NBA Roundup: Today, East beats West as Atlanta outpaces Golden State

HAWKS 120, WARRIORS 114

The Atlanta Hawks starting five made history by being collectively named as the NBA Player of the Month – the first time the honor was not handed to an individual player. Al Horford, Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver, Demarre Carroll, and Jeff Teague again led the way as Atlanta took down the Golden State Warriors, 120-114, on Friday (Saturday in the Philippines) in Atlanta’s Philips Arena.

The highly-anticipated duel between the best of both conferences did not disappoint. The Hawks were only ahead by four at the start of the final period and needed back-to-back bombs to build the lead they would protect until the final buzzer.

Teague’s 23 points led Atlanta which also tallied 21 from Millsap, 17 from Korver, and 12 each from Horford and Carroll. The Hawks’ balance proved more successful, for one contest at least, than Golden State’s Splash Brothers Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson who had 29 and 26 markers, respectively.

After the inter-conference showdown, the teams are tied in the loss column at 9. The Hawks are now league-leaders as their 41 wins outpace Golden State’s 39.

PACERS 103, CAVALIERS 99

The Indiana Pacers halted the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 12-game win run with a 103-99 victory in Indiana’s Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

George Hill converted an and-one triple with 1:26 on the clock to give the Pacers the lead they would successfully safeguard. Hill ended with 20 points to grant Indiana its 19th win in 51 tries.

Kyrie Irving produced 29 points, but the Cavaliers could not close out the game even after leading by as much as 13. The loss tripped Cleveland to 31-21.

TIMBERWOLVES 90, GRIZZLIES 89

Ricky Rubio drained eight of his 17 points in the final minute and a half as the Minnesota Timberwolves stunned the Memphis Grizzlies, 90-89, in Minneapolis’ Target Center.

The Timberwolves’ only tenth triumph out of 50 came via a 10-2 run in the last two minutes. On the other hand, the upset snapped the Grizzlies’ eight-game winning streak coming from a 29-12 record.

RAPTORS 123, CLIPPERS 107

Another inter-conference showdown, albeit in a lesser scale, ended with the East on top with the Toronto Raptors’ 123-107 triumph over the Los Angeles Clippers in Toronto’s Air Canada Center.

The Toronto backcourt of Demar Derozan and Kyle Lowry teamed up for 45 points to spearhead a surge in the middle-quarters that erased an early 20-point deficit. With the win, the Raptors finished a season sweep of the Clippers and rose to 34-17.

Blake Griffin’s 26 markers, six rebounds, and nine assists were not enough to prevent Los Angeles’ fourth loss in the last five coming from a 32-14 record.

PELICANS 88, THUNDER 83

Anthony Davis made sure his New Orleans Pelicans strengthened their playoff hunt as they climbed to 27-23 with a 116-113 victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.

The first time All-Star started pounded in 41 points and 10 rebounds to inch New Orleans to just two games back of the West’s eighth-seed. The Pelicans’ win also increased their lead in the standings over the Thunder who fell back to 25-25.

ROCKETS 103, BUCKS 96

The Houston Rockets scorched the nets with 15 triples as they outgunned the Milwaukee Bucks, 106-96, in Houston’s Toyota Center.

James Harden finished with 33 points to give Houston its 35th victory in 50 attempts. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s career-high 27 points proved insufficient to keep the Bucks from slipping to 27-23 for the season.

SUNS 100, JAZZ 93

Marcus Morris rained in a career-high 34 points to push the Phoenix Suns past the Utah Jazz, 100-93, in Phoenix’ US Airways Center.

Morris was making shots from everywhere including 5/7 from beyond the arc to raise the Suns to 29-23 for the season and hand the Jazz their 33rd defeat in 50 contests.

MAGIC 103, LAKERS 97

The Orlando Magic won for James Barrego his first game as interim coach by downing the Los Angeles Lakers in overtime, 103-97, in Orlando’s Amway Center.

Tobias Harris spearheaded the Orlando attack with a career-high 34 points to snap the team’s 10-game skid coming from a 15-27 record. On the other hand, the Lakers stumbled to 13-37.

PISTONS 98, NUGGETS 88

Greg Monroe’s 21 points and 21 rebounds carried the Detroit Pistons over the Denver Nuggets, 98-88, in Detroit’s Palace of Auburn Hills.

DJ Augustin chipped in 22 markers and 11 assists to earn the Pistons’ 20th win out of 51. Ty Lawson’s 20 points led the effort for 19-32 Denver.

CELTICS 107, 76ERS 96

Jared Sullinger generated 22 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists to grant the Boston Celtics their third consecutive victory coming from a 16-30 record, this time against the Philadelphia 76ers, 107-96, in Boston’s TD Garden.

Avery Bradley added 18 markers for the Celtics who also handed Philadelphia its 40th loss out of 51.

NETS 92, KNICKS 88

The Brooklyn Nets defeated the New York Knicks, 92-88, in Brooklyn’s Barclays Center for their 21st win in 47 tries. With the loss, New York fell to 10-40.

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