LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant wanted this one badly, especially after missing a clutch free throw in the final minute of regulation. And by the time the Los Angeles Lakers had beaten the Toronto Raptors, the 19-year veteran had his
LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant wanted this one badly, especially after missing a clutch free throw in the final minute of regulation. And by the time the Los Angeles Lakers had beaten the Toronto Raptors, the 19-year veteran had his 20th career triple-double.
Bryant had 31 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Lakers snapped a four-game losing streak with a 129-122 overtime victory on Sunday night.
Seven players scored in double figures for the Lakers (4-13), including all five starters. Nick Young added 20 off the bench, Boozer scored 18 and Jordan Hill had 16 points and 12 rebounds.
“I was just trying to make the right plays,” said Bryant, who was three assists off his career high. “The difference is that when the guys make the shots, it makes my job easier because I don’t have to force the offense. When they miss them and we go down 12-15 points, I’ve got to force the issue a little bit to keep us in the ballgame.”
Bryant grabbed a missed tip-in attempt by Patrick Patterson with 1:22 left, securing his first triple-double since April 2, 2013, against Dallas.
“Kobe was amazing tonight, man — dropping dimes to everybody, rebounding, shooting it and being a great playmaker,” Boozer said. “When he plays like that, we all get involved. He’s amazing every night, but tonight was something special.”
Bryant, who came in with a league-best 26.4 scoring average, finished the first half with eight assists — one more than his season.
“Kobe was playmaking with two people on him and gave us a chance to (score) early,” Boozer said. “We were aggressive with the ball, and we just kept going like that throughout the night.”
Kyle Lowry had 29 points, nine assists and six rebounds for Toronto before fouling out with 2.8 seconds left in overtime. Terrence Ross had 20 points and Lou Williams added 19 off the bench for the Raptors, whose 13-3 record coming in represented the best start in franchise history.
Toronto played without leading scorer DeMar DeRozan, who tore a tendon in his left groin during Friday’s 106-102 loss to Dallas and is out indefinitely. Greivis Vasquez made his first start of the season at shooting guard and scored 19 points.
“It’s tough when you lose your All-Star guard, but injuries are a big part of the NBA. So you’ve got to deal with it and adapt,” coach Dwane Casey said. “We can’t sit around and feel sorry for ourselves. We’ve got to maintain a work-ethic mentality and find a way to fill that big void.”
The Raptors never led in OT. Wesley Johnson put the Lakers ahead for good at 113-110 with a 3-pointer. Bryant followed with a three-point play and then hit a 15-foot jumper. Jeremy Lin added a fastbreak layup for a 120-112 cushion with 1:36 to play.
Toronto led by six with 9:25 left in the fourth quarter after Williams scored eight points in a 1:07 span. But the Lakers pulled ahead 102-101 when Bryant shook off Ross and hit a 17-footer with 3 minutes to go.
Ross hit a 3-pointer to put the Raptors up 109-108, and Bryant made one of two free throws at the other end. Lowry was called for an offensive foul, and Bryant missed a layup in heavy traffic as the fourth quarter expired.
Note: When Bryant set up Johnson’s 12-footer with 8:31 left in the third, he became the first player in NBA history with at least 6,000 assists and 30,000 points.
SPURS 111, CELTICS 89
BOSTON — Danny Green scored 18 points and coach Gregg Popovich returned from a two-game absence to lead San Antonio over Boston for its seventh straight victory.
Popovich returned for the opener of a four-game trip after missing two games following an undisclosed minor medical procedure.
Leading 80-77 with 10 minutes left, the Spurs went on a 14-2 run to take a 94-79 lead with 6:11 left on a layup by Cory Joseph. After Jeff Green made a free throw for Boston, cutting the lead to 94-80, Aron Baynes beat the 24-second clock with a 3-pointer then made a layup for a 99-80 lead with 4:36 to go.
Boris Diaw had 15 points and Tim Duncan added 14 for the Spurs. The Celtics were led by Jeff Green with 16 points and Evan Turner with 12 as they dropped to 1-7 in their last eight games.
Rajon Rondo finished with only two points and missed both of his free throws. He has made just 9 of 30 all season.
