A Chris Paul layup with 8.8 seconds left gave the Los Angeles Clippers a 100-98 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday, keeping the Clippers in position for home-court advantage in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Paul scored 31 points and got past Thunder defensive specialist Thabo Sefolosha for the critical basket, squeezing the ball onto the rim to put the Clippers ahead.
The Thunder’s Kevin Durant missed a 3-point attempt that could have won it, hitting the back rim on a shot from the left wing.
Photo: Reuters
Durant led Oklahoma City with 22 points.
LAKERS 98, SPURS 84
In San Antonio, Andrew Bynum had 16 points and 30 rebounds — the most boards in an NBA game this season — as Los Angeles recorded a surprisingly comfortable win over San Antonio.
Metta World Peace (formerly Ron Artest) scored 26 points for the Lakers, who made light of missing Kobe Bryant for a third straight game and handed the Western Conference’s second-place team one of their most embarrassing losses.
Bynum’s dominating night surpassed the previous NBA season-high of 25 rebounds.
Danny Green led the Spurs with 22 points.
CELTICS 88, HAWKS 86, OT
In Boston, Paul Pierce overcame a miserable shooting game with a key jumper in overtime that gave Celtic victory over Atlanta.
Rajon Rondo finished with a triple-double with 20 assists, 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Jeff Teague led the Hawks with 21 points.
GRIZZLIES 104, SUNS 93
In Memphis, Rudy Gay scored a season-high 32 points as Memphis won their fourth straight game with a victory over Phoenix.
Memphis outscored the Suns 17-6 after the game was tied with 6:27 seconds left. Dante Cunningham had six of his 10 points during that run.
Marcin Gortat had 19 points for Phoenix on 9 of 12 from the floor.
JAZZ 103, ROCKETS 91
In Houston, Gordan Hayward scored a season-high 29 points as Utah boosted their fading playoff hopes with a victory over Houston.
Paul Millsap added 21 points for the Jazz, who held the No. 10 spot in the Western Conference standings coming into the game.
The Jazz shot 51 percent (40 of 78) and led by as many as 18, taking advantage of Houston’s 36 percent shooting from the field.
In Wednesday’s other games it was:
‧ Knicks 111, Bucks 107
‧ Nuggets 113, Timberwolves
107
‧ Pacers 104, Cavaliers 98, OT
‧ 76ers 93, Raptors 75
‧ Trail Blazers 118, Warriors110
‧ Hornets 105, Kings 96
The Taiwan Daredevils yesterday won one and lost one in the Taiwan Premier League, dispatching TCA with ease, but stumbling against Formosa. In the morning match at the Yingfeng Cricket Ground in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山), the Daredevils’ Johan Koekemoer carried his side to 141-6 with 44 from 45 in their 20 overs. George Klopper’s right-arm spin dominated in the run chase. He claimed 4-5 from 3.3 overs as TCA slumped to 77 all out. The highlight of the innings was a stunning catch at cover as Jeff Black turned back the years to pull in a full-blooded drive on the dive
The Hsinchu Titans yesterday made a strong start in Group A of the Taiwan Premier League in Taipei, winning two games as the 10-team T20 competition began at the Yingfeng Cricket Ground. Chetan Sharma scored 57 from 30 deliveries in the morning match as the Titans made 178-7 against the Taipei Indians, who helped their opponents’ cause with 26 extras. Pramod Mandal took 3-11 as the Indians struggled to 126-8 in reply. The Taipei Stallions posed a greater hurdle to the Titans in the afternoon match, posting 163-7 after choosing to bat first. Hassaan Samad smashed 77 from 44 with seven fours and six
Alexander Zverev on Wednesday reached his 18th ATP Masters semi-final in Rome, but only after a worrying fall which sparked memories of the horror injury he had at the French Open two years ago. The world No. 5 from Germany defeated Taylor Fritz of the US 6-4, 6-3 in Italian Open to set up a last-four duel with Alejandro Tabilo, the Chilean journeyman who had stunned world No. 1 Novak Djokovic earlier in the tournament. Zverev’s moment of concern came in just the third game on center court at the Foro Italico when he fell on the clay and landed on his
Shohei Ohtani’s first walk-off hit for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday was also his first game-ending hit in the majors in nearly four years. His still-new teammates and fans who celebrated with him at Chavez Ravine expect to see many more feats from a superstar who is somehow getting even better in Dodger blue. Ohtani pulled a low fastball to right with two outs in the 10th inning, scoring Jason Heyward and ending the Dodgers’ 3-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Two teammates doused Ohtani with water, while a crowd of 52,656 roared for the latest feat by the US$700 million slugger. “We