Lillard’s last-gasp heroics help Portland squeeze past Pistons in overtime

-NBA round-up

(The Sports Xchange) – Point guard Damian Lillard’s spinning shot in the lane in the final second of overtime gave the Portland Trail Blazers a  111-109 overtime victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

LaMarcus Aldridge led the Trail Blazers (21-4) with 27 points and 12 rebounds, and Lillard finished with 23 points and seven assists.

Forward Josh Smith scored a season-high 31 points for the Pistons (11-14).

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Kings 106, Rockets 91

Rudy Gay, playing his first home game with the Kings after he was acquired in a trade with the Toronto Raptors, scored a game-high 26 points to lead his new team to victory.

The Rockets (16-9) had a sloppy first half, committing 11 turnovers, and the Kings took advantage to build a 57-49 advantage at halftime.

James Harden left the game with a left ankle injury early in the third quarter, but returned and finished with 25 points in the loss.

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Timberwolves 101, Grizzlies 93

The Minnesota Timberwolves made a season-high 12 three-pointers and got 30 points from power forward Kevin Love as they defeated the Memphis Grizzlies.

Love hit four of eight from three-point range and Minnesota made 12 of 26 long-range attempts. Love also had nine rebounds and four assists.

Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley limped off the court with just under four minutes left in the fourth quarter after scoring a team-high 28 points.

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Thunder 101, Magic 98

Forward Kevin Durant scored 28 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and guard Russell Westbrook added 20 points and 12 rebounds as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Orlando Magic.

 

With the Thunder (19-4) leading by four and 22 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Westbrook committed a turnover, and Orlando forward Maurice Harkless turned it into a layup to close the gap to two points.

The Magic (7-17) fouled Durant, who made one of two from the free-throw line, and Orlando trailed 101-98 with 13 seconds to go.

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Nuggets 102, Pelicans 93

J.J. Hickson and forward Wilson Chandler each scored 19 points to lead a balanced attack as the Denver Nuggets beat the New Orleans Pelicans.

Nate Robinson came off the bench to score 14 points for the Nuggets, who had five players score at least 12 points.

Ryan Anderson had a game-high 26 points and guard Austin Rivers scored 17 for the Pelicans, who had their two-game win streak snapped.

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Suns 106, Warriors 102

Eric Bledsoe backed up a career-high scoring night with 24 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and guard Goran Dragic and forward Channing Frye added 21 and 20 points respectively as the Phoenix Suns won their fifth straight game.

 

Point guard Stephen Curry led all scorers with 30 points and pulled the Warriors within two at 102-100 on a 3-pointer with 1:37 left. But the Suns clamped down on defense from there and widened their lead to 106-100 on two free throws each by Bledsoe and forward P.J. Tucker.