Cancer survivor George Karl recorded his 1,000th coaching victory as the Denver Nuggets rode Al Harrington’s season-high 31 points to a 123-116 win over Toronto on Friday.
Karl missed the end of the last NBA season while being treated for neck and throat cancer. He also survived prostate cancer in 2005.
“It’s unbelievable,” Nuggets player Chauncey Billups said. “He’s got 1,000 wins and he beat cancer twice. Those are his biggest wins.”
PHOTO: REUTERS
Harrington also grabbed six rebounds while Nene scored 26 points for the Nuggets, who made Karl the seventh coach in NBA history with 1,000 wins.
Billups scored 21 points and Gary Forbes had 15 as Denver snapped a two-game losing streak. J.R. Smith added 11 points in the victory.
Former Nugget Linas Kleiza finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds, while Leandro Barbosa matched his season best with 22 points for the Raptors, who lost their fourth-consecutive game. The struggling Raptors have also dropped six of their past eight.
BULLS 88, LAKERS 84
In Chicago, Derrick Rose had 29 points and nine assists as the Chicago Bulls held off a late rally by the Los Angeles Lakers for an 88-84 victory on Friday night at the United Center arena.
It was the Bulls’ first win in nearly four years over the Lakers, who scored a season low.
The Bulls hit eight three-pointers, of which Rose scored three.
Bulls Kyle Korver also connected on a trio of threes and finished with 13 points for Chicago, who held a 26-13 edge in points off the bench.
The two-time defending NBA champion Lakers were led by Kobe Bryant’s 23 points. Bryant shot a dismal nine of 23 from the field.
The Lakers had won seven consecutive games against the Bulls since a 94-89 Chicago win in December 2006 at the United Center.
HEAT 106, WARRIORS 84
In Oakland, California, Dwyane Wade had 34 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, while LeBron James added 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, as Miami won their season-best seventh straight game with a victory over slumping Golden State.
Miami also established a franchise best with seven consecutive wins by double digits. The Heat moved into first place in the -Southeast Division for the first time all season.
Monta Ellis had 20 points and seven assists in Golden State’s season-worst sixth straight loss.
Chris Bosh added 16 points and seven rebounds in the Heat’s fifth consecutive win over Golden State, mired in a 1-11 stretch.
The Warriors dropped their fifth straight at Oracle Arena after beginning the season 5-0 at home. They haven’t won on their own floor since Nov. 15 against Detroit.
KNICKS 101, WIZARDS 95
In Washington, Amare Stoudemire had 36 points and 10 rebounds to help overcome his 11 turnovers as New York beat Washington for their seventh straight victory.
Stoudemire posted his seventh straight 30-point game. Willie Naulls is the only other player in franchise history with such a run — and he accomplished it way back in 1962.
Gilbert Arenas scored 20 points to lead the Wizards.
PACERS 100, BOBCATS 92
In Indianapolis, Indiana, Danny Granger scored 18 points to help Indiana beat Charlotte.
Brandon Rush added 16 points, while Mike Dunleavy 15. Roy Hibbert had 13 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and three blocks for the Pacers.
Gerald Wallace led the Bobcats with 26 points. Ex-Pacer Stephen Jackson had 15 points and eight assists, but he shot seven for 17 from the field and committed seven turnovers.
In Friday’s other action, it was:
‧ Timberwolves 109, Pistons 99
‧ Thunder 97, Hornets 92
‧ Bucks 97, Rockets 91
‧ Spurs 108, Hawks 92
‧ Trail Blazers 101, Suns 94
‧ Jazz 117, Magic 105
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
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB