Alperen Sengun on Wednesday scored 28 points and Kevin Durant added 20 to lead the Houston Rockets over the Cleveland Cavaliers 114-104, while reigning NBA champions the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Sacramento Kings 113-99.
Turkish center Sengun added 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Rockets (10-3), who stretched their win streak to five games, while reserve Aaron Holiday scored 14 of his 18 in the fourth quarter to silence a Cavaliers rally.
De’Andre Hunter led Cleveland with 25 points, while Donovan Mitchell scored 19 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter for the Cavs (10-6), who got 18 points from Evan Mobley, the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year who could not contain Sengun.
Photo: David Dermer / Imagn Images
“I never back down from anybody,” Sengun said. “Doesn’t matter best defender in the league, anybody. At clutch time, I’m just going to go through him. I’m just going to get my shot and just finish the game.”
Cleveland ended the third quarter on a 23-5 run to pull within 74-70 and Mitchell revived in the final 12 minutes, but the Rockets would not be denied.
Oklahoma City improved to a league-best 15-1 and 7-0 at home as reigning NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Thunder win streak reached seven games.
Photo: AP
Chet Holmgren added 21 points and seven rebounds for the Thunder, who inflicted a seventh consecutive loss upon Sacramento (3-12).
Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic had a triple-double to power the Denver Nuggets to a 125-118 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The 30-year-old Serbian center had 28 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists for the Nuggets, who were led by Peyton Watson’s 32 points and 12 rebounds.
Photo: Alonzo Adams / Imagn Images
The Indiana Pacers (2-13) snapped an eight-game losing streak as Bennedict Mathurin had 24 points and 12 rebounds, while Pascal Siakam added 22 points and seven assists for the Pacers in a 127-118 home victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
In Philadelphia, Brandon Ingram and R.J. Barrett each scored 22 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 121-112 victory over the 76ers. Tyrese Maxey scored 24 points for the hosts in a losing cause.
With Stephen Curry sidelined for the Golden State Warriors due to a sore right ankle, the Miami Heat beat the Warriors 110-96 behind 25 points from Norman Powell and 20 from Bam Adebayo.
In Minneapolis, Julius Randle scored 32 points and Naz Reid added 28 off the bench to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves over the visiting Washington Wizards 120-109.
Kyshawn George scored 23 points to lead the Wizards, whose losing streak stretched to 12 games and record sank to 1-13.
Nikola Vucevic drained a three-pointer as time expired to cap a 27-point effort and give the Chicago Bulls a 122-121 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Chicago blew a 21-point fourth-quarter lead and trailed in the final seconds as Coby White drove into the lane.
He spotted the wide-open Vucevic on the wing and the 15-year veteran swished the shot to give the Bulls their second consecutive victory.
White contributed 25 points and seven assists off the bench as Chicago defeated the Trail Blazers for the seventh time in their past eight meetings.
Jalen Brunson scored 28 points in his return to the lineup and Landry Shamet hit a pair of three-pointers in the final 1 minute, 3 seconds as the New York Knicks beat the Dallas Mavericks 113-111.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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