UNDATED (AP) — Chris Paul scored 28 points, Devin Booker had 19 and Mikal Bridges 18 to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 116-113 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night, improving to the NBA-best road record 19-7.
Joel Embiid had 38 points and 17 rebounds. He heaved a fullcourt shot at the horn that rattled around the rim and put the All-Center center on his back in disbelief over the near-make.
The Sixers again played without starters Ben Simmons because of an unspecified illness and Tobias Harris with a sore right knee. But, the Sixers are secure enough in a playoff spot to the point they don’t have to rush either one back. Seth Curry also missed the game with a left hip flexor.
Elsewhere in the NBA:
— Buddy Hield scored 29 points and made a clutch 3-pointer with 8.8 seconds remaining, lifting the Sacramento Kings to a 128-125 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Moments after Minnesota’s D’Angelo Russell missed from above the arc, Hield came back the other way and hit his seventh 3 of the game to help Sacramento avoid being swept in the three-game season series with the Timberwolves.
— Luke Kennard scored a season-high 28 points and the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers recovered from an 18-point, first-quarter deficit to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 117-105. Marcus Morris added 25 points and Terance Mann had 19 points in helping the Clippers win their third in a row and 10th in 11 games despite being without starters Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Reggie Jackson. Ja Morant led the Grizzlies with 22 points. Jaren Jackson Jr. had 15 points in his season debut after being out since August because of knee surgery.
— Nikola Jokic scored 25 points and made three key free throws down the stretch to give the Denver Nuggets a 106-105 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. Michael Porter Jr. scored 17 points, all in the opening quarter, for the Nuggets, who won their fourth straight. Damian Lillard scored 22 point for Portland, which has struggled against Western Conference teams that sit higher in the standings. The Trail Blazers lost their third straight.
— Julius Randle had 40 points and 10 rebounds to lead the New York Knicks to a 137-127 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks. Randle’s driving layup with eight seconds left in regulation gave New York a 122-119 lead, but Bogdan Bogdanovic hit a 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds left to send the game into overtime. The Knicks won their NBA-best eighth straight game.
— Stephen Curry had his first rough night in a month, and Bradley Beal rallied Washington in the fourth quarter for its season-best sixth straight victory, 118-114 over the Golden State Warriors. The Wizards hosted fans for the first time in more than a year. Coming off a historic 11-game stretch in which he made 78 3-pointers and surpassed Beal as the NBA’s scoring leader, Curry scored 18 points on 7-of-25 shooting, including 2 of 14 on 3s. Beal scored 29 points as the glamorous matchup with Curry mostly fizzled until Washington’s late rally. Russell Westbrook had 14 points, a season-high 20 rebounds and 10 assists for the Wizards.
— Jordan Clarkson scored 22 points, Joe Ingles had 21 and the NBA-leading Utah Jazz beat the Houston Rockets 112-89. The Jazz have won four of their last five games. The 23-point margin was Utah’s most-lopsided victory over Houston since a 118-91 blowout Dec. 6, 2018.
– Pascal Siakam had 27 points and nine rebounds, OG Anunoby scored 25 points and the Toronto Raptors ran away from the Brooklyn Nets in the third quarter, winning their fourth straight game 114-103. Kyrie Irving had 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists for the Nets, and Bruce Brown had 21 points and 14 rebounds. Toronto made 13 of 24 shots (54%) and outscored the Nets 36-23 in third quarter.
— Bam Adebayo scored 23 points while Jimmy Butler had 18 points and 11 assists to help the Miami Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs 107-87 for their third straight victory. Tyler Herro added 22 points for Miami, which has won nine of 13. Dejounte Murray had 11 and no other player scored in double figures for the Spurs, who have lost five straight at home.
— Luka Doncic had 30 points and 10 rebounds, Kristaps Porzingis added 19 points and seven boards and the Dallas Mavericks beat the Detroit Pistons 127-117 to stop a four-game home losing streak.
— Malcolm Brogdon scored 29 points and Caris LeVert added 28 to help the severely short-handed Indiana Pacers snap a three-game losing streak with a 122-116 victory over the reeling Oklahoma City Thunder. LeVert broke open the game by scoring five straight points midway through the fourth quarter after Oklahoma City pulled to 105-104. Brogdon sealed it at the free-throw line in the final seconds.
— Collin Sexton scored 30 points and Darius Garland added 25 as the Cleveland Cavaliers never trailed in a 121-105 win over the Chicago Bulls, snapping a five-game home losing streak. Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff was not at the game for personal reasons, but is expected to return to the bench Friday. Assistant coach Greg Buckner filled in for his longtime friend and colleague. Lauri Markkanen scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half and Thaddeus Young had 14 points and eight rebounds for Chicago.
