Bam Adebayo scored 18 of his game-high 24 points in the first quarter and visiting Miami set a record for most points allowed by a Memphis Grizzlies opponent in regulation during a lopsided 146-114 victory Friday night.
The Heat scored 86 first-half points — also a Grizzlies opponent record — on 57.7% shooting to lead by 39 points at halftime. Miami was up 44-25 after the first quarter, having made seven of its nine 3-point attempts.
Backing Adebayo for Miami was Nikola Jokic with 20 points and six rebounds and Kel’el Ware with 19 points and nine boards. Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.
Memphis got 19 points from Jaren Jackson Jr., who had 18 points and six blocks in the season opener Wednesday against New Orleans. Rookie Cedric Coward added 16 points and Santi Aldama contributed 13 points and eight boards. Ja Morant played sparingly after halftime and finished with 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting.
Trail Blazers 139, Warriors 119
Deni Avdija registered 26 points, six assists and five rebounds as one of eight Portland players scoring in double digits to help the Trail Blazers rout visiting Golden State.
Jerami Grant scored 22 points off the bench and Toumani Camara had 19 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Portland’s Tiago Splitter became the first Brazilian to coach an NBA game. He is running the team on an interim basis after Chauncey Billups was placed on leave after being arrested Thursday as part of an FBI gambling investigation.
Stephen Curry made seven 3-pointers and scored 35 points before exiting with 9:21 remaining for the Warriors. Jonathan Kuminga had 16 points and eight rebounds, Jimmy Butler III added 14 points and Draymond Green put up 12 points.
Lakers 128, Timberwolves 110
Luka Doncic scored 32 of his 49 points in the first half and added 11 rebounds and eight assists as Los Angeles trounced visiting Minnesota.
Austin Reaves produced 25 points and 11 assists while Rui Hachimura had 23 points as the Lakers beat the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season.
Anthony Edwards scored 31 points and Julius Randle added 26 points and nine rebounds for the Timberwolves, who split a two-game season-opening road trip.
Bucks 122, Raptors 116
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 31 points and had 20 rebounds to lead Milwaukee to a win over host Toronto.
Gary Trent Jr. also had 20 points for the Bucks and Cole Anthony had 23 off the bench for Milwaukee. Ryan Rollins started at point guard for Kevin Porter Jr., who sprained his left ankle in the opener Wednesday night, and finished with 13 points.
Brandon Ingram led the Raptors with 29 points, RJ Barrett had 20 and Immanuel Quickley had 19.
Hawks 111, Magic 107
Trae Young drained a pair of go-ahead free throws with 21 seconds left, helping visiting Atlanta rally for a victory over Orlando.
Young had 25 points and six assists for the Hawks, which trailed by as many as 14 points before outscoring Orlando 33-21 in the fourth quarter. Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 19 points, while Onyeka Okongwu chipped in 17 for the Hawks, who won despite shooting 27.6 percent (8-for-29) on 3-pointers in the comeback win.
Franz Wagner led Orlando with 27 points, followed by Tristan da Silva’s and Desmond Bane’s 15 points apiece. Jalen Suggs and Paolo Banchero each chipped in 11 points.
Pistons 115, Rockets 111
Cade Cunningham sank two free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining, and Detroit held on for a road victory over Houston.
Cunningham scored 10 of his team-high 21 points in the fourth quarter and added seven rebounds and nine assists to his ledger. The Pistons, bolstered by reserve center Paul Reed (13 points, nine rebounds), also received strong performances from Ausar Thompson (19 points) and Duncan Robinson (17 points, four 3-pointers) to round out their balanced attack.
Kevin Durant paced the Rockets with 37 points while Sengun added 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. But Sengun missed 13 of 18 shots for Houston.
Knicks 105, Celtics 95
Karl-Anthony Towns authored his second straight double-double as host New York rode a dominant second quarter to a win over Boston.
The Knicks outscored the Celtics, 42-14, in the pivotal second quarter. Towns finished with 26 points and 13 rebounds. Jalen Brunson scored a game-high 31 points while fellow starters Mikal Bridges (12 points), OG Anunoby (10 points) and Miles McBride (10 points) all got into double figures. Josh Hart, who made his season debut after missing Wednesday’s game with back spasms, had 14 rebounds in 18:58 off the bench.
Jaylen Brown scored 23 points while Sam Hauser had 18 points for the Celtics, who are 0-2 for the first time since 2021-22.
Cavaliers 131, Nets 124
Donovan Mitchell scored 35 points as visiting Cleveland never trailed and fended off a late comeback try in a victory over Brooklyn.
Mitchell shot 10 of 15 and sank six treys after misfiring on seven of nine 3-point tries Wednesday against the New York Knicks. The Cavaliers led by as many as 25 and held a double-digit lead until midway through the fourth.
Jarrett Allen added 22 against his former team and Sam Merrill also contributed 22 as the Cavaliers shot 53.7% from the floor and converted 18 from outside the arc. Cam Thomas scored 33 points on 12-of-23 shooting for the Nets, who shot 51.6%. Michael Porter Jr. added 31 and Ziaire Williams contributed 25 off the bench as the duo combined to net 11 of Brooklyn’s 19 treys.
Spurs 120, Pelicans 116 (OT)
Victor Wembanyama racked up 29 points, 11 rebounds and nine blocked shots and San Antonio’s supporting cast made the plays down the stretch as the visiting Spurs outlasted New Orleans in overtime.
Devin Vassell added 23 points, Stephon Castle had 16 points and Luke Kornet added 14 points and 12 rebounds off the bench for the Spurs.
Zion Williamson led the Pelicans with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, while Trey Murphy III had a double-double of his own with 24 points and 10 boards. Jordan Poole scored 21 points.
Kings 105, Jazz 104
Domantas Sabonis dropped in the go-ahead hoop on a follow shot with 6.4 seconds left, Zach LaVine saved seven of his 31 points for a frantic finish, and Sacramento won its home opener against Utah.
Sabonis amassed 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, while reserve Malik Monk chipped in with 20 points and Dennis Schroder added 17 for the Kings.
The Jazz’s Lauri Markkanen was the game’s leading scorer with 33 points. Keyonte George added 18 points and a game-high 10 assists, but he misfired on a 21-foot buzzer-beating attempt for the win.
Wizards 117, Mavericks 107
Kyshawn George posted career bests of 34 points and 11 rebounds as Washington overcame a slow start and defeated host Dallas.
George added three blocks and two steals, while hitting 11 of 15 from the floor and 7 of 9 from 3-point territory. Tre Johnson added 17 points off the bench, while Alex Sarr had 14 points, nine boards and three swats.
Anthony Davis paired 27 points with 13 rebounds for the winless Mavericks, while rookie Cooper Flagg and PJ Washington had 18 points each.
Clippers 129, Suns 102
James Harden scored 26 of his game-high 30 points in the first half, and Los Angeles dominated the middle periods to cruise past Phoenix in Inglewood, Calif.
Harden got rolling on offense early, igniting an early Clippers rally from a nine-point deficit. Kawhi Leonard, coming off a rough performance on offense in Los Angeles’ season-opening loss at Utah, regrouped with 27 points on 11-of-21 shooting.
The Los Angeles defense limited Phoenix’s Devin Booker to 18 points. The Clippers also forced Booker into three of Phoenix’s 18 turnovers.
–Field Level Media
Comments