Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 40 points as the Dallas Mavericks ended a four-game losing streak with a 102-96 win over the Utah Jazz in the NBA on Saturday.
Nowitzki scored 10 points in the fourth quarter as the Mavericks fought off a late rally by the Jazz, who trimmed a 23-point deficit down to five with 1 minute, 41 seconds left.
Dallas forward Lamar Odom played for the first time after missing four games because of personal reasons. He was supposed to play on Saturday in the NBA Development League, but was recalled to the Mavericks and scored nine points in 18 minutes.
Paul Millsap scored 24 points and Derrick Favors added 14 points for Utah.
Hawks 97, Thunder 90
In Atlanta, Georgia, Josh Smith scored 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter as the Hawks ended Oklahoma City’s seven-game winning streak.
Smith matched a season high in scoring and also pulled down seven of his 12 rebounds in the fourth.
Jeff Teague scored 16 points for the Hawks, while Kirk Hinrich and Zaza Pachulia added 10 points apiece.
Kevin Durant finished with 35 points and Russell Westbrook added 25 for the league-best Thunder, who were looking to reach eight straight wins for the first time since February 2010.
Magic 114, Bucks 98
In Orlando, Florida, Dwight Howard had 28 points and 14 rebounds to lead six Magic players in double figures in Orlando’s victory over Milwaukee.
Jason Richardson had 18 points for the Magic, while Hedo Turkoglu and Ryan Anderson chipped in 16 points apiece. Orlando shot 51.7 percent (14 of 27) from three-point distance.
It was the Magic’s fourth victory over the Bucks in 22 days.
Brandon Jennings led -Milwaukee with 27 points and Ersan Ilyasova added 18.
T’wolves 122, Trail Blazers 110
In Portland, Oregon, Kevin Love scored a season-high 42 points and added 10 rebounds as Minnesota ended a 16-game losing streak to Portland. Former Blazers swingman Martel Webster added 21 points and eight rebounds for Minnesota.
Gerald Wallace had 25 points and 14 rebounds for the Blazers, who have lost nine of their last 13 games. Nicolas Batum finished with 29 points.
In other NBA play, it was:
‧ Pacers 102, Hornets 84
‧ Grizzlies 100, Pistons 83
‧ Wizards 101, Cavaliers 98
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