The Orlando Magic easily handled a Phoenix Suns team playing without point guard Steve Nash in a 105-89 win on Thursday.
Jameer Nelson had 15 points and a season-high 12 assists, Dwight Howard added 20 points and 12 rebounds and every starter scored in double digits for the Magic, who built a 32-point lead and blew past the Suns from the opening tip.
Orlando has won three straight.
With Nash sidelined because of a sore groin, backup point guard Goran Dragic had 10 points, four assists and four rebounds.
Grant Hill scored 21 points in the lone bright spot for the Suns, who lost on consecutive nights in Florida by a combined 43 points.
TRAIL BLAZERS 86, NUGGETS 83
In Portland, Portland rallied in the second half to edge Denver.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 24 points and Wesley Matthews added 20 for the Blazers, who trailed by as many as nine points after halftime, but outscored Denver 17-12 in the fourth quarter to pull out the win.
Aldridge hit 9 of 20 shots and grabbed 10 rebounds during a 41-minute performance. Matthews, starting his second consecutive game in place of injured Brandon Roy, hit three consecutive 3-pointers during the second quarter.
PACERS 107, CLIPPERS 80
In Indianapolis, Danny Granger scored 22 points as an undermanned Indiana overwhelmed the lowly Los Angeles Clippers.
Roy Hibbert had 18 points and eight rebounds, while Brandon Rush and A.J. Price each added 14 points for the Pacers, who shot 51 percent from the field to make up for the absence of starters Darren Collison and Mike Dunleavy. Collison sat out with a sprained ankle, while Dunleavy missed the game because his wife was in labor.
Inter on Sunday were given a letoff when they snatched a late 1-1 derby draw with AC Milan, while league leaders SSC Napoli were held by a late goal at AS Roma. Reigning champions Inter remain three points behind Napoli, who looked to be heading five clear as they led in Rome until Angelino volleyed in a stunning leveler in the first minute of stoppage-time. Angelino’s strike gave even more significance to Stefan de Vrij’s last-gasp equalizer at the San Siro. The defender forced home Nicola Zalewski’s knockdown just as it looked like Tijjani Reijnders’ opener would be enough for Milan. “I can
The Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets on Saturday did not disappoint in a thrilling midseason matchup in front of a fired-up sellout crowd of more than 18,500 fans. The top two teams in the NHL delivered with a combined nine goals, including the 877th of Alex Ovechkin’s career to put him 18 back of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record. That tied the score, the Jets pulled it out in overtime and just about everyone involved got their money’s worth out of the 5-4 game. “We knew how we were both sitting in the standings and both having real good years,” Winnipeg coach Scott
BACK-TO-BACK: The League One club, which is owned by stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, is sparing no expense to clinch promotion to the Championship Hollywood endings are pricey, even in England’s third division. In pursuit of their third straight promotion, Wrexham AFC splashed some cash at League One rival Reading to secure the services of striker Sam Smith. The Welsh club owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney confirmed the signing of the 26-year-old Smith on Friday. He is one of the top scorers in the third division. The transfer fee was not disclosed, but British media widely reported it to be about £2 million (US$2.48 million) — not extravagant, but a hefty price at this level and it would be about the same figure that
Santiago Castro on Tuesday had an immediate impact off the bench as he scored the goal to send Bologna into the Coppa Italia semi-finals for the first time in 26 years. Bologna won 1-0 against last year’s runners-up, Atalanta BC, and are to play either holders Juventus or Empoli in the final four. Juventus are to host Empoli in their quarter-final on Feb. 26. The last time Bologna reached the semi-finals was in 1999, when they lost 4-2 to ACF Fiorentina. There were chances for both sides in a high-tempo match in Bergamo, but it was Bologna who broke the deadlock 10 minutes from