By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Nikola Jokic had 32 points, 15 assists, and 10 rebounds for his seventh triple-double of the season, Michael Porter Jr. scored a season-high 30 points and the Denver Nuggets rolled past the Houston Rockets 134-124 in Jamal Murray’s return to action.
Murray scored 16 points after missing Denver’s past 11 games. It was the third consecutive win for the NBA champion Nuggets, who had lost four of five before their current streak.
For the losing side, Turkish big man Alperen Sengun had 22 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
German star Franz Wagner scored a season-high 31 points and the Orlando Magic rolled to their eighth straight victory, 139-120 over the Washington Wizards. Georgian big man Goga Bitadze had eight points and seven rebounds, while older brother Mo Wagner added 11 points.
Israeli Deni Avdija had 22 points for the Wizards, while French Bilal Coulibaly had seven points and Italian Danilo Gallinari added six points.
The Toronto Raptors beat Phoenix 112-105 to end the Suns’ winning streak at seven.
Kevin Durant scored 11 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter for Phoenix after missing two games because of a sore foot, while Bosnian Beast Jusuf Nurkic had 19 points and 14 rebounds.
For the Raptors, German point guard Dennis Schroder had eight points and 12 assists, Austrian big man Jakob Poeltl scored 17 points, and British O.G. Anunoby added 13 points.
The LA Clippers beat the Kings on the road 131-117 with Croatian big man Ivica Zubac dominating the paint (14 p. 8 r.) and German Daniel Theis adding five points, while Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis had 11 points and five rebounds for Sacramento and Bulgarian Sasha Vezenkov added 13 points and five rebounds.
The rest of the games and the European scorers are the following.
RESULTS
Detroit – LA Lakers 107-133 (Hayes 7 p. 8 as.)
Utah – Memphis 91-105 (Fontecchio 12 p. Samanic 5 p. Yurtseven 4 p. – Aldama 11 p.)
Philadelphia – New Orleans 114-124 (Batum 3 p. – Valanciunas 19 p. 6 r.)
Standings
Eastern Conference
1. Boston Celtics 14-4
2. Milwaukee Bucks 13-5
3. Orlando Magic 13-5
4. Philadelphia 76ers 12-6
5. New York Knicks 10-7
6. Indiana Pacers 9-7
7. Miami Heat 10-8
8. Cleveland Cavaliers 10-8
9. Brooklyn Nets 9-8
10. Atlanta Hawks 8-9
11. Toronto Raptors 9-10
12. Charlotte Hornets 5-11
13. Chicago Bulls 5-14
14. Washington Wizards 3-15
15. Detroit Pistons 2-16
Western Conference
1. Minnesota Timberwolves 13-4
2. Denver Nuggets 13-6
3. Dallas Mavericks 11-6
4. Oklahoma City Thunder 11-6
5. Phoenix Suns 11-7
6. Sacramento Kings 10-7
7. Los Angeles Lakers 10-8
8. New Orleans Pelicans 10-9
9. Houston Rockets 8-8
10. Los Angeles Clippers 8-9
11. Golden State Warriors 8-10
12. Utah Jazz 6-12
13. Portland Trail Blazers 5-12
14. Memphis Grizzlies 4-13
15. San Antonio Spurs 3-14
-Teams ranking first through sixth advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams ranking seventh through tenth compete in the Play-Ins