Luis Scola, Donald Sloan and Lance Stephenson accounted for all the points in a decisive 12-2 run, thwarting a late charge by the Chicago Bulls and helping the Indiana Pacers, the NBA’s last unbeaten team, to an 97-80 victory on Wednesday night.
The Pacers have won their opening five games for the first time since 1971-1972. Paul George had 21 points and six rebounds to lead Indiana, while David West had a season-high 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Luol Deng and Derrick Rose scored 17 points each to lead Chicago (1-3). Rose scored only three points in the second half.
THUNDER 107, MAVERICKS 93
In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant had 23 points and 10 assists, while Russell Westbrook scored 22 points as Oklahoma City pulled away in the second half to beat Dallas.
Serge Ibaka added 17 points and 13 rebounds for the Thunder (3-1), who won their second straight game following Westbrook’s return from two off-season knee surgeries.
Jeremy Lamb added 13 points for Oklahoma City, who have won 11 straight games against the Mavericks, including the playoffs. The last loss for the Thunder against Dallas was on Jan. 2 last year.
Monta Ellis led the Mavericks (3-2), who were playing their second game in two nights, with 20 points. Jae Crowder and Shawn Marion added 17 each, while Dirk Nowitzki finished with 16.
SPURS 99, SUNS 96
In San Antonio, Tony Parker scored 15 of the Spurs’ final 16 points, helping San Antonio withstand a hectic finish to beat Phoenix.
Parker scored 20 overall, Danny Green had 19 points, Tim Duncan added 17 points and Boris Diaw 11 points for San Antonio (4-1).
Markieff Morris tied a career high with 23 points and also had 11 rebounds for Phoenix (3-2). Morris’ twin brother, Marcus, added 11 points, while Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee each had 15.
Plumlee’s reverse layup gave Phoenix a 96-95 lead with 1 minute remaining. The Suns had an opportunity to extend the lead following a miss by Duncan, but Manu Ginobili drew a charge on Danny Green.
Parker followed with a short jumper to give San Antonio the lead for good.
Gerald Green missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have tied the game.
CELTICS 97, JAZZ 87
In Boston, Brandon Bass scored 20 points and Jeff Green added 18 as the Celtics beat Utah for their first win of the season.
The game reunited new Celtics coach Brad Stevens with Gordon Hayward, the Butler star who took the Bulldogs to the NCAA championship game against Duke. Hayward had 28 points and nine rebounds for Utah (0-5), one of the last two winless teams in the NBA this season.
The attendance of 17,130 was about 1,500 fans short of a sellout, ending a streak of 289 games dating to the end of the 2006-2007 season.
Derrick Favors scored 10 points with 14 rebounds, while Enes Kanter scored 22 with eight boards for the Jazz, who open a season with five straight losses for the first time since 1974, when they were still in New Orleans.
Gerald Wallace had nine points and nine rebounds for Boston (1-4), who led by as many as 25 points in the third quarter, before Utah scored 17 of the first 20 in the fourth to cut a 22-point deficit to single digits.
WARRIORS 106, TIMBERWOLVES 93
In Minneapolis, Klay Thompson scored 19 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and Harrison Barnes scored 14 points in his season debut to help Golden State defeat Minnesota.
David Lee had 22 points and 15 rebounds and Andre Iguodala scored 20 points for the Warriors (4-1).
Kevin Love had 25 points, 16 rebounds and six assists for the Timberwolves, who have lost two straight after a 3-0 start. Kevin Martin added 23 points, but the Wolves’ bench was outscored 27-10.
Stephen Curry had just five points on two-for-eight shooting with seven assists in 24 minutes and sat out the fourth quarter with a bone bruise on his left foot.
MAGIC 98, CLIPPERS 90
In Orlando, Florida, Nik Vucevic had 30 points — including six free throws in the final 23 seconds — and 21 rebounds to help Orlando hold on to beat Los Angeles.
Orlando led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter, before Los Angeles took their first lead with a 25-5 run.
Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 23 points and 13 rebounds, while Chris Paul added 18 points and 10 assists. Former Magic guard J.J. Redick also chipped in 17 points.
The loss ends a three-game win streak for the Clippers, whose three-game road trip continued yesterday in Miami.
In other NBA action, it was:
‧ Bobcats 92, Raptors 90
‧ Bucks 109, Cavaliers 104
‧ Wizards 116, 76ers 102
‧ Pelicans 99, Grizzlies 84
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
Rafael Nadal on Tuesday lost in straight sets to 31st-ranked Jiri Lehecka in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the semi-finals in the women’s doubles. Nadal said that he was feeling good about his progress following his latest injury layoff. Nadal called it a “positive week” in every way and said his body held up well. “I was able to play four matches, a couple of tough matches,” Nadal said. “So very positive, winning three matches, playing four matches at the high level of tennis. I enjoyed a lot playing at home. I leave here with
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
When 42-1 underdog James ‘Buster’ Douglas shocked ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson 34 years ago at the Tokyo Dome, the result reverberated worldwide. Spectators at the 45,000-plus seater venue witnessed one of boxing’s biggest upsets as unbeaten heavyweight champion Tyson was knocked out in the 10th round by the unheralded Douglas in February 1990. Boxing returns to the famous venue on Monday for the first time since that unforgettable encounter when Japan’s undisputed super-bantamweight world champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue puts his belts on the line against Mexican Luis Nery. The 31-year-old Inoue (26-0, 23 KOs) is a huge star in Japan and is just