Thursday, May 7, 2026
Home Blog Page 3199

NBA Preview: San Antonio Spurs (10-21) at Orlando Magic (12-21)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: San Antonio Spurs (10-21) at Orlando Magic (12-21)

Suddenly hot Magic face skidding Spurs

The enigmatic Orlando Magic look to continue their burst of success when they host the San Antonio Spurs on Friday in both teams’ final game before Christmas.

The Magic have been one of the NBA’s hottest teams over the past two weeks. They have won seven of their last eight games, including a two-game sweep of Boston on the road, another two-game sweep over Toronto at home, and victories at home against the Los Angeles Clippers and Atlanta.

Orlando won three of four on its road trip, including a 116-110 victory in Houston on Wednesday, overcoming a 15-point deficit in the second half.

Franz Wagner scored 25 points, while Paolo Banchero added 23 points and 13 rebounds, Cole Anthony had 15 points, Moritz Wagner 12 and Markelle Fultz 11 for the Magic.

It was Banchero’s sixth double-double of the year, which is tied for the most among rookies, and his 20th game with 20 points is tops among them.

The hot streak for Orlando came after it had lost 20 of its first 25 games and endured a nine-game losing skid along the way.

The Magic’s comeback on Wednesday was aided by a switch to a zone defense and a never-say-die attitude.

Orlando could get Wendell Carter Jr. and Gary Harris back for Friday’s game. Carter has missed 17 straight games with a right foot injury, while Harris is nursing a right hamstring strain and has not played since Nov. 30. Both are listed as questionable.

Friday’s game is the second of a road back-to-back for the Spurs, who lost 126-117 in New Orleans on Thursday. San Antonio has lost three of its past four games and has split the first two on its three-game road trip.

The Spurs were down by 20 points after a ragged first quarter but clawed back to within eight points on two occasions in the fourth period before running out of gas. The 17 points were their fewest in an opening period this season.

Jeremy Sochan scored a career-high 23 points in the loss, with Tre Jones adding 19, Josh Richardson 14, Jakob Poeltl 13, Stanley Johnson 12 and Devin Vassell 10.

The Spurs played without leading scorer Keldon Johnson, who missed the game with right hamstring tightness.

NHL Morning Skate – Dec. 23, 2022

NHL Editor
-
0
NHL Morning Skate – Dec. 23, 2022

* Alex Ovechkin’s pursuit of Gordie Howe will have to wait, but he was still able to pass another player who skated with a New England-based team during the 1979-80 season on an all-time NHL list Thursday.

* The Maple Leafs edged the Flyers in another Next Gen game at Scotiabank Arena, while Boston also extended a lengthy home point streak to restore its six-point lead on Toronto atop the Atlantic Division standings.

* Ovechkin will have one more chance to reach Howeon the NHL’s all-time goals list before the League’s three-day Holiday Break when the Capitals host the Jets on Christmas Eve Eve. Washington and Winnipeg are two of 22 NHL teams in action.

OVECHKIN OVERTAKES BOURQUE ON NHL’S ALL-TIME SHOTS LIST . . .
Alex Ovechkin logged six shots on goal during the Capitals’ 3-2 overtime win Thursday to boost his career total to 6,211 and pass Ray Bourque (6,209) for sole possession of the most by an NHL player on record. Ovechkin also had two assists to register the 408th multi-point game of his NHL career and tie Paul Coffey for 12th place on the League’s all-time list.



. . . AND NEARLY CONVERTS ON ONE-TIMER IN FRONT OF FRIENDS’ KING OF ONE-LINERS
The 17,231 people in attendance at Canadian Tire Centre almost witnessed Alex Ovechkin tying Gordie Howe for second place on the NHL’s all-time goals list when a one-timer by the Capitals captain trickled into the Senators’ crease before Sonny Milano put it home. One of the attendees was actor and Ottawa native Matthew Perry, who portrayed the character Chandler Bing on the sitcom Friends.


 

BRUINS, MAPLE LEAFS ENJOY SOME MORE HOME COOKING AHEAD OF HOLIDAY BREAK

In their final home games prior to the Holiday Break, the top two teams in the Atlantic Division skated to yet another victory as the Bruins (26-4-2, 54 points) and Maple Leafs (21-7-6, 48 points) edged their opponents in one-goal affairs Thursday:

* David Pastrnak (1-1—2) helped the Bruins erase a 2-0 deficit en route to registering his sixth career double-digit point streak, eclipsing the 100-point mark this calendar year and guiding Boston to its 20th consecutive home game with a point this season. He became the fourth Bruins player with as many 10-game point streaks with the franchise, joining Phil Esposito (10x), Bobby Orr (7x) and Ray Bourque (6x).

