Nets erase 28-point deficit, stun Celtics
Mikal Bridges scored 38 points and the Brooklyn Nets overcame a 28-point deficit to stun the Boston Celtics 115-105 on Friday night.
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.
Fellow former Sun Cam Johnson added 20 points. Dorian Finney-smith finished with 17.
It is the largest comeback by a Boston opponent since the Los Angeles Clippers also rallied from 28 down to beat Boston 123-112 at TD Garden on Feb. 9, 2019.
Jaylen Brown led Boston with 35 points. Jayson Tatum, who was celebrating his 25th birthday, added 22 points and 13 rebounds.
The Celtics have lost two out of three and lost more ground on East-leading Milwaukee, which was idle Friday.
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 Chicago.
Josh Okogie scored 25 and made five 3-pointers and the Suns withstood big efforts by Demar Derozan and Zach Lavine to win for the eighth time in 11 games.
Durant continued to make a seamless transition following the trade from Brooklyn and once again showed no lingering issues from a sprained right knee that sidelined him for seven weeks. The 34-year-old star took just 10 shots. Hr he had nine rebounds and six assists, helping the Suns win their seventh in a row against Chicago.
Derozan led the Bulls with 31 points, and Lavine had 27.
KNICKS 122, HEAT 120
Julius Randle scored 43 points, the last of them on a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left, and New York beat Miami to extend its winning streak to eight games.
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 had 17. At 38-27, the Knicks have already topped last season’s win total.
Jimmy Butler scored 33 points and Tyler Herro had 29 for Miami, including a layup that put the Heat up by one with 23.1 seconds left.
HAWKS 129,
TRAIL BLAZERS 111
Dejounte Murray scored a career-high 41 points and Atlanta overcome Portland star Damian Lillard’s 33-point night to give new coach Quin Snyder his first victory with the Hawks.
Snyder, the former Utah coach, agreed to a five-year deal as Atlanta’s coach on Feb. 26, five days after the firing of Nate Mcmillan. The Hawks lost to Washington 119-116 on Tuesday night in Snyder’s debut.
Murray scored 15 points in the second quarter. He made 17 of 22 shots from the field for the game and all five of his 3-point attempts. Trae Young took over with 15 in the third quarter and finished with 23 points and 11 assists.
MAGIC 117, HORNETS 106
Paolo Banchero scored 31 points and finally got a couple of shots to fall from long range to help Orlando beat Charlotte.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft was 1 of 33 on 3-point attempts in February and started this month 0 for 2 before going 2 of 6 from against the Hornets. It was his first game with multiple 3s since Jan. 30.
Kelly Oubre Jr. scored 29 points for Charlotte. The Hornets have lost two straight since Lamelo Ball went down with a seasonending ankle injury. THUNDER 130, JAZZ 103
Aaron Wiggins scored 27 points and Oklahoma City beat Utah to snap a five-game losing streak.
Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-alexander, an All-star who averages 31 points, missed his fourth straight game. He was out due to health and safety protocols and an abdominal strain.
Lauri Markkanen had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Jazz.