JRUE Holiday recorded 29 points, six assists and five rebounds to help the Milwaukee Bucks post a 135-134 victory over the visiting Washington Wizards on Wednesday night (Thursday in Manila).
Giannis Antetokounmpo added 23 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Bucks won their fourth consecutive game. Milwaukee, which played without Khris Middleton (knee), has defeated the Wizards eight straight times.
Bradley Beal scored 42 points for Washington, which lost for just the fourth time in the past 17 games. Russell Westbrook contributed 29 points, 17 assists and 12 rebounds for his 179th career triple-double, two shy of the all-time record held by Oscar Robertson.
Beal hit a 3-pointer with 5.3 seconds to go to get Washington within one. After a Bucks turnover, Washington’s Garrison Mathews saw his 55-foot heave hit the backboard and carom off the rim as time expired.
In other games, it was the Sixers 135, Rockets 115; Jazz 126, Spurs 94; Celtics 132, Magic 96; Blazers 141, Cavs 105; Hawks 135, Suns 103; Nuggets 113, Knicks 97; Grizzlies 139, Wolves 135; and Kings 104, Pacers 93.
Sixers 135, Rockets 115
Joel Embiid posted his 29th double-double as visiting Philadelphia extended its winning streak to six games by routing short-handed Houston.
Embiid paired 34 points with 12 rebounds to pace an efficient offensive effort for the 76ers, who shot 53.2 percent from the floor, including 15 of 35 from 3-point range.
Shake Milton scored 19 points off the Philadelphia bench. Kelly Olynyk led the Rockets, who used just seven players, with 27 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Kenyon Martin Jr. paired a career-high 23 points with 10 rebounds and six assists.
Jazz 126, Spurs 94
Jordan Clarkson scored 30 points and Bojan Bogdanovic chipped in with 24 as Utah crushed San Antonio in Salt Lake City for its third consecutive win.
Combined with the Phoenix Suns’ loss, Utah regained first place in the Western Conference and the top record in the NBA. The Jazz are up a game on the Suns with six games remaining. San Antonio remains in the No. 10 spot in the West, in the final position to make the NBA’s new play-in tournament.
Luka Samanic scored a team-high 15 points for the Spurs, who only shot 40.2 percent from the floor. The Jazz shot a blistering 55.7 percent of their field-goal attempts and hit 18 of 41 (43.9 percent) from 3-point range. — Field Level Media