* Boston, which has one more home game (Dec. 31 vs. BUF) before hosting Pittsburgh in the 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic at Fenway Park, collected its 37th regular-season home win of 2022 – eclipsing Washington (36 in 2017) and Florida (36 in 2021) for the most in a calendar year in League history. The Bruins also contest road games against the Devils (Dec. 23 & Dec. 28) and Senators (Dec. 27) before their outdoor showdown with the Penguins.



* The Maple Leafs extended their home winning streak to six games and stretched their home point streak to double digits (8-0-2 in 10 GP dating to Nov. 12), with the latter marking the franchise’s longest such run since 2018-19 (9-0-1 in 10 GP). After setting a club record for the longest point streak by a Toronto player earlier this season, Mitchell Marner (1-1—2) extended his home point streak to 14 games to move within four of tying Darryl Sittler (18 GP in 1977-78) for the lengthiest in franchise history.

* Ilya Samsonov (16 saves) improved to 10-3-0 in 13 appearances this season, including a 9-0-0 mark in nine at Scotiabank Arena. He became the second goaltender in franchise history to win each of his first nine home games in a campaign, joining Bruce Gamble (9-0-0 in 9 GP from Oct. 25, 1967–Jan. 20, 1968).



SWEDISH-BORN SKATERS SHINE IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES

Thursday’s edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates featured more notes from the eight-game slate, including several involving countrymen Erik Karlsson (1-3—4) and Elias Pettersson (2-3—5):

* Karlsson opened the scoring just 44 seconds into the contest and collected a primary assist on each of the Sharks’ next three goals to record his third four-point game of the campaign and eighth of his NHL career, surpassing Roman Josi (7) for the most among all defensemen since his debut season in 2009-10. Karlsson also extended his point streak to nine games and matched his NHL career high, a mark set with the Senators in 2015-16.
 

* Pettersson posted the fourth five-point game of his NHL career and scored the shootout winner as the Canucks rallied from a 5-3 third-period deficit to improve to 6-0-0 in six all-time games against the Kraken (SEA: 0-5-1). Pettersson became the first player in franchise history to record four five-point games with the Canucks – he was tied with Alexander Mogilny (3) for the most in club history entering Thursday.


QUICK CLICKS

* Friday’s Red Wings-Senators game postponed, rescheduled for Feb. 27

* Artem Zub signs 4-year, $18.4 million contract with Senators
* Tuukka Rask an interested spectator when Bruins play Penguins at Winter Classic
* Connor Bedard impressing NHL stars before World Junior Championship
* Women in Hockey: Lisa McDowell

TWENTY-TWO TEAMS IN ACTION ON CHRISTMAS EVE EVE

A total of 22 teams will be in action on the final day before the NHL takes a three-day Holiday Break. Connor McDavid enters Friday with the NHL’s longest active point streak at 14 games (13-17—30) and sits one goal shy of becoming the first to reach 30 goals in 2022-23.



* McDavid (29-36—65 in 34 GP) is leading all players in goals after skating in 41% of his season (has yet to miss a game) and is on pace for 69. No Oilers player has won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy, first awarded in 1998-99, however six seasons in NHL history have finished with an Edmonton skater as the top goal scorer: 1986-87 (Wayne Gretzky), 1985-86 (Jari Kurri), 1984-85 (Gretzky), 1983-84 (Gretzky), 1982-83 (Gretzky) and 1981-82 (Gretzky).

* Friday will also see the two defensemen with the most regular-season points in the 2022 calendar year face off when Cale Makar (22-67—89 in 85 GP) and the Avalanche visit Roman Josi (20-72—92 in 81 GP) and the Predators. Josi is already the first defenseman since Paul Coffey in 1995 to reach 90 points in a calendar year, while Josi and Makar can combine to mark the first time multiple blueliners reached the benchmark in the same year since 1991 (Ray Bourque, Brian Leetch & Phil Housley).

NBA Preview: Charlotte Hornets (8-24) at Los Angeles Lakers (13-18)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Charlotte Hornets (8-24) at Los Angeles Lakers (13-18)

A pair of teams with defensive issues to solve will meet Friday when the Los Angeles Lakers play host to the Charlotte Hornets.

The Lakers gave up 95 shot attempts Wednesday and were overwhelmed in a 134-120 road defeat to the Sacramento Kings, unable to overcome the third-highest point total they have allowed all season.

