Jalen Duren scores 23 points as Pistons beat Golden State

DETROIT (AP) — Jalen Duren scored 23 points as the Detroit Pistons beat the Golden State Warriors 115-101 on Friday night in a game missing two of the NBA’s biggest stars.

The Pistons beat the Warriors in the first matchup of the season between the teams on Jan. 30, but that was the last game Golden State’s Steph Curry (knee) has played this season. Now, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham (chest) has joined him for an extended absence.

Golden State’s injury situation got worse in the first half when Kristaps Porzingis left the game with lower back soreness.

Daniss Jenkins, starting for Cunningham, had 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for Detroit, which has won six of its last seven games. Paul Reed added 15 points for the Pistons, who won despite shooting 23.8% (5 for 21) on 3-pointers.

Golden State, which has lost seven of eight, turned the ball over 26 times, leading to 32 Pistons points. Brandin Podziemski had 15 points to lead Golden State.

KNICKS 93, NETS 92

NEW YORK (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and New York outlasted the Brooklyn for their fourth consecutive victory.

Jalen Brunson scored 17 points and OG Anunoby finished with 16 for the Knicks, who trailed by 13 points in the first half, then blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Ben Saraf had a chance to win it for the Nets at the buzzer but missed a 45-footer.

The Knicks beat the Nets for the 14th straight time, the longest winning streak for either team in the local rivalry. The Nets’ last victory over the Knicks was on Jan. 28, 2023, shortly before trading Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Josh Minott scored 22 points and Ziaire Williams added 17 for the Nets, who have lost six straight games.

ROCKETS 117, HAWKS 95

HOUSTON (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 and Houston snapped Atlanta’s 11-game winning streak.

Alperen Sengun had 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds for Houston, which was just 4-6 in its previous 10 games and was coming off back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 21 points, but the Hawks shot just 42% from the field and 26% (9 for 35) from 3-point range. Houston shot 51% overall and 47% (14 of 30) from deep.

CJ McCollum had 17 points and Zaccharie Risacher had 16 for Atlanta, which was riding its longest winning streak in over a decade that had positioned the team for a play-in berth.

The Rockets outrebounded the Hawks 51-37.

CELTICS 117, GRIZZLIES 112

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Luka Garza added a season-high 22 points and Boston used a fourth-quarter rally to defeat Memphis.

Payton Pritchard added 19 points for the Celtics, who have won four straight. The win kept Boston in second place in the East, 1 1/2 games ahead of the New York Knicks who held on for a 93-92 victory over Brooklyn earlier Friday night.

Tyler Burton, who signed a 10-day contract with Memphis on March 12, led the Grizzlies with 23 points, a career-high. Ty Jerome added 16 points and seven assists. Javon Small and DeJon Jarreau finished with 13 points each.

TRAIL BLAZERS 108, TIMBERWOLVES 104

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jerami Grant made a 3-pointer with 22.2 seconds left and Portland escaped with a win over Minnesota.

After a timeout by the Trail Blazers, Grant took an inbound pass from Jrue Holiday and made his fourth 3 of the night from the right corner. Grant grabbed a defensive rebound at the other end and made two free throws to finish with 26 points in Portland’s third straight win.

Donovan Clingan scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his sixth straight double-double. Deni Avdija added 25 points and eight rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who moved into eighth place in the Western Conference. Holiday had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Rudy Gobert led short-handed Minnesota with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Ayo Dosunmu added 17 points and tied a career high with 10 rebounds.

Julius Randle added 19 points for the Timberwolves, but they lost for the first time in three games without All-Star guard Anthony Edwards, who remains out with right knee inflammation. Center Naz Reid, a top bench player, missed his second straight game with a right knee sprain.

NUGGETS 121, RAPTORS 115

DENVER (AP) — Jamal Murray scored 31 points, Nikola Jokic made a go-ahead jumper with 45 seconds left and Denver held on for a victory over Toronto.

Jokic finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, Tim Hardaway Jr. had 23 points and shot 7 of 10 from 3-point range and Aaron Gordon added 16 points for the Nuggets, who improved to 8-8 since the All-Star break.

Jakob Poeltl scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Raptors, who had a three-game winning streak snapped. Brandon Ingram added 19 points and R.J. Barrett had 18.