NBA: Julius Randle triple-double leads Knicks past Magic

Reggie Bullock scored 20 points and came up with a big steal with 5.9 seconds left as the host New York Knicks held on for a 94-93 victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night.

Bullock saved the Knicks from completely collapsing after they blew a 16-point, third-quarter lead and trailed by five points twice in the fourth. 

The Knicks held a 94-90 lead after Alec Burks hit a floater in the lane with 31.5 seconds left but Orlando drew within 94-93 on Evan Fournier's 3-pointer with 27.6 seconds left.

The Knicks had a chance to clinch the win but Bullock got tied up by Fournier and lost a jump ball with 19.5 seconds left. 

After Orlando called a timeout, Aaron Gordon inbounded to Fournier, who moved around a screen by Nikola Vucevic but Bullock trailed Fournier and came up with the clutch steal beyond the 3-point line.

Burks led the Knicks with 21 points and also added 10 assists. 

Julius Randle posted his third triple-double of the season with 18 points, a career-high 17 assists and 10 rebounds as the Knicks shot 43 percent and bounced back from close losses to Brooklyn and Philadelphia.

Fournier scored 23 points for Orlando, which lost its ninth straight game. Gordon and Vucevic added 17 apiece for the Magic, who shot 42.7 percent

After allowing the game's first five points, the Magic took a 20-10 lead on Fournier's one-legged 3-pointer with 5:50 left in the first quarter. 

New York outscored Orlando, 14-6, the rest of the frame to get within 26-24 after 12 minutes, before taking a 45-44 lead by intermission.

Randle's 3-pointer put New York up 72-56 with 1:59 left in the third but Orlando scored the final 10 points of the quarter and got within 72-66 after Khem Birch hit a bank shot with one second left. 

Orlando regained the lead when Fournier's 3-pointer made it 75-74 with 9:54 left in the fourth.

Orlando took its second five-point lead of the fourth at 87-82 on Vucevic's 14-footer with 5:15 left but the Knicks took an 88-87 lead on Frank Ntilikina's 3-pointer with 3:49 remaining. 

Randle then hit two jumpers to give the Knicks a 92-87 edge with 2:39 left.

Orlando had a chance to retake the lead when Bullock missed a 3-pointer with 56.4 seconds left in the third but Dwayne Bacon missed a wide-open 3-pointer with 44.7 seconds to go.

-reuters

Lakers rout Mavericks in Lonzo Ball’s return

LOS ANGELES — Julius Randle had 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists and rookie Lonzo Ball made a triumphant return to the lineup as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Dallas Mavericks 124-102 on Friday night.

Ball, who was sidelined for 15 games with a knee injury, had nine points, seven rebounds and six assists in 17 minutes. Isaiah Thomas had 17 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Brandon Ingram scored 15 apiece to help Los Angeles stop a three-game slide.

It was Randle’s second triple-double this season and No. 5 for his career. Josh Hart added 12 points and 10 boards as the Lakers enjoyed a 61-29 advantage on the glass.

Wesley Matthews and Harrison Barnes each scored 19 points for the Mavericks (18-41), who have dropped five of six.

The Lakers jumped out to 23-5 lead and had a 63-41 advantage at the break.

TIP-INS

Mavericks: Rookie guard Dennis Smith Jr. was one of the players identified in the Yahoo Sports story on federal documents obtained in the FBI’s investigation into college basketball corruption. It alleged Smith received $43,500 and was loaned another $73,500. Said Smith at the morning shootaround: “I’m a firm believer in God and everything happens for a reason. Whether it’s going to strengthen you or destroy you, you make that decision. But since I’ve been here, it’s been a class organization from top to bottom, starting with Mark Cuban and all the way down to players like myself. It’s been great, fantastic. I’m here to play basketball. Everything else to me is just noise and I have to block all that out.”

Lakers: The Yahoo Sports report also said rookie forward Kyle Kuzma received $3,000 and $6,500 in loans. Kuzma would not say prior to the game whether the story was accurate. “Hmm, I’m not going to say anything really,” he said. “Just gathering information about it and whatnot.” He called it a legal matter, though he did not believe he was in jeopardy. “I don’t know. I don’t think so,” he said. “That’s why we’re trying to gather information about everything. It is a federal investigation the NCAA is dealing with.” Kuzma did say the story was a distraction. “Yeah, for sure,” he said. “It’s the NBA right now and we’re focusing on trying to win games, and things like this come about, it’s definitely a little distraction.”

UP NEXT

Mavericks: Play on back-to-back nights when they travel to Utah on Saturday.

Lakers: Also play on consecutive nights, traveling to Sacramento on Saturday.

source: sports.inquirer.net