CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kemba Walker scored 46 points and made 10 3-pointers Thursday night, and the Charlotte Hornets rolled to the most lopsided victory in franchise history by beating the Memphis Grizzlies, 140-79.

Walker had the ninth 40-point game of his career as the Hornets easily overcame the absence of the suspended Dwight Howard. Walker hit 13 of 18 shots overall, including 10 of 14 on 3-pointers, and was 10 of 10 on free throws in 28 minutes.

He scored 17 points in the first quarter, 18 in the second and 11 in the third before being replaced for the final time with 1:48 left in the period.

It came one night after Howard’s 32-point, 30-rebound performance helped Charlotte rally from a 23-point deficit for a 111-105 victory at Brooklyn. But in the process, Howard was whistled for his 16th technical foul of the season, meaning he had to serve a one-game suspension Thursday night.

It didn’t matter. The Hornets moved ahead 12-2 in the first 41/2 minutes, were ahead 37-14 after one quarter, 75-42 at halftime and by a game-high 65 points at 137-72 with 1:45 left before taking the 61-point win.

Charlotte’s largest previous win came by 52 points (136-84) at home against Philadelphia on Feb. 27, 1992.

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It was the third-highest scoring game of Walker’s career. The 6-foot-1 point guard had a career-high 52 points against Utah in a 124-119 double-overtime win in January 2016.

76ERS 118, MAGIC 98: Joel Embiid had 17 points and nine rebounds in just 20 minutes and Philadelphia won at Orlando, Florida, to move closer to a playoff berth.

Ersan Ilyasova scored 18 points, leading six Philadelphia players in double figures as the 76ers (41-30) won their fifth straight and clinched their first non-losing season in six years. Robert Covington and Marco Belinelli added 15 points.

Reserve Rodney Purvis scored 19 points for the Magic, who have lost 8 of 9. Aaron Gordon, the only Orlando starter to score in double figures, had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Embiid and J.J. Redick combined for 10 points in a 12-0 run that left the 76ers with a 70-47 lead just before halftime.

PELICANS 128, LAKERS 125: Anthony Davis capped a 33-point performance with two clutch free throws and a game-sealing steal in the final seconds, Rajon Rondo had 24 points and 10 assists, and New Orleans erased an 11-point, fourth-quarter deficit to win at home.

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Rondo scored 12 of his points in the fourth quarter for the Pelicans, who were playing for the fifth time in six nights.

New Orleans produced a riveting rally that pulled them into fourth place in the Western Conference with nine games left in the regular season. Rondo’s final baskets included a 29-foot 3-pointer to cut Los Angeles’ lead to 125-124 with 2:28 left, followed by his driving layup that put New Orleans in front for good with 2:01 to play.

New Orleans, which had a game against Indiana rescheduled this week because of a roof leak that postponed a game in February, became the first team since Seattle in 1979 to win three home games on consecutive nights. New Orleans has won four straight since beating Boston on Sunday and 15 of 19 since Feb. 10.

NOTES

BULLS: Guard Antonio Blakeney will miss the remainder of the season because of a broken bone in his left wrist.

Blakeney was injured in Monday night’s loss at New York. He scored six points on 3-of-10 shooting in Wednesday’s loss to Denver after being listed as questionable. The Bulls said an MRI confirmed the fracture.

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BUCKS: Giannis Antetokounmpo is doubtful for Friday night’s game against Chicago with a sprained right ankle.

Antetokounmpo got hurt in the second quarter of a 127-120 loss Wednesday night to the Los Angeles Clippers when he appeared to trip over teammate Shabazz Muhammad under the Bucks’ basket.

THE GAME between Sacramento and visiting Atlanta started after a 19-minute delay due to protesters who were locked arm-in-arm surrounding entrances to Golden1 Center.

A massive crowd shut down nearby freeways and gathered in the surrounding streets to protest the police shooting of Stephon Clark, who was unarmed and in the backyard of his grandparents’ house Sunday night. According to reports, Clark was shot 20 times.


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