SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had a team-record 60 points — the most scored in the NBA this season — and the Minnesota Timberwolves outlasted the San Antonio Spurs 149-139 on Monday night.
Towns shot 19 for 31 and grabbed 17 rebounds in surpassing his previous best of 56 points against Atlanta on March 28, 2018. Lakers star LeBron James and Hawks point guard Trae Young previously shared league-high honors this season with 56 points.
Minnesota’s 7-foot All-Star capped his dazzling performance by draining a 3-pointer with 1:39 remaining, shortly after making one of two free throws to reach 57 points.
He became the first NBA player with 60 points and 17 rebounds in a game since Shaquille O’Neal had 61 and 23 for the Los Angeles Lakers on March 6, 2000.
San Antonio has lost two straight since Gregg Popovich earned his 1,336th career victory to become the winningest coach in NBA history. The Spurs have dropped seven of nine and are 2-3 during a seven-game homestand, their longest of the season.
Spurs forward Keldon Johnson had 34 points, Dejounte Murray added 30 points and 12 assists, and Lonnie Walker IV scored 22.
WARRIORS 126, WIZARDS 112
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Stephen Curry scored 47 points on his 34th birthday, Draymond Green returned from a 29-game absence to ignite the defense and Golden State beat Washington.
Curry shot 16 of 25 and made seven 3-pointers. The Warriors shot 53.6% from the floor in snapping a three-game losing streak to Washington. Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole scored 20 apiece.
Green, who had been sidelined with a disk injury in his lower back, finished with six points, seven rebounds and six assists in 20 minutes.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 25 points and Kenatavious Caldwell-Pope had 19 in the Wizards’ fourth straight loss, fifth of six and sixth in a row on the road.
NUGGETS 114, 76ERS 110
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 22 points and 13 rebounds to lead Denver past Joel Embiid and Philadelphia in a battle of MVP contenders.
Embiid finished with 34 points and took a scary fall. Jeff Green clobbered Embiid on a drive to the basket with 3:13 left and the All-Star center landed on his tailbone. Embiid grabbed at his back but walked off the court on his own power. Green received a flagrant foul and Embiid went 1 of 2 from the free-throw line to cut Denver’s lead to 107-106.
Denver rookie Bones Hyland then stole the show from the All-Star big men, burying his fourth 3 of the fourth quarter for a 110-108 lead that the Nuggets held on to. Hyland finished with 21 points.
BUCKS 117, JAZZ 111
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and 14 rebounds to help Milwaukee Bucks rally and then fend off Utah in the final seconds.
Jrue Holiday had 29 points and seven assists, and Khris Middleton scored 23 for Milwaukee.
Brook Lopez and George Hill both returned to the Bucks’ lineup. Lopez had been sidelined with a back injury since the season opener and missed 67 games. Hill sat out 16 with neck soreness.
Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 29 points and eight assists. Mike Conley added 29 points and seven assists, and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 14 rebounds.
CAVALIERS 120, CLIPPERS 111, OT
CLEVELAND (AP) — Rookie Evan Mobley scored a season-high 30 points and Darius Garland had 24 points and 13 assists as Cleveland beat Los Angeles.
Isaac Okoro added 20 points, including two free throws to open the extra period. Cleveland never trailed after that.
Ivica Zubac had 24 points, 14 rebounds and four assists, and Amir Coffey scored 19 for the Clippers, who had only nine players in uniform. Los Angeles shot 1 of 10 from the field in OT, with Nicholas Batum making a 3-pointer to pull within 110-109. Cleveland scored the final seven points.
RAPTORS 114, LAKERS 103
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scottie Barnes scored 15 of his 21 points in the first quarter and Toronto held off a late rally by Los Angeles.
The Raptors led by 24 in the first as the Lakers were soundly defeated for the second consecutive night.
Gary Trent Jr. had 28 points and Pascal Siakam scored 27 for Toronto, which has won four straight — all on the road. Fred VanVleet returned after being held out Saturday at Denver to rest his right knee and had 11 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
LeBron James had 30 points and nine rebounds for the Lakers, who have lost four of five — including 140-111 at Phoenix on Sunday. James was a game-time decision because of soreness in his left knee but ended up playing 40 minutes.
KINGS 112, BULLS 103
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — De’Aaron Fox had 34 points, six assists and six rebounds as Sacramento beat stumbling Chicago.
Domantas Sabonis added 22 points and seven rebounds after missing two games, and Sacramento ended a four-game skid with its third victory in 10 games. Davion Mitchell scored 16 and Donte DiVincenzo had 15.
Zach LaVine had 27 points and six assists for Chicago. Nikola Vucevic added 23 points and 10 rebounds, and DeMar DeRozan scored 21. The Bulls, who entered the night fourth in the East, have lost six of eight.
HAWKS 122, TRAIL BLAZERS 113
ATLANTA (AP) — Trae Young scored 21 of his 46 points in the third period and Atlanta rallied from a 15-point second-half deficit to beat Portland.
Young, who scored 47 points a night earlier in a win over Indiana, added 12 assists against the Blazers.
The Hawks won their third straight to reach .500 for the first time since Dec. 15.
Josh Hart led Portland with 31 points.
HORNETS 134, THUNDER 116
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Terry Rozier scored 30 points and Charlotte beat Oklahoma City.
Charlotte closed out a perfect two-game trip, rallying after falling behind by as many as 18 points in the second quarter. Miles Bridges had 27 points and six assists, and LaMelo Ball finished with 21 points and seven assists.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points and eight rebounds, and Darius Bazley scored 25 points.
Oklahoma City lost its sixth consecutive game.
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