in his return from an ankle injury.
Kyle Lowry, returning from a thumb injury, scored 24 for Toronto. Fred VanVleet also had 24.
SUNS’ BOOKER ADDED TO ALL-STAR ROSTER >> Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker was selected Wednesday to replace injured Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis in the NBA All-Star Game.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver choose Booker to take Davis’ spot a day after Booker was snubbed by the league’s head coaches for a reserve spot in the March 7 game in Atlanta.