December 21, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) is fouled by Miami Heat forward Duncan Robinson (55) in the fourth quarter at the Kia Center. Mandatory credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Holding visiting Miami to just eight fourth-quarter points, the Orlando Magic rallied from a franchise-record 22 points early in the final period to beat the Heat, 121-114, on Saturday.
Orlando, trailing by as many as 25 points in the first half, began chipping away at the deficit with a 13-0 run to open the fourth quarter. The Magic then went on another 11-0 run to take their first lead since the first quarter.
The runs were fueled by the trio of Cole Anthony, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Goga Bitadze, who scored 21 of Orlando’s 37 points in the fourth quarter, including the final 17 points that sealed the comeback victory. The 25-point comeback is tied for the most in franchise history. Orlando also overcame a 25-point deficit on Nov. 8, 1989, in Cleveland.
Anthony’s 35 points and nine assists off the bench were season highs. Caldwell-Pope added 24 points, half of which came on a perfect 12-of-12 shooting from the free-throw line, and Bitatze finished with a double-double, scoring 18 points on 8-of-8 shooting and grabbing 13 rebounds. .
Miami was without Jimmy Butler due to a stomach ailment. Despite Butler’s absence, Miami scored 76 points in the first half — a team high for a half this season. Bam Adebayo scored 23 points and grabbed six rebounds, Terry Rozier scored another 23 points off the bench and Tyler Herro had 22 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Celtics 123, Bulls 98
Jayson Tatum had 43 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists to help Boston snap a losing streak with a win over Chicago.
Tatum made 16 of 24 field goal attempts, including 9 of 15 from 3-point range, in 36 minutes. Kristaps Porzingis added 22 points and seven rebounds for Boston, which got 19 points, five rebounds and eight assists from Jaylen Brown. The Celtics haven’t lost back-to-back games this season.
Nikola Vucevic was the leader of the Bulls with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Patrick Williams, Kobe White and Zach LaVine each added 14 points for Chicago, which was held to 44 points in the second half.
Lakers 103, Kings 99
LeBron James scored a game-high 32 points, D’Angelo Russell came off the bench with 20 points and Los Angeles held on to complete a three-day, two-game sweep in Sacramento.
The Lakers won the series opener 113-100 on Thursday night. James completed his big scoring streak with seven rebounds, six assists and four steals. He made 13 of 24 shots, helping the Lakers outshoot the hosts 48.2 percent to 43.3 percent. Anthony Davis was the Lakers’ leading rebounder with 15 points to go with 10 points, five assists and three blocks.
De’Aaron Fox paced the Kings with 31 points to go along with seven assists. He made three of his five 3-point attempts as Sacramento held a slight 30-27 lead in points from beyond the arc.
Pistons 133, Suns 125
Cade Cunningham had 28 points and 13 assists while Jaden Ivey had 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to lead Detroit to a win in Phoenix.
Malik Beasley scored 18 points off the bench and Jalen Duren had 17 points and 11 rebounds as the Pistons snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Suns.
Kevin Durant scored a season-high 43 points and also had six assists and five rebounds for the Suns, who were without Devin Booker (groin) for the first time this season. Bradley Beal had 26 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Knicks 104, Pelicans 93
Jalen Brunson scored 29 of his season-high 39 points in the second half for visiting New York, which overcame a 14-point third-quarter deficit to beat upset New Orleans.
Brunson scored 20 points in a decisive 37-13 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters for the Knicks, who staged their biggest comeback of the season. Karl-Anthony Towns (11 points, 10 rebounds) had a double-double as the Knicks won their third straight and improved to 8-2 in their last 10 games.
Trey Murphy III scored 26 points for the Pelicans, who have lost six straight to fall to 2-21 from a 3-3 start. New Orleans fell by at least 10 points for the 17th time this season. Dejude Murray (14 points, nine rebounds, eight assists) flirted with a triple-double.
