In a not so busy night of NBA action, the Cleveland Cavaliers extended their win streak to nine games following a win over the Miami Heat; the Washington Wizards needed some late heroics from Otto Porter to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves; and the Chicago Bulls lost again, this time to the Phoenix Suns.
Miami Heat 97 Cleveland Cavaliers 108: The Cavaliers won their 9th game in a row despite LeBron James getting thrown out for the first time in his career. Kevin Love couldn’t stop scoring, finishing with 38 points and 9 rebounds while hitting four 3-pointers. James had 21 points in 28 minutes to go along with 12 boards, 6 assists and 5 steals. Dwyane Wade scored 17 against his former team.
Phoenix Suns 104 Chicago Bulls 99: A solid offensive performance from Justin Holiday and Kris Dunn, combining for 49 points, wasn’t enough against the Suns, maybe due to Lauri Markkanen’s continuous struggle. Devin Booker scored 33 points, T.J. Warren had 25.
Washington Wizards 92 Minnesota Timberwolves 89: No John Wall didn’t stop the Wizards from picking up a big win, thanks to Otto Porter scoring 22 points, including the game winning shot with 25 seconds left. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 20 to lead the Timberwolves, who got nothing from their bench.
Denver Nuggets 77 Utah Jazz 106: The Nuggets didn’t show up to the second half, held to just 28 points in the third and the fourth quarters. Derrick Favors led the Jazz with 24 points while Donovan Mitchell carried on with his terrific season, scoring 16.
Milwaukee Bucks 112 Sacramento Kings 87: The Giannis Antetokounmpo Greek Freak show came to California’s capital. He knocked down 32 points to go with 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals to make the box score look nice. Khris Middleton added 21 points.
Eastern Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston Celtics | 18 | 4 | .818 | – | 22 |
| 2 | Detroit Pistons | 13 | 6 | .684 | 3.5 | 19 |
| 3 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 14 | 7 | .667 | 3.5 | 21 |
| 4 | Toronto Raptors | 12 | 7 | .632 | 4.5 | 19 |
| 5 | Philadelphia 76ers | 11 | 8 | .579 | 5.5 | 19 |
| 6 | Indiana Pacers | 12 | 9 | .571 | 5.5 | 21 |
| 7 | Washington Wizards | 11 | 9 | .550 | 6.0 | 20 |
| 8 | Milwaukee Bucks | 10 | 9 | .526 | 6.5 | 19 |
| 9 | Miami Heat | 10 | 10 | .500 | 7.0 | 20 |
| 10 | New York Knicks | 10 | 10 | .500 | 7.0 | 20 |
| 11 | Charlotte Hornets | 8 | 11 | .421 | 8.5 | 19 |
| 12 | Orlando Magic | 8 | 13 | .381 | 9.5 | 21 |
| 13 | Brooklyn Nets | 7 | 13 | .350 | 10.0 | 20 |
| 14 | Atlanta Hawks | 4 | 16 | .200 | 13.0 | 20 |
| 15 | Chicago Bulls | 3 | 16 | .158 | 13.5 | 19 |
Western Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Houston Rockets | 16 | 4 | .800 | – | 20 |
| 2 | Golden State Warriors | 15 | 6 | .714 | 1.5 | 21 |
| 3 | San Antonio Spurs | 13 | 7 | .650 | 3.0 | 20 |
| 4 | Portland Trail Blazers | 13 | 8 | .619 | 3.5 | 21 |
| 5 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 12 | 9 | .571 | 4.5 | 21 |
| 6 | Denver Nuggets | 11 | 9 | .550 | 5.0 | 20 |
| 7 | New Orleans Pelicans | 11 | 9 | .550 | 5.0 | 20 |
| 8 | Utah Jazz | 10 | 11 | .476 | 6.5 | 21 |
| 9 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 8 | 11 | .421 | 7.5 | 19 |
| 10 | Los Angeles Clippers | 8 | 11 | .421 | 7.5 | 19 |
| 11 | Los Angeles Lakers | 8 | 12 | .400 | 8.0 | 20 |
| 12 | Memphis Grizzlies | 7 | 12 | .368 | 8.5 | 19 |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns | 8 | 14 | .364 | 9.0 | 22 |
| 14 | Sacramento Kings | 6 | 15 | .286 | 10.5 | 21 |
| 15 | Dallas Mavericks | 5 | 16 | .238 | 11.5 | 21 |