Boston Celtics 109, Toronto Raptors 104
BOSTON -- Isaiah Thomas flashed his fourth-quarter magic one more time, leading his Boston Celtics from behind to their fifth straight victory, a 109-104 decision over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.
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Boston Celtics 109, Toronto Raptors 104 BOSTON -- Isaiah Thomas flashed his fourth-quarter magic one more time, leading his Boston Celtics from behind to their fifth straight victory, a 109-104 decision over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.
Boston's little big man scored 18 of his 44 points in the final 6:12 (19 in the quarter), including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 48.1 seconds remaining as the Celtics completed a comeback from an 18-point third-quarter deficit for the win.
The win, over a Toronto team playing the second half of a back-to-back without injured All-Star starter DeMar DeRozan, gave the Celtics a game and a half lead over Toronto atop the Atlantic Division. It also gave coach Brad Stevens the same lead over counterpart Dwane Casey in the chase to coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars.
Miami Heat 116, Atlanta Hawks 93
MIAMI -- Goran Dragic scored 27 points as Miami won its ninth straight game, defeating Atlanta at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Dion Waiters added 20 points for Miami, and Hassan Whiteside contributed 18 points and 18 rebounds.
The Heat, which was 19 games under .500 only two weeks ago, has the longest active win streak in the NBA.
It's also the Heat's longest win streak in three years and the third-biggest run by an NBA team this season. Only the Golden State Warriors (12 straight wins) and the Houston Rockets (10) have longer runs.
Indiana Pacers 98, Orlando Magic 88
ORLANDO, Fla. -- C.J. Miles scored 16 points, and Indiana won its fourth consecutive game by pounding Orlando at the Amway Center.
Miles hit 6 of 7 shots, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range in a nearly flawless shooting night. The Pacers never trailed after the first two minutes.
The Magic never got closer than five points in the fourth quarter.
Golden State Warriors 126, Charlotte Hornets 111
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Stephen Curry bombed in six 3-pointers in the first quarter, paving the way to a 39-point performance that propelled Golden State to a thumping of Charlotte.
Curry (11-for-15) and Klay Thompson (6-for-10) combined for 17 3-pointers as the Warriors set franchise records for threes in a quarter (nine) and a half (15) en route to season-best 21.
Thompson finished with 29 points to go with a career-high-tying eight assists, and Kevin Durant added 18 points, helping the Warriors record a sixth straight win over the Hornets and an eighth in a row at home against Eastern Conference competition this season.
Cleveland Cavaliers 125, Minnesota Timberwolves 97
CLEVELAND -- Kyrie Irving passed for a career-high 14 assists to go with his 14 points and LeBron James had 27 points and 12 assists in Cleveland's victory against Minnesota. It was a much-needed jolt to start the month of February after they struggled through a miserable 7-8 January.
It's the most points the Cavs scored in a game since a Dec. 7 home win against the Knicks. They've now won three of their last four games.
Irving and James combined for 26 of the Cavs' 37 assists -- which is why they held a free-agent workout earlier in the day featuring Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich, Jordan Farmar and Lance Stephenson. James has been persistent in mentioning the Cavs' need for more playmakers.
New York Knicks 95, Brooklyn Nets 90
NEW YORK -- Kristaps Porzingis scored 12 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter when Carmelo Anthony did not play and New York rallied for a victory over Brooklyn at Barclays Center.
Porzingis returned after sitting with a stomach virus in Tuesday's loss at Washington. He made 4 of 6 shots in the fourth quarter and grabbed four rebounds to help the Knicks win for only the sixth time in their last 22 games since Dec. 22.
Willy Hernangomez added 14 of his 16 in the fourth quarter for the Knicks, who trailed for the first 43-plus minutes and won despite shooting 35.4 percent.
Detroit Pistons 118, New Orleans Pelicans 98
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored a career-high 38 points and Detroit snapped an eight-game losing streak to New Orleans with a victory at The Palace.
The fourth-year guard's previous high was 31 points against Boston on Dec. 16, 2015. He made 12 of 18 field-goal attempts, including eight 3-pointers.
Detroit, which lost its last three games, recorded its first victory over New Orleans since Feb. 4, 2012. Tobias Harris had 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists off the bench for Detroit, while Andre Drummond contributed 17 points and six rebounds.
Dallas Mavericks 113, Philadelphia 76ers 95
DALLAS -- A career showing by backup center Salah Mejri sparked streaking Dallas past Philadelphia at American Airlines Center.
After impressive wins over San Antonio and Cleveland on successive nights earlier this week, the Mavericks avoided a letdown and extended their winning streak to three in a row to match a season high. Dallas has also won five of its last six and eight of 11.
Mejri played a leading role despite coming off the bench. The NBA's first player born in Tunisia racked up a career-high 17 rebounds and scored 16 to tally his first double-double of the season.
Utah Jazz 104, Milwaukee Bucks 88
SALT LAKE CITY -- Gordon Hayward scored 27 points and Rudy Gobert added 26 points and 15 rebounds to help Utah run away with a victory over Milwaukee.
Gobert recorded his 33rd double-double of the season before fouling out late in the fourth quarter. Joe Johnson chipped in 14 points off the bench. Utah beat the Bucks for the fifth straight time and won its 15th consecutive home game against Milwaukee dating back to 2001.
Jabari Parker scored 17 points while Greg Monroe added 13 and Thon Maker chipped in 12 to lead the Bucks. Milwaukee lost for the ninth time in its last 10 games.
Memphis Grizzlies 119, Denver Nuggets 99
DENVER -- Marc Gasol scored 24 points, Mike Conley scored 16 of his 18 points in the first half, and Memphis beat depleted Denver.
Zach Randolph and Vince Carter scored 14 each for the Grizzlies, who have won three straight.
Emmanuel Mudiay scored 14 points and had seven rebounds in his first game since injuring his back Jan. 21. Kenneth Faried had 11 points and 11 rebounds for Denver, which had its five-game home winning streak snapped.
Denver played its third straight game without center Nikola Jokic, who is out with a left hip flexor strain, and guard Will Barton missed his second consecutive game with left ankle soreness.
Los Angeles Clippers 124, Phoenix Suns 114
PHOENIX -- Blake Griffin tied a season high with 29 points and Los Angeles overcame a third-quarter ejection to DeAndre Jordan to beat slumping Phoenix.
J.J. Redick had 16 points for the Clippers and banked in a big 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down with 3:28 left to turn a three-point Los Angeles lead into a 112-106 margin.
Raymond Felton, who had 18 points, followed with another 3-pointer with 2:16 left, the Clippers had a 115-106 lead and their third win in as many games against the Suns this season.
Chicago Bulls 128, Oklahoma City Thunder 100
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Jimmy Butler scored 28 points to lead Chicago to a victory over Oklahoma City at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Butler shot 11 of 17 from the field and added five assists and four rebounds. Dwyane Wade posted 18 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, while Robin Lopez added 14 points.
The Bulls got back to .500 in the opener of a six-game road trip.
Russell Westbrook compiled 28 points, eight assists and five rebounds for Oklahoma City. It was his second straight game without a triple-double.