The Hornets will enter off a 126-105 defeat to the Los Angeles Clippers. While Charlotte did force Los Angeles into 27 turnovers, they watched their opponent shoot 50.6 percent from the field and fell behind by 36 points during the first half.

The Lakers are finding life without Anthony Davis to be just as hard as expected. The star forward will be out into January with a foot injury. Los Angeles also was without Russell Westbrook (foot) and Austin Reaves (ankle) on Wednesday.

LeBron James had 31 points, 11 assists and six rebounds, but his one-man show could only go so far with the Kings collecting seven more rebounds and making 17 3-pointers.

Lonnie Walker IV was able to add 19 points, and Dennis Schroder had 18.

The Hornets struggled early with their transition defense in the first half against the Clippers and trailed 33-13 just over 10 minutes into Wednesday’s game. The deficit reached 71-35 with 2:52 remaining before halftime.

The Hornets did put together a 34-point third quarter, as the Clippers’ turnovers mounted, and cut the deficit to 104-90 with 8:09 remaining before an 8-0 run by the Clippers put away the victory.

LaMelo Ball finished with his first triple-double of the season with 25 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds in his homecoming. A native of nearby Chino Hills, Ball recorded his second career triple-double in Los Angeles after he delivered 25 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists against the Lakers last season.

In eight games this season after recovering from an ankle injury, Ball has averaged 23.4 points with 4.4 rebounds and eight assists, while shooting a career-best 44.5 percent from the floor and 38.9 percent 3-point range.

Charlotte’s Terry Rozier is averaging 20.9 points per game but is out with a hip injury. Kelly Oubre Jr. is scoring 20.8 points per game for the Hornets.

In his 20th NBA season, James is scoring 27.1 points per game with 8.4 rebounds and 6.7 assists for the Lakers.

NBA Preview: Memphis Grizzlies (19-11) at Phoenix Suns (19-13)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Memphis Grizzlies (19-11) at Phoenix Suns (19-13)

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant recently expressed his disdain for the other Western Conference teams by expressing that the Eastern Conference’s Boston Celtics are the only foe he is worried about.

Interestingly enough, Morant and the Grizzlies play one of the top teams in the West over the past two seasons twice in the next five days, beginning when they visit the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.

The two teams also square off Tuesday in Memphis.

The Suns reached the NBA Finals two seasons ago and posted the best regular-season record in the NBA in 2021-22.

Entering Friday, Phoenix is just 19-13 due to losses in six of the past nine games, while Memphis is tied with the Denver Nuggets for the best mark in the West at 19-11.

During the interview with ESPN, Morant was asked, “No one in the West?” after naming the Celtics as his concern.

His answer: “Nah, I’m fine in the West.”

The Grizzlies do get a break in the first tussle with Phoenix as Suns star Devin Booker (groin) will miss his third straight game. Booker scored a season-high 58 points in his most recent appearance, a 118-114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday.

Landry Shamet did a fine Booker impression on Tuesday by establishing career bests of 31 points and nine 3-pointers. But Phoenix lost 113-110 to the Washington Wizards, who snapped a 10-game skid.

Deandre Ayton contributed 30 points and 13 rebounds, but his performance wasn’t the topic of conversation afterward. It was his in-game debate with coach Monty Williams during a timeout in the fourth quarter as the Wizards were roaring ahead.

Mikal Bridges had chided Ayton on the court over a defensive breakdown shortly before the timeout. Then came the fierce argument that reminded folks about problems between Ayton and Williams during last season’s Western Conference semifinals.

Ayton insisted there is no rift between himself and the coach.

Still, it was a bad look for the Suns, who have not played up to their level of the past two seasons.

Of course, Morant has already checked in with his opinion as he looks to lead Memphis to its third straight win over Phoenix.

Morant produced 35 points and 10 assists on Tuesday, but the Grizzlies succumbed 105-91 to the host Nuggets for their second consecutive loss.

In the eyes of coach Taylor Jenkins, Memphis lost the game in the first quarter as it trailed by 21 at its conclusion. The opening game of the road trip also featured that bad trend, as the Grizzlies trailed by 21 at halftime before losing 115-109 to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday.

Morant didn’t receive much help against Denver as Dillon Brooks was the team’s second-leading scorer with just 11 points.

NBA Preview: Portland Trail Blazers (17-15) at Denver Nuggets (19-11)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Portland Trail Blazers (17-15) at Denver Nuggets (19-11)

The Denver Nuggets survived a tough early schedule, injuries and COVID-19 cases to sit atop the Western Conference 30 games into the season.

