NETS 121, CELTICS 109
The Celtics tried various things in their attempts to defend Kyrie Irving. None of them worked and he tied a season high with his second 40-point game.
It was Irving’s 20th career 40-point game and 16 of those games, he has made at least five 3-pointers. Irving posted his second 40-point game against the Celtics with the other being Jan. 22, 2013.
As far as a Net ever getting 40 on the Celtics, you might recall the epically insane 51-point game Caris LeVert produced on March 3, 2020. This was the Nets’ sixth 40-point game on the Celtics and before LeVert the last was Vince Carter’s 45 points on April 9, 2005.
76ers 127, BULLS 105
The Sixers methodically took care of the Bulls with 51 percent showing from the field and nobody scoring over 24 points.
Perhaps the most interesting stat line comes from reserve Dwight Howard, who totaled 18 points and 12 rebounds. Out of his 101 regular season games as a reserve, this was the second time he was that productive. The other instance was a 21-point, 15-rebound showing for the Lakers against Cleveland on Jan. 13, 2020.
In terms of Sixers history, this was the second time a reserve was that productive against the Bulls. The other time was April 10, 1987 at the Spectrum when Cliff Robinson (not the guy who went to UCONN) totaled 22 points and 20 rebounds.
HAWKS 121, RAPTORS 120
This was decided on a buzzer-beater by Tony Snell, who only scored six points. Out of Atlanta’s 47 all-time wins on the Raptors, it was the second by one point. The other was a 93-92 win on Jan. 30, 2013 when Al Horford hit the go-ahead dunk and blocked DeMar DeRozan at the rim with one second left.
This was Trae Young’s second-most productive game against the Hawks, five shy of his best outing on Jan. 20, 2020.Young has two of Atlanta’s three games with at least 37 on the Raptors with the other being Joe Johnson’s 37-point outing on Feb. 2, 2011.
As for the Raptors, Chris Boucher’s 29 points stood out. It was the third time Boucher scored at least 29 in a reserve role and second time against Atlanta, which allowed him to get 29 on Feb. 6.
BUCKS 134, KNICKS 101
When you’re a .500 team, it defines the phrase “you win some, you lose some.” The latter applied for the Knicks because of Giannis Antetokounmpo getting a triple-double of 24 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.
It was his 23rd triple-double and second against the Knicks. Out of those triple-doubles, the Bucks have four losses and Antetokounmpo has two of Milwaukee’s four triple-doubles against the Knicks. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar totaled 36, 14 rebounds and 11 assists on March 1, 1973 and Alvin Robertson totaled 17 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds on Nov. 30, 1990.
A triple-double can be aided by such things as a team shooting really well and Milwaukee’s 57.5 percent was its third-best against the Knicks. The Bucks shot 60.2 percent in a 132-93 win at Madison Square Garden on April 10, 1987 and made 58 percent in a 131-88 win on March 24, 1972.
SUNS 127, TRAIL BLAZERS 121
The Suns may qualify as the Western Conference’s hottest team with 14 wins in their last 16 after taking care of Portland.
Devin Booker’s 35 points tell part of the story as it was Phoenix’s 25th instance someone scoring at least 35 against Portland. Booker also scored 43 on Portland on Jan. 16, 2018 and he is the seventh Sun with multiple 35-point games against Portland.
Phoenix shot at least 59 percent for the seventh time against Portland and the first time since it made 59.7 percent on Dec. 21, 2012. The last time the Suns shot this well in Portland was Feb. 27, 1981 when it shot 60.7 percent.
CLIPPERS 130, WARRIORS 104
Kawhi Leonard scored a routine 28 points but also added nine rebounds, hit five 3-pointers and got three steals.
The only other time for Leonard was Dec. 5, 2018 in Toronto against Philadelphia when he had 36, nine rebounds, five steals and hit five 3-pointers. Of course, you can forgive yourself for not remembering given what Leonard did six months later against Philadelphia.
HORNETS 105, PISTONS 102
How many times can you win a game by shooting 40 percent from the field and hitting 10 or fewer 3-pointers?
This season the answer is eight and Charlotte’s claim to fame is it scored the most points in any game with those numbers. Last season a team won 22 times with those numbers and never scored more than 105 and in 2018-19, there were 17 such instances.
In terms of Charlotte against Detroit, this was the third time as it also happened Dec. 7, 2016 and Feb. 10, 2020.
HEAT 111, MAGIC 103
There was nothing remarkable, just the Heat doing what they had to do in a home game.
Jimmy Butler flirted with the triple-double of 27 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. If you’re wondering how many time, he’s totaled exactly 27, 11 and eight, the answer is this was the first time.
TIMBERWOLVES 135, PELICANS 105.
Nothing notable occurred for the Pelicans, so let’s visit the Timberwolves side. Out of Minnesota’s nine games of at least 135 points, three are against the Pelicans. They got 144 on April 13, 2016 and 139 on March 3, 2020.
Out of those games, the Wolves have shot at least 53.7 percent in six of those games and made 19 3’s in three of those.
Notable numbers include the 27 points by rookie Anthony Edwards, his second game of at least 27 this season. He’s still got a way to go catch Karl Anthony-Towns, who scored at least 27 in 14 games as a rookie.
THUNDER 116, MAVERICKS 108
In most of Oklahoma City’s wins, it is about what Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does and he finished with 32 points.
That was by far his most productive game against Dallas, eclipsing the 19 points he scored on Dec. 31, 2019. He is the third player in Thunder history not named Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant to score that many on the Mavericks. Anthony Morrow scored 32 on April 1, 2015 while Paul George did it twice in the 2017-18 season.
KINGS 125, ROCKETS 105
The Kings easily dispatched of an awful opponent when they knocked off the Rockets, who hoisted 45 3-pointers.
De’Aaron Fox was the star with 30 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. It was the fourth time a King/Royal totaled that many in each category against the Rockets. The last was Eddie Johnson’s 37 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists on Oct. 31, 1985.