The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on January 2, 2015 with a heavy slate of 11 games featuring 22 teams. A star returned to play his former team for the first time, another hit his hometown in style and a cast of other players stepped up with big-time performances.
Here’s how it all transpired.
1. Rajon Rondo dominated in his first game back at TD Garden as the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Boston Celtics 119-101. Rondo finished with 29 points, six rebounds, five assists, one steal and five 3-point field goals for the Mavericks, while Avery Bradley scored 22 points for the Celtics.
Rondo’s 29 points are his most since January 18, 2010.
2. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook out-dueled Bradley Beal and John Wall as the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Washington Wizards 109-102. Durant finished with 34 points on 12-of-18 shooting and Westbrook posted 22 points on a mark of 8-of-23 from the field, while Beal tallied 21 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and Wall had 14 points and 12 dimes.
At 17-17, OKC reaches .500 for the first time this season.
3. Ryan Anderson scored 22 points and Tyreke Evans put up 21 as the New Orleans Pelicans ran past the Houston Rockets 111-83. Jrue Holiday stuffed the stat sheet with seven points, seven rebounds, six assists, two blocks and two steals, and Anthony Davis posted seven points, eight boards, three dimes, three swats and two swipes.
Since opening the season at 19-5, Houston has gone 3-5 in its past eight games.
4. Stephen Curry went off to help the Golden State Warriors take down the Toronto Raptors 126-105. Curry tallied 32 points and 12 assists, and Draymond Green posted 16 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds, two blocks and two steals for the Warriors.
Curry is the first player to record at least 30 points and 10 assists with no turnovers since Chris Paul on January 6, 2009.
5. Playing without LeBron James, Kevin Love posted 27 points and Tristan Thompson dominated the boards as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Charlotte Hornets 91-87. Thompson tallied 14 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks to round out Cleveland’s attack, while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 12 points and 10 rebounds for Charlotte.
Cleveland snaps a three-game losing streak.
6. Jeff Teague had 26 points, eight assists and three steals to lead the Atlanta Hawks past the Utah Jazz 98-92. Paul Millsap added 15 points and 11 boards for Atlanta, while Gordon Hayward led Utah with 18 points of his own.
At 24-8, Atlanta has the best record in the Eastern Conference.
7. Brandon Jennings went off for 29 points and Andre Drummond grabbed 20 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons defeated the New York Knicks 97-81. The two sides combined for just 28 free throw attempts while throwing up 57 3-point field goal attempts.
New York has lost 10 consecutive games. Detroit is 4-0 since waiving Josh Smith with an average margin of victory of 18.0 points per game.
8. Elfrid Payton went off for 16 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds, three steals and a block, but it was the Brooklyn Nets which escaped with a 100-98 win. Mason Plumlee led the Nets with 18 points and nine rebounds, and Brook Lopez had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in 18 minutes of play.
Brooklyn has won three in a row and six of seven. It’s back at .500 for the first time since November 13.
9. Mike Conley and Marc Gasol willed the Memphis Grizzlies to a 109-106 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. Conley had 19 points, nine assists, six rebounds, two steals and one block, while Gasol recorded 18 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two blocks and a steal.
Gasol has 10 double-doubles in 2014-15. He had 10 in all of 2013-14.
10. The Indiana Pacers picked up a 94-91 win over the Milwaukee Bucks behind 22 points from wing C.J. Miles. Brandon Knight finished with 20 points, seven assists and four steals for the Bucks, but Indiana ultimately pulled out the narrow road win.
Milwaukee is an even 17-17 overall, 7-7 at home, 10-10 on the road, 4-4 against the central division and 11-11 versus the Eastern Conference.
Bonus Fact: Tony Wroten scored 28 points, but it was the Phoenix Suns which pulled out the 112-96 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.