OKLAHOMA: Russell Westbrook collected his 13th triple-double of the season, and the 50th of his career, to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 114-101 home victory over the Phoenix Suns. Just days after saying he was tired of hearing about triple-doubles, Westbrook poured in 26 points, 11 rebounds and 22 assists, a new career high. It is only the fifth time since 1983 that a player had a triple double and reached at least 20 points and 20 assists. Center Steven Adams of New Zealand added 19 points as Oklahoma City broke a two game losing streak and raised its record to 16-11.
Rockets 111, T-wolves 109 (oT)
James Harden scored 10 of his 28 points in overtime and the Houston Rockets won their 10th straight game, defeating the Minnesota Timberwolves 111-109.
Houston trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half but extended its NBA-best win streak with a late rally courtesy of more long-distance shooting.
Ryan Anderson scored 28 points and hit seven 3-pointers for the Rockets (21-7).
Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns had his seventh straight double-double with 41 points and 15 rebounds.
Cavaliers 119, Lakers 108
LeBron James scored 26 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter, and Kyrie Irving had 21 points and matched his career high with 12 assists in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 119-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Kevin Love had 27 points and a season-high 17 rebounds as all three of the Cavs’ stars returned with big games after coach Tyronn Lue rested them in Cleveland’s previous game on Wednesday.
Irving took a week off after complaining of tired legs.
Warriors 135, Blazers 90
Kevin Durant scored 13 of his game-high 34 points in a first-quarter runaway, propelling the Golden State Warriors to a 135-90 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Draymond Green posted a 13-assist, 12-rebound double-double, helping Golden State improve its best-in-the-NBA record to 24-4.
The 45-point margin of victory was the Warriors’ largest of the season.
Pacers 105, Pistons 90
Paul George had 26 points and the Indiana Pacers took control late in the first half and rolled to a 105-90 win over the Detroit Pistons.
George also grabbed seven rebounds, while Pacers point guard Jeff Teague supplied 19 points, a career-high tying nine rebounds and seven assists for Indiana (14-14), which salvaged the finale of a three-game road trip.
Hornets 107, Hawks 99
Marvin Williams matched his season high with 19 points, including the game-clinching 3-pointer with 27.8 seconds left that lifted the Charlotte Hornets to a 107-99 win over the Atlanta Hawks and ended their four-game losing streak.
Atlanta twice erased a double-digit lead in the second half and led 95-94 with 3:50 remaining. But the Hornets regained the lead on Marco Belinelli’s third 3-pointer of the fourth quarter and Atlanta could never get closer than two points after that.
Nuggets 127, Knicks 114
Kenneth Faried had a season-high 25 points and three blocked shots, Emmanuel Mudiay scored 22, and the Denver Nuggets beat the New York Knicks 127-114.
Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks with 29 points in his return to Denver. Anthony, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2003 draft, played his first seven-and-a-half seasons with the Nuggets before being dealt to New York in February 2011.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 22 points and rookie Willy Hernangomez had a career-high 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Knicks (14-13). — Reuters
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