The Nets earned a 101-85 victory against the Spurs behind D'Angelo Russell' 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Joe Harris and Caris LeVert each added 15 points for Brooklyn, which made 19 3-pointers and caused San Antonio to finish 1-7 on its eight-game road trip.
The 76ers were 111-110 winners at New Orleans as Tobias Harris scored 29 points and Ben Simmons had 14 with 12 assists. Sixers 7-foot-3 reserve Boban Marjanovic had 12 points, 10 rebound and two blocks in less than 22 minutes to help fill the void in the middle created by the absence of All-Star Joel Embiid, who has missed three straight games with a sore knee.
In Monday's other NBA action, the Golden State Warriors have expanded their lead in the NBA's Western Conference by bouncing back from Saturday's home loss to Houston. Klay Thompson scored 26 points and DeMarcus Cousins added 24 with 11 rebounds in the Warriors' 121-110 victory at Charlotte. Kevin Durant had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Warriors, who have not lost back-to-back games since Dec. 27. Stephen Curry finished with 16 points on just 4-for-14 shooting in his hometown, but he had a steal and a 3-pointer after the Hornets cut a 17-point deficit to seven with 3:24 remaining. The Warriors moved 1 ½ games ahead of Denver for the top spot in the West. Cody Zeller made 13 of 14 shots from the field and finished with a career-high 28 points in Charlotte's second straight loss.
The Bucks improved to a league-best 46-14 as Malcolm Brogdon and Khris Middleton each scored 22 points in a 117-106 downing of the Bulls. Milwaukee won for the 17th time in 19 games despite the absence of All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who sat out with a sore right knee.
James Harden's streak of 30-point performances ended at 32 games, but he finished with 28 despite shooting 0-for-10 from 3-point range in the Rockets' 119-111 victory against the Hawks. Chris Paul added 20 points to help Houston overcome rookie Trae Young's career-high eight 3-pointers and 36 points for Atlanta.
The Suns' team-record 17-game losing streak is over after seven Phoenix players scored at least 10 points in a 124-121 victory at Miami. Devin Booker contributed 20 points, former Heat guard Tyler Johnson scored 18 and the Suns accumulated 40 in the final period to improve to 2-42 this season when trailing after three quarters.
CJ McCollum scored 35 points and the Trail Blazers blew most of a 23-point halftime lead before going on a 14-0 run to secure a win at Cleveland, 123-110 over the Cavaliers. McCollum scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, and Damian Lillard furnished eight of his 21 points in the final period.
The Pistons won for the seventh time in eight games as Andre Drummond delivered 26 points and 16 rebounds to a 113-109 victory against Indiana. Blake Griffin had a triple-double of 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to help Detroit deal Indiana just its second loss in 10 games.
Montrezl Harrell had eight dunks while scoring a career-high 32 points in the Clippers' 121-112 win over the Mavericks. Lou Williams added 21 and Los Angeles moved into seventh place in the West after withstanding a triple-double by rookie Luka Doncic, who finished with 28 points, 10 boards and 10 assists.
Mike Conley had 30 points and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds to send the Grizzlies to a 110-105 win over the Lakers. LeBron James had 24 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists but made only 8 of 23 shots as Los Angeles fell for the fourth time in five games.
Karl-Anthony Towns provided 34 points and 21 rebounds in his return from the concussion protocol to send the Timberwolves past the Kings, 112-105. Derrick Rose added 20 points and Tyus Jones pitched in 16 points, eight assists and three steals for Minnesota, which split its last two games without Towns.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
In women's basketball, Notre Dame defeated Syracuse, 98-68.
In top-25 basketball, Devin Vassell and Trent Forrest helped 18th-ranked Florida State beat Notre Dame on Monday. Vassell scored 13 points on 5 of 6 shooting and had seven rebounds to send the Seminoles past the Fighting Irish, 68-61. Vasell sparked a second-half charge with a dunk and a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions. Forrest shot 4-for-6 from the line in the final minute to help FSU improve to 22-6 overall and 10-5 in the ACC. D.J. Harvey scored 18 points for the Irish, who missed nine of their last 10 field-goal attempts.
