By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
The big showdown between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic ended in Milwaukee’s favor as the Bucks (16-8) grabbed a 125-112 win on the road over the Denver Nuggets.
Giannis posted 30 points and 9 rebounds to lead the winning side, while Khris Middleton flirted with triple-double numbers with 29 points, 12 assists and 8 rebounds.
Jokic paced the Nuggets with a double-double of 35 points and 12 rebounds along with 6 assists and Will Barton had 24 points.
Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet scored 32 points each to pace the Toronto Raptors (11-13) to a 128-113 win against Memphis Grizzlies (9-10). Jonas Valanciunas posted a monstrous double-double with 27 points, 20 rebounds but it wasn’t enough to save the day for Memphis.
Kristaps Porzingis dropped 27 points, 13 rebounds and Luka Doncic tapped 26 points as the Dallas Mavericks (11-14) took down Minnesota Timberwolves (6-18) with a 127-122 win. Malik Beasley scored a team-high of 30 points for the Timberwolves, while Anthony Edwards had 22 points.
Lamelo Ball made a career-high seven 3-pointers to lead the Charlotte Hornets (12-13) to a 119-94 win over the Houston Rockets (11-12) with 24 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds. Victor Oladipo added 21 for the Rockets and Ben McLemore tapped 15 points.
Bradley Beal scored 35 points as the Washington Wizards (6-15) beat the Chicago Bulls (9-14) 105-101. Beal, who currently leads all NBA scorers in points, hit three free throws in the final 9.8 seconds while Rui Hachimura added 19 points and a season-high 10 rebounds for the Wizards, while on the other end of the court, Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 35 points.
Dejounte Murray stunned the Warriors with a late three-pointer that helped the San Antonio Spurs overcome the Golden State Warriors 105-100. Murray tapped 27 points, 10 rebounds and 8 steals, DeMar DeRozan had 21 points and 10 assists, as Stephen Curry accumulated 32 points for the Warriors.
Devin Booker scored a season-high 36 points as the Phoenix Suns (14-9) beat the Cleveland Cavaliers (10-15) 119-113. Mikal Bridges added 22 points for the winners and Collin Sexton led the Cavs with 23 points.
The Los Angeles Lakers (19-6) stood strong to defeat short-staffed Oklahoma City Thunder (10-13) 119-112 in overtime, paced behind a 28-point performance by LeBron James. Dennis Schroder added 19 points for LA and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 29 points, 10 assists.
Photo: Getty Images