By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Jusuf Nurkic went for 14 points, five rebounds, two assists, and one block as the Portland Trail Blazers rolled the Houston Rockets, 107-95, in Toyota Center Saturday. Averaging 15.4 points per game in December up to the NBA Saturdays contest, the Bosnian center is among the key players in improving the team record from 11-11 to 17-13 in the NBA Regular Season. For the struggling Rockets, Turkish Alperen Sengun recorded ten points, eight rebounds, and three blocks, Spanish Usman Garuba logged three points, five rebounds, two assists, and one steal, and Serbian Boban Marjanovic had two points and two rebounds.
Despite resting both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton, and Joe Ingles almost ready for his season debut, the Milwaukee Bucks blew out the Utah Jazz, 123-97, in Fiserv Forum. Jumping into the rotation, Georgian Sandro Mamukelashvili tallied three points, eight rebounds, and six assists, while Serge Ibaka had two points and Thanasis Antetokounmpo settled for three fruitless minutes. For the visitors, Finnish Lauri Markkanen scored 18 points and Italian Simone Fontecchio finished with two points.
Slovenian Luka Doncic was sidelined with a right quadriceps strain alongside German Maxi Kleber (right hamstring tear) and Davis Bertans (illness) as the Dallas Mavericks succumbed to an overtime loss, 100-99, against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The lone European cleared by the Mavs, French Frank Ntilikina paired three points with five assists. On the winning end, Turkish Cedi Osman filed seven points and two rebounds.
The spotlight at Footprint Center, Devin Booker was unstoppable with 58 points leading the Phoenix Suns to a comeback win, 118-114, versus the New Orleans Pelicans. Lithuanian Jonas Valanciunas produced 12 points, eight rebounds, and one block at the losing end.
More NBA Saturdays action and European showings:
Los Angeles Clippers – Washington Wizards 102-93 (Nicolas Batum 8pts, 7reb, Moussa Diabate 2pts – Kristaps Porzingis 19pts, Deni Avdija 11pts, 10reb)
San Antonio Spurs – Miami Heat 101-111 (Jakob Poeltl 7pts, 7reb, Jeremy Sochan 2pts, 4reb, 4ast – Nikola Jovic 3pts)
Oklahoma City Thunder – Memphis Grizzlies 115-109 (Aleksej Pokusevski 9pts, 6reb, 4ast – Santi Aldama 7pts, 5reb)
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. Boston Celtics 22-8
2. Milwaukee Bucks 21-8
3. Cleveland Cavaliers 20-11
4. Brooklyn Nets 18-12
5. Philadelphia 76ers 16-12
6. New York Knicks 16-13
7. Miami Heat 16-15
8. Indiana Pacers 15-15
9. Atlanta Hawks 15-15
10. Toronto Raptors 13-16
11. Chicago Bulls 11-17
12. Washington Wizards 11-19
13. Orlando Magic 10-20
14. Detroit Pistons 8-23
15. Charlotte Hornets 7-22
Western Conference
1. Memphis Grizzlies 19-10
2. New Orleans Pelicans 18-11
3. Denver Nuggets 17-11
4. Phoenix Suns 18-12
5. Sacramento Kings 16-12
6. Portland Trail Blazers 17-13
7. Los Angeles Clippers 18-14
8. Utah Jazz 17-15
9. Dallas Mavericks 15-15
10. Minnesota Timberwolves 14-15
11. Golden State Warriors 14-16
12. Los Angeles Lakers 12-16
13. Oklahoma City Thunder 12-18
14. Houston Rockets 9-20
15. San Antonio Spurs 9-20
-Top six teams of each conference advance directly to Playoffs
-Teams seeded 7th to 10th will compete in Play-In tournament
Photo Credit: Getty Images