BULLS 102, NETS 84
NEW YORK — Jimmy Butler had 26 points and Pau Gasol had 25 points and 13 rebounds, leading Chicago past Brooklyn.
Rookie Bojan Bogdanovic led the Nets with 13 points and reserve Jarret Jack added 12.
Derrick Rose had 14 points and reserve Nikola Mirotic chipped in 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Bulls, who capped a seven-game, 14-day road trip with their second straight win and finished 4-3 overall. Chicago’s United Center had been reserved for the annual circus show, forcing the Bulls on the road.
WARRIORS 104, PISTONS 93
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Draymond Green scored 20 points and Stephen Curry added 16 points and 10 assists to help Golden State beat Detroit for its ninth straight victory.
Marreese Speights added 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Warriors (14-2).
The Pistons (3-14) have lost eight in a row, the longest streak of Stan Van Gundy’s coaching career, and have matched his career worst at 11 games under .500. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led Detroit with 23 points.
Van Gundy broke up his usual three-post lineup against the smaller Warriors, starting Kyle Singler at small forward and bringing Greg Monroe off the bench. It didn’t work. Monroe, Andre Drummond and Josh Smith shot a combined 12 for 38.
GRIZZLIES 97, KINGS 85
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Zach Randolph had 22 points and 12 rebounds, Marc Gasol added 18 points and six rebounds and Memphis held off a late rally to beat short-handed Sacramento for its fifth straight win.
The frontcourt tandem took advantage of a Kings team playing without center DeMarcus Cousins, who missed his second straight game because of a virus. The Grizzlies built a 21-point lead in the second quarter and pulled away again in the fourth to stretch their NBA-best record to 15-2.
Rudy Gay scored 20 points and reserve Reggie Evans finished with 17 points and 20 rebounds as Sacramento (9-8) lost its third game in a row.
HEAT 86, KNICKS 79
NEW YORK — Dwyane Wade returned from a seven-game absence to score 27 points —13 in the fourth quarter — and Miami beat New York.
Chris Bosh added 20 for the Heat, including a crucial 3-pointer with 1:07 left as Miami held off a late New York rally.
Carmelo Anthony also returned after a two-game absence because of back spasms to score 31 points for the Knicks. Amare Stoudemire had 19 points and 12 rebounds
After trailing by 16, the Knicks pulled to 65-63 on Tim Hardaway Jr.’s layup with 9:22 left.
Wade, sidelined since Nov. 12 by a hamstring injury, followed with a baseline jumper and scored 12 of Miami’s next 15 points to help the Heat maintain the lead.
MAGIC 93, SUNS 90
PHOENIX — Tobias Harris scored 21 points and Orlando held off a late rally to beat Phoenix and snap a four-game losing streak.
Nikola Vucevic added 18 points for the Magic, who led by 16 early in the fourth quarter before the Suns cut it to three with 1:02 to play.
Phoenix coach John Hornacek drew a technical on Orlando’s next possession, the coach claiming to no avail that Vucevic traveled on a layup.
Consecutive 3-pointers by Goran Dragic and Gerald Green, the second with 2.9 seconds to go, cut the lead to one, Evan Fournier sank two free throws with 1.6 seconds to go and Phoenix failed to get a shot off at the buzzer.
Dragic scored 22 points and Markieff Morris had 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists for the Suns.
TRAIL BLAZERS 107, TIMBERWOLVES 93
PORTLAND, Ore. — LaMarcus Aldridge had 26 points and 15 rebounds to pace Portland over Minnesota.
Wesley Matthews added 23 points, including six 3-pointers for his third straight game with at least five 3-pointers, and the Blazers led by as many as 16 points.
Portland was coming off a 112-99 loss to Memphis on Friday night that snapped a nine-game winning streak.
Shabazz Muhammad came off the bench with 28 points for Minnesota, which used just nine players. The Timberwolves have won just four games this season, including a 120-119 win in Los Angeles over the Lakers on Friday.
Injuries and illness have decimated the Timberwolves. The latest was rookie forward Andrew Wiggins, who played just under 19 minutes after he was a game-time decision with a flu-like illness.
From wire sources
