Hornets fight back from 22 down to beat Pelicans 102-95 for 7th straight victory

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — LaMelo Ball overcame an early head-to-head collision with coach Charles Lee to score 24 points, and the surging Charlotte Hornets fought back from a 22-point deficit to beat the New Orleans Pelicans 102-95 on Monday for their seventh straight win.

Kon Knueppel added 17 points, hitting four 3s, and Brandon Miller and Grant Williams each scored 16 as Charlotte pulled within a half-game of the Atlanta Hawks for the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Hornets overcame 17 turnovers while matching their longest winning streak since March 2016.

Trey Murphy III scored 27 points to lead the Pelicans, who have lost six of their last nine. Zion Williamson finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Derik Queen had 16 points.

ROCKETS 118, PACERS 114

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Alperen Sengun matched his season high with 39 points, and Jabari Smith Jr. added 19 to help short-handed Houston overcome the absence of All-Star forward Kevin Durant to beat Indiana.

Durant sat out, coach Ime Udoka said, after spraining his left ankle when he stepped on a fan’s foot. The Rockets already were missing center Steven Adams, who is expected to miss the rest of this season following surgery on his injured left ankle, so Sengun did the heavy lifting.

He made 13 of 25 from the field and 13 of 18 from the free-throw line including 8 of 12 during the fourth quarter. Houston won its third straight, got its fifth victory in six games and captured its third straight on the road.

All-Star forward Pascal Siakam finished with 27 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 25 to lead the Pacers, who charged back from a 12-point deficit in the third quarter to take the lead. But they didn’t have quite enough to extend their winning streak to a season-best three straight.

GRIZZLIES 137, TIMBERWOLVES 128

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 30 points, Ty Jerome added 19 and Memphis built a 20-point lead in the second half and held on for a victory over Minnesota.

Memphis maintained a double-digit advantage through much of the fourth quarter. Minnesota, behind Donte DiVincenzo and Anthony Edwards, seemed poised to overtake Memphis, but the Grizzlies never let the Timberwolves within nine points and snapped a six-game losing streak.

Jaylen Wells scored 18 points for Memphis, while Cam Spencer and Vince WIlliams Jr. added 16 points apiece.

Edwards led Minnesota with 39 points and seven rebounds. Jaden McDaniels scored 29 points and DiVincenzo finished with 21, including 13 in the fourth. Minnesota had its four-game win streak halted.

76ERS 128, CLIPPERS 113

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Tyrese Maxey scored 29 points, including seven 3-pointers, Dominick Barlow added 26 points and 16 rebounds, and Philadelphia beat Los Angeles for their fourth consecutive victory.

The game featured two big names who weren’t selected as All-Star reserves: Joel Embiid of the Sixers and Kawhi Leonard of the Clippers.

Embiid had 24 points as he continues to gain full strength after a right ankle injury. The Sixers improved to 11-10 without Paul George, who is serving a 25-game suspension for violating the NBA’s anti-drug program.

Leonard led the Clippers with 29 points and Jordan Miller had 21 points off the bench.

Los Angeles was without James Harden, who missed his second straight game due to personal reasons. Coach Tyronn Lue said before the game that Harden was at home in Phoenix.