By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Ricky Rubio had 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists to help the Phoenix Suns make double their NBA restart wins by defeating Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavericks 117 – 115.
Despite the defeat, the Mavericks clinched a playoff spot after the Grizzlies‘ loss to the Spurs. They will return to the postseason for the first time after three years.
This was the second straight loss for the Mavs that were leading 81 – 70 in the third period before the Suns surged to take the lead heading into the fourth quarter. Doncic produced 40 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to flirt with the triple-double while Kristaps Porzingis finished with 30 points and eight boards.
Dario Saric contributed 13 points and eight rebounds to the Suns’ victory. Boban Marjanovic had eight points for the Mavericks that see their chances to climb at the Western Conference’s seventh spot getting trimmed.
The Orlando Magic beat the Sacramento Kings 132 – 116 behind Nikola Vucevic’s 23 points and 11 rebounds but couldn’t celebrate their win much after losing Jonathan Isaac to a torn ACL injury. He had come back from a hyperextended knee injury he had suffered in January.
Evan Fournier had four points for the Magic. Bogdan Bogdanovic notched 12 points and grabbed two rebounds while Nemanja Bjelica scored two points.
In a clash between two MVP frontrunners, the Houston Rockets beat the Milwaukee Bucks 120 – 116. The Bucks had their first loss in the NBA restart despite Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 36 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists.
The Greek Freak became the second player after Bucks legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 30 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in a season over the last 50 years but his performance wasn’t combined with a win. The Rockets had a 9-0 run after being down 112 – 104 with three minutes to play and got the victory thanks to free throws by Russell Westbrook (31 points).
Earlier, Jusuf Nurkic 30 points weren’t enough for the Portland Trail Blazers that lost 128 – 124 to the Boston Celtics.
The rest of Sunday’s NBA results and Euro-scorers:
Brooklyn Nets – Washington Wizards 118 – 110 (Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot eight points, Rodions Kurucs two points, Anzejs Pasecniks two points)
Memphis Grizzlies – San Antonio Spurs 108 – 106 (Jonas Valanciunas 13 points, 11 rebounds)