Kevin Garnett made a triumphant return from injury to help the Boston Celtics defeat the San Antonio Spurs 80-77 on Friday.
Garnett scored 10 points in limited action after missing 13 games with an ailing knee and Glen Davis made a clutch jump shot with five seconds remaining to allow the Celtics (52-18) to keep sole possession of second place in the Eastern Conference.
“[Garnett’s] our leader and we missed his leadership out on the floor, his verbal leadership,” Boston coach Doc Rivers told reporters. “He’s the one guy who holds everyone accountable defensively. Our whole thing is still trying to get ready for the playoffs.”
PHOTO: AP
Ray Allen led the team with 19 points in a return of his own following a missed contest because of an elbow injury.
Tony Parker had a game-high 25 points and eight assists for the Spurs (45-23), who have undergone similar health problems that have plagued Boston.
Tim Duncan missed Tuesday’s game to rest his knees but was back on the court and finished with 15 points and nine rebounds.
In what was a defensive affair, Boston pulled away from a 74-74 tie on buckets from unlikely sources. Center Kendrick Perkins made a jumper with 2:11 left followed by Davis’ baseline shot two minutes later to give the Celtics their second straight win.
Garnett played only 15 minutes but provided a boost for his team, who went just 7-6 in his absence.
Rajon Rondo chipped in 16 points and 12 assists as both teams shot just 41 percent from the field.
The Spurs missed six free throws in a row in the final 2:31, including four from Parker, to lose for the third time in five contests.
“That happens. That’s basketball,” Duncan said of the missed opportunities. “We had the guys we wanted at the line and got good shots. This was a very winnable game, we just didn’t have enough good performances — mainly myself.”
Argentina’s Manu Ginobili missed his 17th straight game with an ankle injury while San Antonio’s hold over second place in the Western Conference was narrowed to half a game over the Houston Rockets.
ROCKETS 107, TIMBERWOLVES 88
At Houston, Texas, Ron Artest scored 20 points while Aaron Brooks and Von Wafer added 13 apiece in Houston’s win over Minnesota.
Yao Ming scored 14 points but missed 10 of his 16 shots. He also had eight rebounds before leaving for good late in the third quarter. The Rockets had the game in hand by then, stretching their lead to 24 earlier in the quarter.
Craig Smith scored 19 and Kevin Love had 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Timberwolves.
NETS 96, HEAT 88
At East Rutherford, New Jersey, Vince Carter had 17 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as New Jersey spoiled the return of NBA leading scorer Dwyane Wade to the lineup after a one-game absence.
Jarvis Hayes hit two late jumpers and rookie Chris Douglas-Roberts, getting playing time because of a shoulder injury that has sidelined Devin Harris, added a three-pointer with 1:10 to go as New Jersey won its second straight game.
Hayes and Douglas-Roberts each finished with 18 points and Brook Lopez added 15.
Wade had 27 points, eight rebounds and six assists in returning from a hip flexor injury that caused him to sit out of Wednesday night’s loss in Boston. Michael Beasley added 17 points and Jermaine O’Neal had 15.
MAVERICKS 94, PACERS 92
At Indianapolis, Indiana, Dirk Nowitzki finished the game with a nifty stepback move, then hit a 20-foot shot with 1.1 seconds left as Dallas edged Indiana.
In other games it was:
• Kings 121, Knicks 94
• Bobcats 102, Raptors 89
• Jazz 101, Thunder 94
• Hornets 96, Grizzlies 84
• Pistons 108, Clippers 90
• Nuggets 116, Wizards 105
• Warriors 119, 76ers 111
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
HSIEH MAKES QUARTERS: Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens of Belgium won in the women’s doubles and face Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sofia Kenin of the US Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and US Open champion Coco Gauff were knocked out of the women’s singles at the Miami Open on Monday, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced in the women’s doubles. Swiatek lost to Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-2, hours after third seed Gauff fell in three sets to No. 23 Caroline Garcia 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. Alexandrova beat a top-ranked player for the first time and advanced to face Jessica Pegula, a 7-6 (7/1), 6-3 winner over Emma Navarro, in the quarter-finals. Alexandrova recorded her second win over Swiatek, following a 2021 victory in Melbourne. Swiatek had won their three matches since. “We played quite