Celtics beat Lakers 107-96 for 10th straight victory
BOSTON (AP) Aron Baynes matched his career high with 21 points, Kyrie Irving scored 19 and the Boston Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers 107-96 on Wednesday night for their 10th straight victory.
Baynes also had eight rebounds and three assists, and Boston improved to 10-2 even as Al Horford sat out after being placed in concussion protocol earlier in the day. The Celtics also lost rookie forward Jayson Tatum late in the second quarter, when he went to the locker room with a sore right ankle.
Brandon Ingram and Jordan Clarkson led the Lakers with 18 points apiece. Julius Randle had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Celtics fans gave rookie Lonzo Ball an icy welcome in his first trip to TD Garden. They booed the No. 2 overall pick throughout the night whenever he touched the ball. He finished with nine points, six assists and five rebounds, making just 4 of 15 from the field.
WARRIORS 125, TIMBERWOLVES 101
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Klay Thompson scored 28 points with six 3-pointers, Stephen Curry had 22 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, and Golden State beat Minnesota for its fifth straight win.
Even without injured Kevin Durant, the defending champs began to look like their dominant old selves.
Draymond Green posted another all-round balanced performance with seven points, six rebounds, six assists and two blocks for the Warriors, who played without NBA Finals MVP Durant as he nursed a bruised left thigh. Andre Iguodala started in place of Durant, and the 2015 Finals MVP scored a season-high 11 points.
Andrew Wiggins scored 17 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 16 points and 12 rebounds as the Timberwolves had their five-game winning streak snapped.
PISTONS 114, PACERS 97
DETROIT (AP) - Tobias Harris scored 23 points and first-place Detroit won for the sixth time in seven games, beating Indiana.
Andre Drummond added 14 points and 21 rebounds for the Pistons. They lead Cleveland by three games in the Central Division. Indiana lost its fourth straight.
Victor Oladipo led the Pacers with 21 points, but Indiana has allowed at least 100 points in 10 of 12 games this season. The Pacers were without injured big man Domantas Sabonis (bruised right calf).
MAGIC 112, KNICKS 99
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Nikola Vucevic scored 24 points and Evan Fournier added 23 to help Orlando beat New York.
Jonathon Simmons scored 15 of his 16 points in the second half. He had 11 straight points early in the fourth quarter to push the Magic's lead back to double figures.
The Magic, benefiting from the return of starting point guard Elfrid Payton, snapped a two-game losing streak. New York, playing without scoring Kristaps Porzingis (ankle and elbow injuries), had its three-game winning streak come to an end. Tim Hardaway Jr. led New York with 26 points.
HEAT 126, SUNS 115
PHOENIX (AP) - Former Phoenix guard Goran Dragic scored a season-high 29 points in the Miami Heat's 126-115 victory over the Suns on Wednesday night.
The Heat made 12 3-pointers, shot 53.1 percent overall and never trailed. Hassan Whiteside added 23 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots for Miami.
Devin Booker led Phoenix with 30 points. The Suns have lost four straight.
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