One of their signature road wins came at Portland on Dec. 8 when Jamal Murray hit a 3-pointer with 0.9 seconds left for an unexpected victory. His performance announced that Murray had turned a corner in his progress from a year off.

The Trail Blazers will get a chance for payback when they visit Denver on Friday night to wrap up a six-game road trip.

Murray is expected to play after missing Tuesday’s win over Memphis with knee soreness. Coach Michael Malone held him out as a precaution and inserted rookie Christian Braun into the starting lineup. Braun came through with 13 points and some solid defense on Grizzlies star Ja Morant.

The 105-91 win was significant for the Nuggets because it came against a Memphis team that had occupied the top spot in the Western Conference. The teams are now tied there at 19-11. It was also Denver’s best defensive performance after a stretch of porous showings at that end of the court.

The Nuggets had six players score in double figures despite not having Michael Porter Jr. available for the 13th consecutive game due to a left heel strain. Porter said after practice on Thursday he is going to play.

Portland is coming off two straight losses at Oklahoma City by a total of five points. The Trail Blazers lost 123-121 Monday, on a night when Damian Lillard became the all-time leading scorer in franchise history, and then 101-98 on Wednesday night.

One emphasis for Portland on Friday night could be getting to the foul line. The Trail Blazers attempted just nine free throws in Wednesday’s loss.

Whenever Portland comes to town, it is a reunion on many levels. Billups grew up in Denver, played at the University of Colorado and had two stints with the Nuggets during his long playing career. It is a return for Jusuf Nurkic, who was acquired by Denver on draft night in 2014 and played two-plus seasons there before being traded to the Trail Blazers.

The decision to trade Nurkic came after a failed experiment of playing him and Nikola Jokic together. The Nuggets bet on Jokic as their man in the middle and the gamble has paid off. He has won the league MVP the past two seasons and is averaging 24.7 points, 11 rebounds and a career-best 9.2 assists per game.

Jokic has six triple-doubles, including each of the last two games and three in the last five. He went for 13 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists against Memphis.

NBA Preview: Dallas Mavericks (16-16) at Houston Rockets (9-22)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Dallas Mavericks (16-16) at Houston Rockets (9-22)

Fewer than 10 days ago, the Houston Rockets appeared to have discovered something defensively that could inspire them to greater success and reshape the remainder of their season.

But after limiting the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns to fewer than 100 points in back-to-back victories to open a seven-game homestand, the Rockets again have come undone defensively.

Houston dropped its fourth consecutive game on Wednesday, blowing a 15-point, second-half lead while falling 116-110 to the Orlando Magic in the penultimate contest of that homestand, with the finale set for Friday against the Dallas Mavericks.

The Rockets, according to NBA.com, have allowed 116.5 points per 100 possessions during their skid, with only nine teams posting a worse defensive rating during that abbreviated stretch.

Houston led Orlando 77-62 at the 8:24 mark of the third quarter, but then proceeded to allow 54 points over the final 20-plus minutes of play. The Rockets struggled to score against the absurd length the Magic feature in their zone defense, but the real culprit behind their demise was their leaky defense.

The Rockets enjoyed a measure of defensive success in their first meeting with the Mavericks this season, limiting Dallas to a then season-low 30.4 percent shooting while recording 19 blocked shots — one shy of the franchise record — in their 101-92 road win on Nov. 16. The Mavericks, who were without star Luka Doncic (rest), made 12 of 55 3-pointers and scored 18 fourth-quarter points.

The Mavericks climbed back to .500 Wednesday with their 104-99 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, a win that left them at 6-6 this month. Doncic led the way with 25 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.

Injuries continue to undermine Dallas’ attempts to build momentum, with Dorian Finney-Smith (groin) sidelined Wednesday. Dallas is already without Maxi Kleber (hamstring) and was without Tim Hardaway Jr. (illness) on Monday, although he returned and scored 21 points in the rematch against the Timberwolves.

Even with the rotation fluctuations, the Mavericks continue to push through. The injuries to Kleber and Finney-Smith in the frontcourt led them to move forward Christian Wood and Hardaway into the starting lineup. With Dallas’ rotation compromised, opponents have doubled their efforts to prevent Doncic from dominating offensively.

Against Minnesota, Doncic recorded his 12th game of the season with double-digit assists. And while Dallas shot just 33.3 percent on 3-pointers and its shortened bench currently lacks the requisite punch, the Mavericks have shown an ability to overcome their shortcomings by sticking to their preferred style.