Dedric Lawson had 18 points and 14 rebounds as 15th-ranked Kansas stifled No. 16 Kansas State, 64-49. Devon Dotson added 16 points and fellow freshman Quentin Grimes had 12 to help the Jayhawks move within a half-game of the Big 12-leading Wildcats with three games remaining.
Marial Shayok scored 21 points and No. 19 Iowa State snapped a two-game skid by rolling past Oklahoma, 78-61. Talen Horton-Tucker had 18 for the Cyclones, who went on a 13-0 run in the second half and reached 20 wins for the seventh time in eight years.
In college basketball news, third-ranked Duke will play a second straight game without National Player of the Year candidate Zion Williamson when the Blue Devils take on Virginia Tech on Tuesday. The freshman forward suffered a mild sprain of his right knee when he planted his foot while dribbling and his left shoe tore apart. Williamson ranks second in the ACC in scoring at 21.6 points per game.
In the top-25 basketball poll, Gonzaga is back on top. The Bulldogs claimed the No. 1 ranking for the second time this season following Duke's loss to North Carolina last week. Gonzaga spent two weeks at No. 1 after beating the Blue Devils to win the Maui Invitational in November. Virginia moved up a notch to second, followed by Duke, Kentucky and North Carolina. Michigan State, Tennessee, Houston, Michigan and Marquette rounded out the top 10. Wofford checked in at No. 24 for its first AP poll appearance in program history.
NHL
John Tavares notched his 35th goal and Auston Matthews added his 30th while the Maple Leafs scored four straight in the second period of a 5-3 win against the Sabres. Tavares tied the game before Matthews and Frederik Gauthier tallied 28 seconds apart, helping Toronto pull within one point of second-place Boston in the Atlantic Division.
Cory Schneider turned back 34 shots and blanked the Canadiens until the third period of the Devils' 2-1 triumph over Montreal. Nathan Bastian scored his first NHL goal and Kurtis Gabriel added his second as New Jersey handed the Habs their second consecutive loss and sixth in eight games.
Elsewhere on NHL ice, the Tampa Bay Lightning have added another highlight to what is becoming the best regular season in team history. The Lightning matched a team record with their ninth straight win as Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman scored in the shootout to complete a 4-3 decision over the Kings. J.T. Miller's third-period goal forced overtime, and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 30 shots to help Tampa Bay extend their winning streak. The Bolts improved their NHL-leading record to 48-11-4 and became the fourth team to reach 100 points in 63 games or less.
Nashville slipped one point ahead of Winnipeg for the Central Division by getting a goal from Brian Boyle in the fourth round of a shootout to beat the Oilers, 3-2. P.K. Subban had a goal and an assist, and Colton Sissons also scored in the Predators' third win in four games.
The Panthers pulled out a 4-3 win over the Avalanche on Aaron Ekblad's goal 26 seconds into overtime. Roberto Luongo stopped 36 shots to earn his 485th career victory.
Bo Horvat scored his 22nd and 23rd goals of the season to support Jacob Markstrom in the Canucks' 4-0 silencing of the Ducks. Markstrom turned back 29 shots for his first shutout of the season and third of his career, helping Vancouver get within four points of a playoff berth.
In NHL news, Monday was the NHL trade deadline. A total of 32 players were packaged in 20 trades on Monday. The Jets were part of six trades on Monday, including the acquisition of forward Kevin Hayes from the Rangers. The 26-year-old Hayes has furnished 14 goals and 42 points in 51 games this season. The Rangers get forward Brendan Lemieux, a 2019 first-round pick and a conditional 2020 fourth round pick they get only if the Jets win the Stanley Cup this spring.
The Blue Jackets landed defenseman Adam McQuaid from the Rangers for defenseman Julius Bergman and both fourth-and seventh-round draft choices this year.
The Bruins snared forward Marcus Johansson from the Devils for a second-round pick this year and a fourth-rounder next season. New Jersey also shipped goaltender Keith Kincaid to the Blue Jackets for a 2022 fifth-round draft selection.
The Pens have added defensemen Chris Wideman from Florida and Erik Gudbranson from Vancouver. Pittsburgh sent forward Tanner Pearson to the Canucks and center Jean-Sebastian Dea to the Panthers. The arrival of Wideman and Gudbranson comes after blueliners Kris Letang and Brian Dumoulin were banged up in Saturday's loss at Philadelphia. Defenseman Olli Maata remains on the Penguins' injured reserve with an upper-body injury.
