March 23 – Coby White, Matas Buzelis and Josh Giddey led the hot-shooting Chicago Bulls to a 146-115 win over the host Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night, spoiling the returns of LeBron James and Rui Hachimura.
White finished with 36 points on 12-of-17 shooting from the field, making 6-of-9 attempts from 3-point range for Chicago. Buzelis, a rookie, added 31 points on 12-of-18 shooting. Giddey perhaps one-upped them both, notching his 15th career triple-double by tallying 15 points, 17 assists and 10 rebounds. Giddey was also a decisive factor on defense with eight steals.
Luka Doncic led the way for the Lakers (43-27), scoring 34 points on 10-of-18 shooting, including 8 threes. Doncic scored 29 in the first half to keep it close briefly. Austin Reaves added 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting, while James chipped in 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting. He added six rebounds and four assists.
James played in his first game since leaving the Lakers’ 111-101 loss in Boston on March 8 with a groin injury. The Lakers went 3-4 in James’ absence, and they have lost six of their last nine overall.
Pacers 108, Nets 103
Tyrese Haliburton returned to the Indiana lineup from a three-game absence to put up 16 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds, and the Pacers rallied after nearly coughing up a 20-point lead to hold off Brooklyn in Indianapolis.
Pascal Siakam scored a game-high 26 points while Obi Toppin scored 10 points off the bench as one of five Indiana scorers in double figures. Myles Turner finished with 22 points and eight rebounds, while Bennedict Mathurin went for 13 points off the bench.
Trendon Watford, who was ejected from Thursday’s matchup between these teams after a scuffle with Turner, returned to score 26 points. Cameron Johnson had 20 points and nine rebounds for the Nets, while Nic Claxton recorded nine points and 10 rebounds.
Hawks 124, Warriors 115
Trae Young scored 25 points and posted his 41st double-double of the season to help Atlanta defeat visiting Golden State.
The Warriors played without leading scorer Stephen Curry (24.2 points per game), who sustained a left pelvic contusion Thursday. The Hawks’ Onyeka Okongwu notched 22 points and 12 rebounds for his 22nd double-double. Atlanta has won six of its last eight and holds a 1 1/2-game lead over Orlando in the race for the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Warriors were led by Jimmy Butler III’s 25 points and eight assists. Moses Moody scored 20 and Brandin Podziemski added 19 points and eight rebounds.
Bucks 114, Kings 108
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points and 17 rebounds as visiting Milwaukee rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat Sacramento.
Brook Lopez scored 21 points, Kevin Porter Jr. added 18 off the bench, and Taurean Prince had 15 for Milwaukee, which outscored the Kings 28-19 in the fourth quarter. Kyle Kuzma had 14 points and 14 rebounds and Gary Trent Jr. added 11 points. Damian Lillard missed his second straight game with a right calf injury for Milwaukee.
DeMar DeRozan led Sacramento with 22 points, while Keon Ellis had 20 points, six assists and a career-high nine rebounds. Jonas Valanciunas scored 18 points, Zach LaVine added 16, Keegan Murray had 13 and Jake LaRavia contributed 11.
Knicks 122, Wizards 103
Karl-Anthony Towns collected 31 points and 11 rebounds Saturday night, helping New York post a win over visiting Washington.
Mikal Bridges added 27 points while OG Anunoby had 23 for the Knicks, which snapped a two-game losing streak. Cameron Payne tallied 13 points, while Josh Hart had nine points and 12 rebounds.
Jordan Poole had 25 points for the Wizards, who dropped their fourth in a row. Marcus Smart scored 17 and Kyshawn George finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
–Field Level Media
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