Crawford, Griffin lead Clippers past Toronto despite Ross’ 51

(The Sports Xchange) – Jamal Crawford scored a season-best 37 points and had 11 assists, and Blake Griffin scored 30 points, as the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Toronto Raptors 126-118.

Terrence Ross led the Raptors by tying the club record with 51 points on 16-for-29 shooting including 10-for-17 from three-point range.

He missed a free throw with four seconds to play that would have erased Vince Carter’s club record set in 2000.

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Thunder 103, Sixers 91

NBA scoring leader Kevin Durant scored 32 points in the Thunder’s 103-91 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, extending to 10 his consecutive-game streak with 30 or more, He added 14 rebounds and 10 assists for his second triple-double of the season, and the fifth of his career.

Durant, who missed Friday night’s victory in Boston with a sprained right shoulder, is just the sixth NBA player since 1990 to fashion a 30-point-plus streak of 10 games or more.

He shot 12-for-17 from the floor, as the Western Conference-leading Thunder (35-10) won their seventh straight.

James Anderson had 19 points to lead the Sixers (14-30).

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Grizzlies 99, Rockets 81

Technically, it was not a doubleheader sweep but the Memphis Grizzlies’ 99-81 victory over Houston was their second win over the Rockets in a 24-hour span.

The Grizzlies (22-20) had a huge edge in assists (23 to 14) and owned the boards 52-38. They shot 46.6 percent (41-for-88) and earned their seventh win in their last eight games.

Mike Conley paced the Grizzlies with 17 points.

Houston (29-17) got 16 points from James Harden and 10 points and 12 rebounds from Dwight Howard.

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Bulls 89, Bobcats 87

D.J. Augustin scored 28 points against his former team, including 15 in the decisive fourth quarter, as the Chicago Bulls beat the Charlotte Bobcats 89-87.

Augustin, a first-round pick of the Bobcats in 2008 who spent four seasons with the team, broke the 20-point mark for the third time in his last four games.

He hit six three-pointers, including three in the fourth quarter when the Bulls pulled away.

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Nuggets 109, Pacers 96

Forward Wilson Chandler scored a season-high 25 points, J.J. Hickson had 14 points and 13 rebounds and the Denver Nuggets beat the Indiana Pacers 109-96.

Guard Ty Lawson had 12 points and 10 assists for the Nuggets.

Guard Lance Stephenson led the Pacers with 23 points and 10 rebounds and forward Paul George had 18 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana.

The Pacers have been the best team in the league this season but their big weakness has been the second of back-to-back games.

Six of their league-low nine losses have come in those games, including Saturday.

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Hawks 112, Bucks 87

Forward Paul Millsap had 20 points and shooting guard Louis Williams added 18 off the bench as the short-handed Atlanta Hawks rolled to a 112-87 rout of the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Hawks (23-20) led by as many as 33 points in the second half and won for the third time in four games behind 52.6 percent shooting from the field that included 13 three-pointers on 26 attempts.

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Jazz 104, Wizards 101

Center Enes Kanter scored 24 points off the bench and the Utah Jazz rallied to beat the Washington Wizards 104-101.

Jazz shooting guard Gordon Hayward scored 16 points, including a pair of free throws with 3.6 seconds remaining, to help Utah improve to 15-29.

Center Derrick Favors finished with a game-high 14 rebounds and 11 points.

The game was not settled until Washington guard John Wall’s desperation heave from well behind the three-point line crashed off the rim at the buzzer.

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Trail Blazers 115, Timberwolves 104

The Portland Trail Blazers broke open a tight game late in the third quarter and ran away to a 115-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Forward LaMarcus Aldridge scored 21 points to lead six players in double figures for the Trail Blazers (33-11). Guard Wesley Matthews added 18 points and guard Mo Williams came off the bench to score 16 for the winners.

Guard Kevin Martin bombed in 30 points for Minnesota (21-22).