PHILADELPHIA — Paul George scored 32 points, Joel Embiid had 18 of his 29 points in the first quarter and the Philadelphia 76ers rolled to a 139-122 victory over the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
Tyrese Maxey added 22 points for the 76ers, who were blown out a night earlier at Charlotte with Embiid and George sidelined.
Myles Turner scored 31 points for Milwaukee, which lost its third straight and sixth of seven. Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo sat out with a right calf strain that the team said will sideline him indefinitely.
George hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter to help the 76ers extend their 11-point lead to start the period to 18 points. In their 130-93 loss to the Hornets, the Sixers trailed by 50 points entering the fourth.
The game at Charlotte was rescheduled to 3 p.m. EDT because of winter weather, but the Sixers still didn’t make it back to Philadelphia until after 1 a.m. Tuesday.
But the return of Embiid and George, who both sat Monday for injury management, provided a jolt of energy for the Sixers. Maxey found Embiid for an alley-oop dunk late in the first half and Maxey jumped up and down with excitement as both players smiled toward Bucks coach Doc Rivers, who led the Sixers for three seasons.
George made 11 of 21 shots, including 9 of 15 3-pointers. Embiid added nine rebounds and five assists.
Ryan Rollins scored 24 points for the Bucks, Bobby Portis had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Kyle Kuzma also scored 17.
WIZARDS 115, TRAIL BLAZERS 111
WASHINGTON — Alex Sarr had 29 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots, and Washington snapped a nine-game losing streak with a victory over Portland.
It was Washington’s first home victory over Portland since Jan. 16, 2017.
The Wizards led 112-106 when Shaedon Sharpe cut the lead in half with a 3-pointer. After Bub Carrington tossed up an air ball for Washington, Sharpe’s dunk with 20.5 seconds left cut the lead to one.
Kyshawn George made one of two free throws with 15.5 seconds to play, putting the Wizards up 113-111. After a timeout, Sharpe’s contested jumper missed, and Khris Middleton’s free throws made it a four-point game.
Sharpe scored 31 points for Portland, which lost despite a 69-46 advantage in rebounds. The Trail Blazers shot just 13 of 23 on free throws.
The seven-foot-one Sarr attempted a career-high 29 field goals, making 11. It was quite a battle of young big men between him and 7-foot-3 Donovan Clingan, who had 14 points and 20 rebounds for Portland. Ex-Wizard Deni Avdija had 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Blazers.
NEW YORK — Jalen Brunson scored 28 points and New York dominated the fourth quarter to beat Sacramento for its third straight victory.
Mikal Bridges added 18 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Knicks, who outscored the Kings 31-15 in the final period after the game was tied at 72 after three.
DeMar DeRozan scored 34 points for the Kings, who lost their sixth straight. Russell Westbrook added 14 points, but he and DeRozan combined to go 3 for 16 from 3-point range on a night when Sacramento finished 5 for 30 (16.7%).
Mike Brown earned his first victory as Knicks coach against the team that fired him last season, two years after he was NBA Coach of the Year after leading Sacramento to the 2023 playoffs.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and short-handed Oklahoma City beat New Orleans to avoid its first three-game skid of the season.
Chet Holmgren had 20 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks for NBA-best Oklahoma City (38-10), which had lost back-to-back home games for the first time this season. Isaiah Joe added 17 points.
The Thunder were missing starters Jalen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein and Cason Wallace and key reserve Alex Caruso with injuries.
Gilgeous-Alexander shot 8 of 22 from the field but went 13 of 14 from the foul line. He scored at least 20 points for the 118th consecutive game, the second-longest streak in NBA history.
Zion Williamson led New Orleans with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 11 rebounds. Saddiq Bey added 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Pelicans, who had won two straight.
DENVER — Tobias Harris scored 22 points, including two free throws with 2 seconds left, and Detroit held off a late Denver rally for the win.
Cade Cunningham had with 22 points and 11 assists for Detroit, which has won nine of 11 and leads the Eastern Conference by 5 1/2 games over Boston.
Jamal Murray had 24 points and 10 assists but missed two free throws in the final seconds. With the Nuggets down 107-104, Murray was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 4 seconds left and missed the first foul shot. Harris was fouled and made both free throws. Murray went to the line again with 0.7 seconds remaining but missed the second foul shot.
Jonas Valanciunas returned from a one-game absence to finish with 16 points and 16 rebounds for Denver, which had been scheduled to play at the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday. The game was postponed because of the winter storm that hit most of the country, and the Nuggets were stranded in Memphis until Monday morning.
PHOENIX — Mark Williams scored 27 points, Dillon Brooks had 26 and short-handed Phoenix beat Brooklyn in a game that featured a scuffle late in the fourth quarter.
After Brooks put the Suns ahead 104-102 on two free throws with 1:23 remaining, a steal by the Suns’ Royce O’Neale led to a scramble for the ball in the paint. Brooks tried to wrestle the ball away from Ziaire Williams after the whistle, and the Nets’ Egor Demin pushed Brooks.
Several players started jawing at each other and assistant coaches from both sides gathered on the floor as officials tried to restore order. Demin, Mann and Michael Porter Jr. received technical fouls for the Nets, and the Suns’ Grayson Allen and O’Neale also got technicals. Brooks did not receive a technical after getting one earlier in the game.
Allen added 18 points for the short-handed Suns, who ended a two-game skid. Devin Booker missed his second straight game after rolling his right ankle in a loss at Atlanta on Friday night, and Jalen Green also sat with a nagging right hamstring injury.
Porter finished with a season-high 36 points for the Nets, who have lost six straight and 14 of 16. Demin added 15 points, but Brooklyn struggled to find secondary scoring.
SALT LAKE CITY — Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points, James Harden had 16 points and 10 assists, and Los Angeles beat Utah for its ninth win in 10 games.
Kris Dunn added 14 points and a season-best five steals for the Clippers (22-24), who have the best record in the NBA since Christmas. They have won 16 of their last 19 games — immediately after going 3-16 in their previous 19.
The Clippers took control during a 10-2 run in the third quarter, powered by Dunn’s two steals and layups, along with a 3-pointer that made it 73-61. Los Angeles led by double figures the rest of the way.
Utah’s Lauri Markkanen returned after missing seven games due to illness to score 19 points on 5-for-15 shooting.
Ace Bailey scored 20 points and Brice Sensabaugh added 13 but the Jazz (15-32) have dropped seven of their last eight games.
With Leonard on the court, the Clippers are 14-2 in their last 16 games and have won seven straight.
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