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Brooklyn beat Boston 95-83 in an Eastern Conference clash that turned nasty in the second quarter when three players were ejected after a skirmish on Wednesday. |
Nets forward Kris Humphries sparked the melee when he gave Kevin Garnett a hard foul along the baseline. The Celtics’ Rajon Rondo retaliated by pushing Humphries, and the two tussled near the crowd as players from both sides converged on the scene. Humphries, Rondo and Brooklyn forward Gerald Wallace were all thrown out of the game. The ejection proved costly for Rondo, who saw his streak of 37 games with at least 10 assists come to an end. Rondo’s run was tied for second longest all time in the NBA.
“I don’t think anybody should be thrown out of a game, we all have to keep our emotions,” said Boston coach Doc Rivers.
“I thought it was a bad foul (by Humphries), Rondo saw that and probably reacted - overreacted, obviously. “At that point we’re probably getting our butts kicked and were probably frustrated.” Joe Johnson scored a team-high 18 points as the Nets (10-4) stayed tied with the New York Kicks for the Atlantic division lead.
Kevin Durant greeted former team mate James Harden with 37 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder blasted Houston Rockets 120-98 to spoil the shooting guard’s return to the Chesapeake Energy Arena. Harden returned to Oklahoma City for the first time since being traded just before the season and it was a forgettable night for him and the Rockets. Powered by Durant’s hot shooting, the Thunder blew open a close game in the second quarter where they led by 18 before keeping the visiting Rockets at bay. Serge Ibaka backed Durant with 23 and nine rebounds and Oklahoma City raced to their second straight blowout, having destroyed Charlotte 114-69 on Monday.
Harden, the Sixth Man of the Year last season, has emerged as the lead scorer for Houston but struggled against the Thunder making three of 16 shots for 17 points. It had already been a humbling day for the Rockets who earlier attended the funeral of coach Kevin McHale’s daughter who died from an auto-immune disease last week. McHale has been away from the team since November 10. Chris Paul had 23 points with 11 assists, and Chauncey Billups made a successful season debut as the Clippers ended a four-game skid after trimming the Timberwolves, who received 19 points and 15 rebounds from Kevin Love. Billups finished with eight points and three assists in 20 minutes.
Anthony had 29 points before sitting out the fourth quarter, Steve Novak nailed five threes en route to season-high 19 and the Knicks beat the Bucks to snap a three-game road slide. Memphis Grizzlies 103, Toronto Raptors 82: Marreese Speights had 18 points and 12 rebounds, Zach Randolph added 17 with 13 boards as the Grizzlies extended their franchise-best start and NBA-leading record to 11-2 after sending the visiting Raptors to their sixth straight loss. Luol Deng had 22 points and the host Bulls sent the struggling Mavericks to their third straight loss.
Atlanta Hawks 94, Charlotte Bobcats 91: Josh Smith had 17 points with 12 rebounds, Al Horford added 17, 11 boards and a pair of clinching free throws as the Hawks withstood Ben Gordon’s late barrage to escape the visiting Bobcats for their season-high sixth straight win.
Gordon exploded for 20 of his 26 points in the final frame, including five triples, but Charlotte lost for the third time in four games. Jordan Crawford scored 19 points, Emeka Okafor sank the tie-breaking free throws with 39 seconds left, and the Wizards held off the visiting Trail Blazers to earn their first win of the season after opening with a franchise-record 12 straight losses.
Brandon Knight and Charlie Villanueva scored 19 points apiece, and the Pistons demolished the visiting Suns for their first two-game winning streak of the season. Argentine ace Manu Ginobili dropped in 20 points and Gary Neal had 19, leading the visiting Spurs past the Magic.