The Predators picked up Wayne Simmonds from Philadelphia for fellow forward Ryan Hartman and a conditional 2020 draft pick. Simmonds is on pace for his sixth straight 20-goal season and joins a club that ranks last in power play percentage.
In other NHL moves, the Knights acquired Mark Stone from Ottawa for defense prospect Erik Brannstrom, forward Oscar Lindberg and the Stars' 2020 second-round pick. Vegas also received minor league forward Tobias Lindberg in the trade. Stone told TSN in Canada that he's already agreed to a contract extension with the Knights rather than test the free agent market this summer. Stone has 28 goals and 34 assists for 62 points through 59 games this season. He joins a team that has dropped 10 of 13 to fall to sixth in the Western Conference, just four points ahead of ninth-place Colorado.
Nashville also traded young forward Kevin Fiala to the Wild for winger Mikael Granlund, who has collected 18 of his 49 points on the power play this season.
The Red Wings sent forward Gustav Nyquist to the Sharks for a 2019 second-round draft pick and a conditional 2020 third-round pick.
Center Derick Brassard is changing dressing rooms again after being traded by the Panthers to the Avalanche, one month after Florida acquired him from Pittsburgh.
The Coyotes acquired Michael Chaput in a trade that sends Jordan Weal to the Montreal Canadiens in a swap of centers..
The Flames added some depth to their blue line by acquiring Oscar Fantenberg from the Kings for a conditional fourth-round draft pick in 2020.
MLB
Aaron Hicks won't be among the major league free agents this fall. The New York Yankees and the 29-year-old outfielder have worked out a seven-year, $70 million contract. The package adds six years and $64 million to the deal Hicks accepted on Jan. 11. The Yankees have a $12.5 million option for 2026 with a $1 million buyout. Hicks took over as the Yankees primary center fielder last year and set career highs with 137 games, 27 homers and 79 RBIs.
In other baseball news, Bryce Harper met with the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend, a sign the market for the star free agent might be picking up as spring training enters its second full week. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed the meeting, saying it was "good" and a chance for the sides to "get to know each other." Roberts says the Dodgers were "vetting a certain process."
The Rockies have agreed to a three-year contract extension with manager Bud Black through 2022 after he guided the team to back-to-back playoff appearances. The 61-year-old Black has posted a 178-147 record since being named Colorado's manager on Nov. 7, 2016. His .548 winning percentage is the best in franchise history
NFL
The NFL says it will handle the sex solicitation case involving New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft as it would any other issue under the league's personal conduct policy. The 77-year-old owner has been charged with soliciting a prostitute in Florida as part of a crackdown on sex trafficking. Hundreds of arrest warrants have been issued. Police are still investigating and there likely will be a league inquiry. Commissioner Roger Goodell could fine or suspend Kraft from any activities involving the Super Bowl champions. The NFL says it will "take appropriate action as warranted based on the facts."
The Eagles have hired former Cleveland executive Andrew Berry as vice president of football operations. Berry worked three seasons with the Browns after seven years in Indianapolis and helped lead talent evaluation and scouting.
In other NFL news, the Chargers have re-signed defensive back Jaylen Watkins, who missed last season after suffering a knee injury in the second preseason game. Prior to the injury, Watkins was seeing time as a nickel corner and safety.
The Panthers have released nickel cornerback Captain Munnerlyn and informed free agent safety Mike Adams he will not be re-signed. The Panthers are trying to get younger following a 7-9 season.
The Browns have re-signed left tackle Greg Robinson for next season after he revived his career in 2018. The second player taken in the 2014 draft played all 16 games for Cleveland last season, starting the final eight and making an impact following the retirement of 10-time Pro Bowler Joe Thomas. Robinson was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent in March.
Atlanta police say thieves broke into a car driven by Buccaneers running back Peyton Barber and made off with a team-issued tablet containing playbook information. But the Buccaneers say there was "nothing of much importance" on the tablet, and the team was able to remotely disable it.
© The Associated Press 2019. All Rights Reserved.
