January 22, 2024 – 11:51 PM PST
Joel Embiid scored a career-high and franchise-record 70 points to go along with 18 rebounds as the host Philadelphia 76ers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 133-123 on Monday.
Embiid, the reigning Most Valuable Player, became the third player in Philadelphia franchise history to produce at least 60 points in a game, joining Wilt Chamberlain (three occasions) and Allen Iverson.
Embiid surpassed Chamberlain’s previous franchise mark of 68 points, set on Dec. 16, 1967, at the Chicago Bulls.
Prized No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama scored 33 points for the Spurs. Devin Vassell added 22, Jeremy Sochan contributed 14, Doug McDermott had 13 and Julian Champagnie and Tre Jones each finished with 12.
Hornets 128, Timberwolves 125
Miles Bridges scored 28 points, Brandon Miller finished with 27 and Charlotte overcame a record-setting performance by Karl-Anthony Towns to rally past Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Towns scored 62 points to break his own franchise record for the Timberwolves. But he missed his final 3-point attempt in the final second of regulation, failing to force overtime.
Charlotte trailed by 15 points at the start of the fourth quarter. The Hornets outscored the Timberwolves 36-18 in the final period to earn their 10th win of the season.
Suns 115, Bulls 113
Kevin Durant knocked down a tiebreaking 17-footer with 1.6 seconds left to give Phoenix a victory over visiting Chicago.
Durant scored a season-high 43 points to reach 40 for the second straight game as the Suns won their sixth consecutive game. Bradley Beal scored 18 points for Phoenix, and Devin Booker added 16.
DeMar DeRozan missed a contested 3-point attempt as time expired, leaving the Bulls with their ninth straight head-to-head loss against Phoenix. Coby White had 26 points, matched his career high of 10 rebounds and had nine assists while DeRozan scored 21 points for Chicago.
Bucks 122, Pistons 113
Giannis Antetokounmpo notched a triple-double with 31 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists and visiting Milwaukee defeated Detroit for the second time in three days.
Khris Middleton had 26 points and Damian Lillard, who tossed in a season-high 45 points in the Bucks’ 141-135 win on Saturday, added 17 points and eight assists. Milwaukee has won 21 of the past 22 regular-season meetings with the Pistons, including the past nine matchups.
Marcus Sasser led Detroit with 23 points. Isaiah Stewart had 19 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, while Jaden Ivey added 17 points.
Cavaliers 126, Magic 99
Jarrett Allen set a franchise record with his 12th consecutive double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, as Cleveland rolled to a road blowout of Orlando.
Allen surpassing Elmore Smith and Andre Drummond — with whom Allen was tied with for the Cavaliers’ double-double mark coming into the night — provided the only drama of the second half in a wire-to-wire, lopsided affair.
Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 18 points and six assists. Franz Wagner, playing his second consecutive game since returning from an ankle sprain that sidelined him the previous eight, scored 17 points.
Grizzlies 108, Raptors 100
Jaren Jackson Jr. had 27 points and six steals and visiting Memphis defeated Toronto.
Luke Kennard added 19 points for the Grizzlies, who had lost their previous two games. Vince Williams Jr. supplied 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Scottie Barnes had 22 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots for the Raptors, who have lost three straight. RJ Barrett recorded 29 points and nine rebounds.
Celtics 119, Mavericks 110
Jayson Tatum tossed in a game-high 39 points and collected 11 rebounds to help Boston win at Dallas.
Tatum shot 11 of 21 from the field as the Celtics won for the fifth time in six games. Jaylen Brown added 34 points for the Celtics, who received 17 points from Jrue Holiday.
Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with 33 points, a season-high 18 rebounds and 13 assists. Kyrie Irving scored 23 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 20 for Dallas, which took its third loss in four games.
Kings 122, Hawks 107
Harrison Barnes scored 32 points and Sacramento took advantage of the absence of Trae Young (concussion protocol) to thump visiting Atlanta.
Domantas Sabonis contributed a game-high 21 rebounds, 14 points, six assists and two steals to the win, which allowed the Kings to snap a four-game losing streak.
Dejounte Murray had a game-high 35 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Hawks, who were held to their sixth-lowest point total of the season. Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 18 points.
–Field Level Media