Spurs 114, Trail Blazers 94
Victor Webanyama scored 30 points and tied his career high with 10 rebounds as host San Antonio beat Portland.
The Spurs turned a close game into a decisive victory with a 13-2 run late in the second quarter that helped them build a 16-point halftime lead. Charles Bassey tied his career high with 16 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Spurs.
Shaedon Sharpe scored 25 points for the Trail Blazers, who have lost seven of their last eight games. Anfernee Simons added 18 points, Deandre Ayton had 14 points and eight rebounds and Scoot Henderson had 12 points off the bench.
Bucks 112, Wizards 101
Bobby Portis scored a season-high 34 points to lead Milwaukee to a win over Washington.
The NBA Cup champion Bucks were without Giannis Antetokounmpo (back) and Damian Lillard (calf). Portis followed up with a triple-double, adding 10 boards and eight assists to his tally. Teammate Khris Middleton contributed 18 points, eight assists and six rebounds.
Jordan Poole led Washington with 26 points on 8-for-19 shooting. Bilal Koulibaly scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, Corey Kispert added 16 and Alexander Sarr had 11 points.
Warriors 113, Timberwolves 103
Stephen Curry had 31 points and 10 assists as Golden State held on for a win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Trace Jackson-Davis finished with 15 points and nine rebounds for Golden State, which snapped a three-game losing streak and earned its first road win since Nov. 22.
Anthony Edwards scored 19 points for Minnesota but made just six of 20 shots from the field. Donte DiVincenzo finished with 19 points off the bench and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 12 rebounds.
Grizzlies 128, Hawks 112
Scottie Pippen Jr. scored 22 points in place of the injured Ja Morad to lead visiting Memphis to a victory over Atlanta.
Memphis was without Morad due to persistent back pain. Pippen entered the game averaging 10.2 points and had his second-highest scoring performance of the season. Pippen was 9-for-12 from the field and 3-for-4 on three-pointers to go along with five rebounds, nine assists and two steals. Desmond Bain added 23 points, including four 3-pointers.
Atlanta was led by DeAndre Hunter’s 26 points off the bench. Dyson Daniels added 15 points, six assists and six steals. The Hawks were without Trae Young with a bruised heel and lost their third straight.
Cavaliers 126, 76ers 99
Darius Garland scored 26 points to lead six players in double figures as Cleveland improved to a league-best 25-4 with the win over Philadelphia.
Evan Mobley had 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for Cleveland, which led by 35 and won its fourth straight game. Donovan Mitchell scored 19 points, George Niang added 13, Carys LeVert scored 12 and Ty Jerome added 11 points.
Philadelphia played without star Joel Embiid, who was rested in Game 2 of the Sixers’ back-to-back set. Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 27 points. Paul George played his first back-to-back set of the season and finished with 11 points.
Mavericks 113, Clippers 97
Quentin Grimes scored 20 points off the bench to lead Dallas to a win over Los Angeles.
Klay Thompson added 16 points, while Spencer Dinwiddie and Kyrie Irving each had 15 for the Mavericks, who have won nine of their last 11 games and avenged a 23-point loss to the Clippers on Thursday.
Normal Powell’s 28 points paced the Clippers, who got 19 points apiece from James Harden and Kevin Porter Jr. Ivica Zubac had 13 points and 15 rebounds for Los Angeles, which saw its two-game winning streak end.
Jazz 105, Nets 94
Lauri Markkanen scored 14 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and Utah pulled away in the second half for a victory over Brooklyn in New York.
The Jazz won back-to-back games for the first time this season allowing a season low in points and holding an opponent under 100 for the second time this season. Markkanen shot 5-for-10 in the quarter, making 2 of 6 three-point attempts.
Brooklyn lost for the seventh time in nine games. The Nets also lost for the fifth time in their last six home games. Cameron Johnson finished with 13 of his 18 points in fourth place. Ben Simmons scored a season-high 15 points while adding 10 assists for his first double-double of the season.
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