Until they are whole again, the Mavericks understand exactly what is required in order to survive.

NBA Preview: Indiana Pacers (16-16) at Miami Heat (16-16)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Indiana Pacers (16-16) at Miami Heat (16-16)

Having surprised both 2022 NBA finalists in the past nine days, the Indiana Pacers will go for a heavyweight hat trick when they visit last year’s Eastern Conference regular-season champs, the Miami Heat, on Friday night.

Inspired by a last-second miss — and the surprising reaction to it — in a three-point loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday, Tyrese Haliburton came up big with 33 points in Wednesday’s 117-112 road shocker over the Boston Celtics.

The young star found himself spending more time Wednesday responding to some negative comments by Knicks analyst Wally Szczerbiak than his stardom against the Celtics.

Haliburton and his teammates changed the narrative of Thursday’s news stories by taking down a second power in four games.

Their 125-119 triumph over the visiting Golden State Warriors on Dec. 14 began a stretch that not only featured the two eye-catching wins but also saw them play competitive ball against two of the East’s other top teams — the Cleveland Cavaliers and Knicks — in between.

Led by Haliburton’s 23.5 points per game, Bennedict Mathurin’s 17.0 ppg and the combined 23-for-47 3-point shooting of Buddy Hield and Aaron Nesmith, the Pacers have shot 48.2 percent from the field and 38.2 percent on 3-pointers over the 2-2 stretch. They’ve also been aided by 27.8 assists per game.

Continuing the torrid pace against the defensive-minded Heat will be a tough task. Miami held Haliburton without a field goal in nine attempts in an 87-82 win at Indiana on Dec. 12.

That tipped off a four-game winning streak — the club’s longest of the season — before a 113-103 loss to the Chicago Bulls opened a four-game homestand on Tuesday.

Like Haliburton against the Celtics, the Heat appear to have been motivated by recent negative comments. Only in their case, they came from one of their own, star Jimmy Butler.

Following an embarrassing 115-111 loss to the Spurs that capped the Heat’s previous homestand two weeks ago, Butler said, “We ain’t that good. We can’t afford to play a 45-minute game or 47-minute game. We need all 48.”

Miami has won four of five since, including 111-101 in a rematch at San Antonio last Saturday.

Butler, who has scored 20 or more points in each of his last five games, missed the Chicago loss with an illness. He contributed 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals to the win at Indiana last week.

NBA Preview: Chicago Bulls (13-18) at New York Knicks (18-14)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Chicago Bulls (13-18) at New York Knicks (18-14)

The New York Knicks will aim to rebound from their first loss in more than two weeks on Friday when they host a Chicago Bulls bunch looking to close out a winning road trip.

Chicago won its second straight of a four-game road swing on Wednesday, 110-108 in Atlanta, thanks to 28 points from DeMar DeRozan, 22 points from Zach LaVine and 20 points from Nikola Vucevic.

Ayo Dosunmu capped a nine-point effort off the bench with the game-winning basket as time expired.

Coming off a 113-103 win Tuesday in Miami ahead of Wednesday’s buzzer-beater, the Bulls can win three straight for the first time this season with a victory Friday in New York.

Chicago’s back-to-back wins come amid a tumultuous week for the club. A report in The Athletic hinted at locker-room turmoil simmering amid the Bulls’ disappointing start to the season, with Chicago sitting five games below .500.

DeRozan downplayed the rumors of conflict with LaVine on Tuesday.

Shortly after the article went public, guard Lonzo Ball told reporters he “can’t give you a specific timeline” for his return from a knee injury sustained in January.

While Chicago seeks its first three-game winning streak of the season, New York is pursuing a new streak after its run of eight straight wins ended in a 113-106 loss Wednesday to Toronto.

RJ Barrett and Julius Randle each scored 30 points against the Raptors, though two points that eluded Randle played a pivotal role in the conclusion. Randle lost control of the ball going up for a basket that would have pulled New York to within two points with 45 seconds remaining.

The Knicks also surrendered 52 points to Toronto’s Pascal Siakam.

As New York looks to regroup, it faces an opponent it beat twice during the eight-game winning streak.

The Knicks won a 128-120 overtime decision on Dec. 14, in which Randle scored 31 points and Jalen Brunson posted 30 points. New York routed the Bulls one game later, 114-91, behind 27 points from Barrett, 22 each from Brunson and Quentin Grimes — who missed the Toronto game with an ankle injury — and 19 points from Randle.

