The Golden State Warriors keep on winning, this time overcoming a bad first half to beat the Brooklyn Nets. The Los Angeles Clippers impressed without anyone standing out in particular, playing excellent defense in a narrow home win over the San Antonio Spurs.
Boston Celtics 109 Indiana Pacers 102: The Celtics grabbed the lead in the first half and never let go, finishing strong for a fourth consecutive win. Isaiah Thomas kept missing 3-pointers but was hitting everything else, to finish with 28 points and 9 assists. The Celtics didn’t shoot very well, but forced 19 turnovers and overall did a very good job on defense, making it difficult for everyone but Jeff Teague, scoring 31 points.
Golden State Warriors 117 Brooklyn Nets 101: The Warriors win their sixth in a row as they improve to 26-4 this season. The Nets actually led at halftime, but the Warriors erupted for a 68-36 second half to walk away with the comfortable win. Kevin Durant led the team with 26 points, Klay Thompson scored 23, making up for Stephen Curry shooting 3-for-13 from beyond the arc. Brook Lopez led the Nets with 28 points.
Orlando Magic 95 New York Knicks 106: Things are moving along nicely for the Knicks, improving to three games above .500, winning two in a row. Derrick Rose led the Knicks with 19 points, while Carmelo Anthony finished with 15 and Willy Hernangomez helped out off the bench with 15 too. The Magic shot just 18.5% from beyond the arc, as they continue to sit way behind the playoff-positioned teams.
Los Angeles Lakers 107 Miami Heat 115: The Heat might be trying to send Goran Dragic away, but he’s doing a good job for now with 21 points and 7 assists. Both Hassan Whiteside and Justise Winslow scored 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, as the Lakers lost their third in a row, and dropped to one win in their last 10 games. Lou Williams led the Lakers with 27 points off the bench.
San Antonio Spurs 101 Los Angeles Clippers 106: A big, meaningful win for the Clippers, thanks to their defense and contributions off the bench, making up for Blake Griffin not playing. Kawhi Leonard scored 27 points to lead the Spurs, but LaMarcus Aldridge finished with just 10. Chris Paul had 19 points for the Clippers, holding the Spurs to just 40.2% from the field.
Eastern Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 21 | 6 | .778 | – | 27 |
| 2 | Toronto Raptors | 20 | 8 | .714 | 1.5 | 28 |
| 3 | Boston Celtics | 17 | 12 | .586 | 5.0 | 29 |
| 4 | Charlotte Hornets | 16 | 13 | .552 | 6.0 | 29 |
| 5 | New York Knicks | 16 | 13 | .552 | 6.0 | 29 |
| 6 | Chicago Bulls | 14 | 14 | .500 | 7.5 | 28 |
| 7 | Indiana Pacers | 15 | 16 | .484 | 8.0 | 31 |
| 8 | Atlanta Hawks | 14 | 15 | .483 | 8.0 | 29 |
| 9 | Milwaukee Bucks | 13 | 14 | .481 | 8.0 | 27 |
| 10 | Washington Wizards | 13 | 15 | .464 | 8.5 | 28 |
| 11 | Detroit Pistons | 14 | 17 | .452 | 9.0 | 31 |
| 12 | Orlando Magic | 13 | 18 | .419 | 10.0 | 31 |
| 13 | Miami Heat | 10 | 20 | .333 | 12.5 | 30 |
| 14 | Philadelphia 76ers | 7 | 21 | .250 | 14.5 | 28 |
| 15 | Brooklyn Nets | 7 | 21 | .250 | 14.5 | 28 |
Western Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden State Warriors | 26 | 4 | .867 | – | 30 |
| 2 | San Antonio Spurs | 23 | 6 | .793 | 2.5 | 29 |
| 3 | Los Angeles Clippers | 22 | 8 | .733 | 4.0 | 30 |
| 4 | Houston Rockets | 22 | 8 | .733 | 4.0 | 30 |
| 5 | Memphis Grizzlies | 19 | 12 | .613 | 7.5 | 31 |
| 6 | Utah Jazz | 18 | 12 | .600 | 8.0 | 30 |
| 7 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 17 | 12 | .586 | 8.5 | 29 |
| 8 | Portland Trail Blazers | 13 | 18 | .419 | 13.5 | 31 |
| 9 | Sacramento Kings | 12 | 17 | .414 | 13.5 | 29 |
| 10 | Denver Nuggets | 12 | 17 | .414 | 13.5 | 29 |
| 11 | Los Angeles Lakers | 11 | 21 | .344 | 16.0 | 32 |
| 12 | New Orleans Pelicans | 10 | 21 | .323 | 16.5 | 31 |
| 13 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 9 | 19 | .321 | 16.0 | 28 |
| 14 | Dallas Mavericks | 8 | 21 | .276 | 17.5 | 29 |
| 15 | Phoenix Suns | 8 | 21 | .276 | 17.5 | 29 |