Wins for Spurs, Thunder and Blazers in the West.
There were 12 games on the NBA schedule on Wednesday night, with the Miami Heat ending a barren run on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers.
LeBron James had 31 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds while Ray Allen hit a clinching three-pointer in the final minute to show their hosts how to close out a game, as the Heat snapped a five-game road losing streak against their Western Conference rivals.
Allen had 15 points off the bench, while Dwyane Wade was one of seven Miami players to reach double figures on the night, with 14 points and eight assists in his 700th regular-season game.
Blake Griffin responded with a season-high 43 points and 13 rebounds for the Clippers, while Jamal Crawford added 31 points and DeAndre Jordan had 16 boards and 16 points to extend a 29-game run of double-digit rebound performances.
However, it wasn’t enough as ultimately Miami had too much firepower to close out the game, with Allen playing in his 1,271 regular-season game as he overtook John Havlicek for 19th place all-time.
“He’s a pro and he takes care of himself. He’s in just phenomenal shape, and he can run forever,” said Clippers coach Doc Rivers,
Elsewhere, the San Antonio Spurs required double overtime to get the win in Washington against the Wizards, and had to do it without Tony Parker, Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili for the final part.
Patty Mills scored 11 of his season-high 23 points in the two overtimes, while Danny Green added 22 points as he started to find his stroke from three-point range.
Parker left the game at halftime after suffering from tightness in his lower back while Duncan fouled out, leaving it to the supporting cast to get the job done.
“That’s one of the finest wins I’ve ever been associated with, and I’m saying that truthfully,” said Popovich, who has led the Spurs to four NBA titles. “For these guys, I couldn’t be prouder of what they did. With Kawhi and Manu and Tony not out there, I thought the bench guys really stepped up.”
John Wall scored 29 points and Bradley Beal had 19 for the Wizards, but they could not prevent their team from falling to a 16th straight loss to the Spurs.
Meanwhile, there was also a win for the Portland Trail Blazers at Madison Square Garden, with Nicolas Batum (20 points and 10 rebounds) leading them beyond the New York Knicks.
Wesley Matthew had 18 points on a night in which LeMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard struggled, although the former came up big in the closing stages to finish with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
New York star Carmelo Anthony had 26 points but was scoreless in the fourth quarter as the Knicks fall to 19-30 for the season.
NBA Results:
Los Angeles Lakers 119-108 Cleveland Cavaliers
Boston Celtics 114-108 Philadelphia 76ers
San Antonio Spurs 125-118 Washington Wizards
Detroit Pistons 98-112 Orlando Magic
Portland Trail Blazers 94-90 New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns 108-122 Houston Rockets
Dallas Mavericks 110-96 Memphis Grizzlies
Atlanta Hawks 100-105 New Orleans Pelicans
Minnesota Timberwolves 97-106 Oklahoma City Thunder
Milwaukee Bucks 100-110 Denver Nuggets
Toronto Raptors 101-109 Sacramento Kings
Miami Heat 116-112 Los Angeles Clippers
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