Some of New York’s success this season is owed to its 13 offensive rebounds per game, second-most in the NBA, and the league’s fourth-best 3-point defense at 33.7 percent allowed.

Chicago, meanwhile, is giving up just 8.9 offensive rebounds per game, the second-best yield in the league, but opponents are making 47.8 percent of field-goal attempts against the Bulls.

NBA Preview: Toronto Raptors (14-18) at Cleveland Cavaliers (22-11)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Toronto Raptors (14-18) at Cleveland Cavaliers (22-11)

Coming off a career-best 52-point performance that helped end a six-game losing streak, Pascal Siakam will lead the visiting Toronto Raptors against the surging Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night.

Siakam’s performance on Wednesday not only stopped Toronto’s slide, the 113-106 victory ended an eight-game winning streak by the New York Knicks.

The Cavaliers, meanwhile, had 36 points from Donovan Mitchell in defeating the visiting Milwaukee Bucks 114-106 Wednesday for their fifth consecutive victory.

Siakam has scored a total of 90 points over the first two games of Toronto’s three-game road trip that started Monday with an overtime loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Siakam made a layup and a free throw with 15.2 seconds remaining in New York to become the first player with a 50-point game at Madison Square Garden since James Harden had 61 for the Houston Rockets in 2019.

Siakam has scored 117 points over the past three games, shooting 54.2 percent (39-for-72) from the field. It is the most points by a player in franchise history over three games, passing DeMar DeRozan’s mark of 113 points, which he did twice.

The victory was the 200th for Nick Nurse as Raptors coach (200-140).

At Cleveland, the Bucks used a 9-0 run to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to five points with 2:21 to play in the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers held on for their first win of the season against the Bucks in three games.

The Cavaliers led by as many as 24 points against the Bucks.

Cleveland has the best home record in the NBA this season (16-2). The Raptors are 4-12 on the road.

The Raptors lead their season series 2-0, with both games played in Toronto.

NBA Preview: Minnesota Timberwolves (16-16) at Boston Celtics (22-10)

NBA Editor
-
0
NBA Preview: Minnesota Timberwolves (16-16) at Boston Celtics (22-10)

It has been a homestand to forget for the Boston Celtics. Three games in, no wins.

After a rousing second-half comeback in Wednesday’s 117-112 loss to the Indiana Pacers, the Celtics will look to break their skid when the Minnesota Timberwolves make their lone visit to Boston on Friday night.

The Celtics have lost five of their last six games and three straight. The latter is their longest regular-season losing streak since last December.

Against Indiana, Boston trailed 71-43 at halftime before getting back into the game with a 42-point third quarter, but Tyrese Haliburton (33 points) and the Pacers proved to be too much.

Tatum, who had missed Sunday’s game against Orlando (personal reasons), scored 28 of his game-high 41 points in the second half.

As for moving forward, Celtics interim coach Joe Mazzulla said, “We have a choice to make: What team do we want to be? The team we were in the first half or the second half?

At this point, Celtics players feel there is little to worry about.

Boston has spent most of the season atop the NBA standings, only recently being passed by the Milwaukee Bucks.

On Wednesday, Boston missed point guard Marcus Smart due a non-COVID illness.

The Timberwolves start a four-game road trip in Boston. They had won three in a row before Wednesday’s 104-99 loss to Dallas, a game in which neither team led by more than eight points.

The difference? A run of five straight Mavericks 3-pointers to erase the Timberwolves’ three-point lead early in the fourth quarter.

Minnesota did not break the 25-point mark in three of the four quarters.

Anthony Edwards scored 23 points and Rivers had 21 for Minnesota, which split a two-game home set with Dallas after winning 116-106 on Monday.

In the series opener, Edwards neared a triple-double with 27 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. Mavericks star Luka Doncic and coach Jason Kidd were both ejected from that game.

Rudy Gobert returned from a three-game absence (sprained left ankle) on Wednesday, recording his third straight double-double and 12th of the season with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Minnesota was without five of its top 11 scorers in the Monday game.

1...3,1983,1993,200...4,132Page 3,199 of 4,132

Contact us: info@sportsgamingjournal.com

* PLEASE NOTE: THE INFORMATION CONTAINED AT THIS SITE IS FOR NEWS AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY. ANY USE OF THIS INFORMATION IN VIOLATION OF ANY FEDERAL, STATE OR LOCAL LAWS IS PROHIBITED.

FOLLOW US

TODAY"S TOP CATEGORIES

© Copyright 2024, Sports Gaming Journal. All rights reserved.