CHA @ BRK: Now unbeaten since the firing of Avery Johnson, Brooklyn got 26 points and 11 rebounds from Brook Lopez while a happier Deron Williams added 19, as they handed the lowly Bobcats a 17th straight defeat. Charlotte fell behind 33-15 in the first and shot 38.9% on the night; all stats are skewed by garbage time. Kris Humphries (strained ab) sat out another game, so the Nets went small, starting Keith Bogans (9 PTS on 3-3 shooting from beyond the arc) at SF. Reggie Evans (5 PTS, 13 REB) played 27 minutes off the bench and Andray Blatche owners are disappointed with his mere 14:10, partially due to foul trouble.
TOR @ NOH: The Raptors should have won in regulation, but blew a 7-point lead in the final 90 seconds. They regrouped in overtime, when Kyle Lowry (17 PTS, 8 AST) was at his best. Jose Calderon (2 PTS, 6 AST, 5 REB) had a rough 1-6 shooting night and finished up at SG as Toronto went very small — Amir Johnson (12 PTS, 8 REB, 3 BLK) and four guards, with 6’6” Alan Anderson at PF. DeMar DeRozan was outstanding, with 30 points in more than 49 minutes. Anthony Davis (25 PTS, 9 REB, 3 BLK) led the Hornets in scoring, but Greivis Vasquez (20 PTS, 14 AST, 9 REB) was their best player. Though Robin Lopez (9 PTS, 8 REB) was relatively quiet, Ryan Anderson (17 PTS, 12 REB) had his best line in ten days.
PHO @ IND: With Goran Dragic (multiple bruises) sidelined, Sebastian Telfair (19 PTS, 6 AST) was a more-than-adequate replacement, but the Suns fell short. George Hill (22 points) led Indiana; Paul George and David West were slightly disappointing with 15 and 14 respectively. Roy Hibbert did have 14 REB, 4 AST and 1 BLK, but shot just 3-9 and is at an all-time low 40.2% from the floor this year.
HOU @ SAS: Exactly as expected, Tony Parker (31 PTS, 10 AST, 5 REB, 2 STL) and Tim Duncan (30 PTS, 5 REB, 2 BLK) had to play big minutes in a high-scoring track meet. Manu Ginobili added a season-high 23 (including five 3-pointers) in just 23:37 off the bench, and the Spurs tightened their D when it counted. James Harden (33 PTS, 7 AST, 5 REB) led the Rockets, with Chandler Parsons (24 PTS, 8 REB, 5 AST) and Jeremy Lin (21 PTS, 8 AST, 4 REB, 4 STL) also putting up nice numbers. They missed Carlos Delfino (illness), whose 3-point range off the bench might have helped.
LAC @ UTA: Make it 16 in a row for the Clippers, this one in dramatic fashion. Chris Paul (29 PTS, 6 AST) brought them back from a 19-point deficit, with Blake Griffin (22 PTS, 13 REB) and DeAndre Jordan (16 PTS, 10 REB, 3 STL) doing tremendous work up front. For the Jazz, Randy Foye was unbelievable. Averaging less than 8 points through his previous 11 games, Foye had a season high 28, hitting 5-of-8 from deep. Al Jefferson (22 PTS, 8 REB, 2 STL, 2 BLK) and sixth man Gordon Hayward (17 PTS, 4 AST, 3 REB, 2 BLK) also played well enough to beat just about any other team.