NBA: Surging Clippers send Rockets to 10th straight loss

Ivica Zubac recorded his 18th double-double on the season while Marcus Morris Sr. and Reggie Jackson combined for 35 points as the Los Angeles Clippers completed a three-game season series sweep of the Houston Rockets with a 113-100 road victory Tuesday.

Zubac paired 22 points with 12 rebounds to lead the Clippers to their sixth win in seven games -- with the past two of them coming against Houston.

Jackson had 17 points, six assists and five rebounds while Morris chipped in 18 points while shooting 4 of 6 from 3-point range. The Clippers moved two games over .500 for the first time since Dec. 22.

The Rockets absorbed their 10th consecutive loss. Jalen Green scored 20 points, Christian Wood tallied 17 points and eight rebounds and Jae'Sean Tate posted 12 points and nine rebounds.

The Clippers seized control with a 40-point third quarter, a period during which they shot 58.3 percent while converting seven of their nine 3-point attempts. The deciding run, a 16-4 burst midway through the period, featured three Jackson 3-pointers plus two dunks from Zubac, who also added an assist.

The Clippers secured their first double-digit lead at 73-63 with the blitz and pulled away behind Zubac, who produced the defining moment of the period. He contested a shot by Alperen Sengun (13 points, nine rebounds) on the defensive end before beating Sengun down the court and finishing a dunk through a Sengun foul.

Zubac, who had 10 points and seven boards in the third, completed the three-point play as the Clippers extended their lead to 83-70 at the 2:01 mark.

Morris and Jackson scored nine points each in the third quarter to support Zubac. When the Rockets went the opening 3:05 of the fourth without scoring, their deficit swelled to 96-75.

Houston enjoyed promising moments prior to the collapse. Wood posted 12 points, three rebounds and two blocks in a forceful opening quarter, enabling the Rockets to rally from a six-point deficit to take a short-lived lead. Houston found an extended rhythm in the second, erasing a 34-29 deficit with an 18-6 run keyed by 3-pointers from Sengun, Tate, Dennis Schroder and Garrison Mathews.

However, Schroder was slowed by an ankle injury after the Rockets claimed a 47-40 lead, and while he remained in the game, the Clippers closed the half with a 9-3 burst and grabbed the momentum.

-reuters-

NBA: Griffin, Pistons stay hot at home, drop Knicks

Blake Griffin scored 30 points and the Detroit Pistons continued their success at home over the New York Knicks with a 115-108 victory on Tuesday night.

Griffin produced his sixth 30-point game of the season as Detroit shot 47.5 percent, controlled the paint by a 56-38 margin and posted its fourth straight home win.

Reserve Stanley Johnson and starter Reggie Jackson contributed 21 points apiece as the Pistons also won for the seventh time in their last nine games overall.

Rookie Allonzo Trier led the Knicks with 24 points and 10 rebounds off the bench but New York saw a three-game winning streak end and was unable to pull off a second straight road comeback after beating Memphis on Sunday.

Tim Hardaway Jr. added 19, Damyean Dotson finished with 17 while Enes Kanter contributed 16 and 14 rebounds as the Knicks shot 39.6 percent and missed 18 of 27 3-point attempts.

The Pistons began taking control late in the first quarter by closing out the period with a 10-2 run. The Knicks were down five early in the second but the Pistons took their first double-digit lead on a Jackson layup with about seven minutes left and opened a 46-30 lead on Jackson's 3-pointer two minutes later.

By halftime, New York was within 51-43 after Hardaway beat the buzzer with a fadeaway jumper. The Knicks were within 74-68 on a layup by Kanter with 95 seconds left in the third but Detroit held an 81-70 lead into the fourth.

Detroit took a 91-74 lead on a layup by Ish Smith with about nine minutes remaining but the Knicks continued to hang around as Griffin returned.

Upon returning, Griffin executed a nifty up-and-under move on Noah Vonleh for a layup and a 100-88 lead with 6:03 remaining. Then he made the feed to Jackson, who lobbed an alley-oop for a Drummond dunk to make it 104-88 with 4:47 left.

New York mounted one last comeback attempt, getting within 110-103 on a 3-pointer by Dotson with 57 seconds left. After Griffin missed a layup, Johnson chased down Trier, blocked the layup attempt with 32 seconds left and Detroit iced the game with five free throws.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Jackson leads Pistons past Hawks

LOS ANGELES, United States - Reggie Jackson made two clutch three pointers down the stretch as the Detroit Pistons won their fourth straight with a 111-104 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.

Jackson had 22 points and six assists for the Pistons, who gave away a 19-point lead before regaining control in front of a crowd of 16,600 at Little Caesars Arena.

Andre Drummond had 16 points, 20 rebounds and a career-high seven assists for Detroit, who improved to 9-3 on the season.

Avery Bradley tallied 20 points and Tobias Harris finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. Ish Smith came off the bench to finish with 17 points and five assists.

Kent Bazemore had 22 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Hawks (2-10). Dennis Schroder scored 17 points and 11 assists, John Collins tossed in 16 points and eight rebounds, Dewayne Dedmon added 13 points and nine rebounds and Marco Bellinelli chipped in 14 points.

Detroit led 76-69 heading into the fourth. The Hawks closed the gap to five early in the quarter and once again midway through after Bazemore made a jumper.

Bazemore's three-pointer from the top of the key and another from the wing tied it 94-94 with 3:49 left.

The teams traded scores until Jackson's three with 52.3 seconds left put the Pistons on top 103-100. Following Bellinelli's miss, Bradley made a free throw and collected the rebound after missing the second try. Jackson then drained another key three-pointer to clinch the win.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Thunder downs Kings for 2nd win; Jazz nips Pistons

Thunder 101, Kings 93
Reggie Jackson scored 22 points to lead Oklahoma City to victory over Sacramento at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.

The win was the second of the season for the Thunder, who improved to 2-5. Both wins have come at home against teams that were leading their division at the time.

Guard Rudy Gay paced the Kings with 23 points on 9-of-18 shooting.

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Jazz 97, Pistons 96

Gordon Hayward scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter as Utah squeaked past Detroit at The Palace.

Power forward Derrick Favors contributed 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Jazz, which began a five-game road trip, all against Eastern Conference teams.

Center Enes Kanter and shooting guard Alec Burks added 14 points apiece and reserve forward Joe Ingles chipped in 10.

Pistons point guard Brandon Jennings led all scorers with 23 points but missed a 15-foot floater in the final seconds.

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Suns 107, Warriors 95

Guards Gerald Green and Isaiah Thomas combined for 31 points in the fourth quarter as the Phoenix Suns rallied from a 12-point deficit in the third to hand the Golden State Warriors their first loss of the season, 107-95 on Sunday.

Thomas finished with 22 points and Green added 19 as the Suns denied the Warriors its best start since moving to the Bay Area.

Guard Goran Dragic had 19 points and forward Marcus Morris added 17 for the Suns, who had lost three of their last four games but avoided the fourth-quarter shooting woes that have plagued them, outscoring Golden State 36-16 to win going away.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com