INDIANAPOLIS — James Harden made a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 34.8 seconds left and then closed out Houston’s 98-94 victory at Indiana by making four straight free throws on Monday night.
The reigning MVP scored 28 points as the Rockets won their third straight since starting 1-5. And the victories have been coming in large part because of an improving defense. It’s the fourth time in six games the usually high-scoring Rockets failed to hit the 100-point mark.
MAGIC 102, CAVALIERS 100: Evan Fournier hit a long jumper at the final horn and Orlando came back from a five-point deficit in the last 24 seconds at home to beat struggling Cleveland.
THUNDER 122, PELICANS 116: Oklahoma City won its fifth straight game by beating New Orleans in Oklahoma City but lost star point guard Russell Westbrook with a sprained left ankle.
After coming down hard on the side of his foot, Westbrook pounded the ground in frustration before limping off the court. The Thunder led 84-77 when he left the game with 4:25 left in the third quarter.
HEAT 120, PISTONS 115: Josh Richardson scored 27 points to lead short-handed Miami past host Detroit in overtime.
BULLS 116, KNICKS 115: Zach LaVine scored a career-high 41 points, including the game-winning free throw with 0.2 seconds left, as Chicago won in double overtime in New York.
Antonio Blakeney scored 17 points, Jabari Parker had 15 and Wendell Carter Jr. added 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls.
NOTES
CAVALIERS: Larry Drew has agreed to a new contract to be the team’s interim coach for the remainder of this season.
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