NEW YORK — Chet Holmgren had 28 points and eight rebounds, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 26 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the New York Knicks 103-100 on Wednesday night.
Holmgren tied a career high with six 3-pointers and Lu Dort added 16 points for the Thunder. The Thunder recovered after the Knicks took a 40-point third quarter lead, rallied early in the fourth and held a small advantage the rest of the way.
Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby missed tying 3-pointers on their final possessions as Oklahoma City won its fourth straight game and New York’s three-game winning streak continued.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 17 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks. Brunson had 16 points and a season-high 15 assists, but was held to just 5 of 18 points. Anunoby also scored 16 points.
BOSTON — Kon Knueppel scored 20 points and Charlotte extended its winning streak to six with a win over Boston.
Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball each added 18 points. Coby White had 17 points and six assists to help Charlotte get over .500 for the first time since Oct. 26.
The Hornets committed just five turnovers and fell behind by as much as 29 points.
Derrick White led the Celtics with 29 points. Jaylen Brown added 20 points and 11 rebounds as Boston’s winning streak was halted at three games.
The Celtics, playing for their sixth game in nine days, performed poorly, shooting 38 percent (30 of 79) from the field and committing 16 turnovers to 21 Charlotte points. Boston was also cold most of the time, connecting on only 10 of 36 3-point attempts.
Despite it being the second night of a back-to-back, the Hornets raced out to an 8-0 lead as the Celtics missed their first eight shots.
PHILADELPHIA — Quentin Grimes made two tie-breaking free throws with 16.4 seconds left, Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points and short-handed Philadelphia beat Utah.
Grimes finished with 16 points and Jabari Walker had 22 for the 76ers, who had Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe and Paul George not out of suspension.
Keyonte George scored 30 points for the Jazz, who have lost seven straight.
Philadelphia, which entered the game ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference playoff race, fell behind 100-94 with 4 minutes and 51 seconds left thanks to George’s three hits. But Utah missed its next six field goals, and Philadelphia tied the game on Adem Bona’s follow-up dunk with 1:50 left.
Isaiah Collier’s layup 46 seconds later gave the Jazz a two-point lead, but Grimes tied it with 46.8 seconds left. After George misfired Utah’s long-range shot, Grimes converted both free throws after being fouled. Utah coach Will Hardy did not call a timeout, and Kyle Filiposki’s wide-open look from distance shined.
Trail Blazers 122, Grizzlies 114
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Jrue Holiday had 35 points and 11 assists and Jerami Grant added 30 points as Portland snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Memphis.
Portland (30-33), looking to advance to the postseason, used a 24-19 scoring advantage over the final nine minutes to seal the win. The Trail Blazers have lost three of their last four games and four of their last six entering Wednesday.
Robert Williams III had 20 points and 11 rebounds for Portland. Matisse Thybulle had 3 rebounds, 1 assist and a steal on his 29th birthday.
The Grizzlies got double-digit scoring from seven players, but it wasn’t enough against Portland as they lost their second straight game and their ninth loss in 12 games. Memphis was playing its second game in a row after losing 117-110 to Minnesota on Tuesday.
MILWAUKEE — Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 23 points and Atlanta defeated sluggish Milwaukee for its fifth straight win and over .500 for the first time since December.
Atlanta improved to 15-12 after a win over Philadelphia on December 14, but the Hawks lost their next seven games and have not had a winning record since.
Onyeka Okongwu scored 21 points and Jalen Johnson added 20 points and nine assists as the Hawks erased an early 16-point deficit. CJ McCollum scored 18 points and Dyson Daniels had 14 points and 10 rebounds.
The Hawks outscored the Bucks 65-42 in the second half.
Atlanta was unable to play Jonathan Kuminga due to left knee inflammation, and Milwaukee was unable to play Kevin Porter Jr. due to right knee swelling.
Milwaukee falls five games behind 10th-place Atlanta in the Eastern Conference standings, putting the Bucks’ bid for a 10th straight playoff appearance in serious jeopardy. The Bucks have lost their last four games by a combined 97 points.
ENGLEWOOD, Calif. — Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points, Benedict Maturin had 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting, and Los Angeles beat Indiana for its third straight title.
Brook Lopez had 17 points for the Clippers and Darius Garland had 12 points in his first home game since being acquired in a trade from the Cleveland Cavaliers last month.
Pascal Siakam scored 29 points in his return after missing three games with a left wrist sprain to lead Indiana, but the Pacers lost their seventh straight game and fell to last place in the Eastern Conference at 15-47.
Jay Huff had 18, going 4 of 8 on 3-pointers, and Jarace Walker had 17.
The Clippers led 42-25 after one quarter and 63-51 at halftime, with Leonard scoring 20 points. The Clippers went on a 16-2 run in the third quarter to extend their seven-point lead to 21 points.
The Clippers had a 12.2 percentage point higher field shooting percentage (55.1%) than the Pacers (42.9%).
