Sunday scrimmage wins for Raptors, Pacers, Thunder and Celtics
Monday 27 July 2020 08:12, UK
James Harden scored 31 points to lead the Houston Rockets to victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in a restart scrimmage on Sunday.
The Houston Rockets defeated the Memphis Grizzlies, 119-104, in a restart scrimmage in Orlando on Sunday.
James Harden led the Rockets with 31 points on 7-of-15 shooting, in 36 minutes of action. Russell Westbrook tallied eight points, six rebounds and five assists, while shooting 3-of-14 from the field.
The Rockets hit a last-second three-pointer to end the first quarter and take a three-point lead into the second. The Grizzlies kept it close in the second and held a two-point lead late in the quarter. But the Rockets closed the half on a 15-4 run to take a nine-point lead into half-time.
The Grizzlies came out on fire in the second half, outscoring the Rockets 37-20 in the third quarter, taking an 87-79 lead into the final frame. However, the Rockets rallied in the fourth, outscoring the Grizzlies 40-17 in the period to earn the victory.
Seven players scored in double digits for the Grizzlies, including all five starters. Ja Morant led the way with 17 points in 31 minutes. Brandon Clarke tallied 16 points and eight rebounds, while Kyle Anderson added 15 points to go with three blocks. Jonas Valanciunas fell just short of a double-double in 26 minutes, finishing with 12 points and nine boards.
The Toronto Raptors defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-104, in a restart scrimmage in Orlando.
Serge Ibaka led Toronto with 19 points and six boards. Pascal Siakam generated 18 points and six rebounds. Kyle Lowry provided 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. Matt Thomas led the bench with 16 points and two rebounds.
While there were 11 ties and 11 lead changes in the first 36 minutes of the game, Toronto never trailed after that. A 38-21 third quarter gave the Raptors a game-high 15-point lead, with Portland never getting it within a four-point margin for the final 18 minutes of play. Toronto held Portland to just 39 per cent shooting from the field.
The Trail Blazers were led by Jusuf Nurkic, who tallied 17 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks. Carmelo Anthony totaled 14 points, five rebounds and two assists. CJ McCollum finished with 21 points, two rebounds, five assists and two steals. After missing the first scrimmage with an Achilles injury, Hassan Whiteside returned to action and posted six points, five rebounds and two blocks in 18 minutes.
The Indiana Pacers defeated the Dallas Mavericks, 118-111, in a restart scrimmage in Orlando.
TJ Warren led the Pacers with 20 points and six rebounds. Malcolm Brogdon tallied 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Myles Turner totaled 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Victor Oladipo finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and three assists, while Edmond Sumner paced the bench with 12 points. Indiana were without Domantas Sabonis, who departed Orlando on Friday to seek treatment for a foot injury.
Dallas got out to a 37-26 lead after the opening quarter and held the lead for the entirety of the first half. Indiana then responded with a 35-27 second quarter and a followed up with a 31-22 third quarter, holding the lead for the final 22 minutes of play. In fact, that swing ended up being the only lead change in the game.
Indiana out-rebounded Dallas by a 52 to 44 tally. The Pacers also shot 48 per cent from the field and 86 per cent from the free-throw line, while the Mavs hit 43 per cent from the field and 69 per cent from the charity stripe.
For Dallas, Luka Doncic fell just shy of a triple-double, collecting 20 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in just 24 minutes of action. Maxi Kleber generated 18 points and six rebounds. Boban Marjanovic had 11 points and six rebounds off the bench while JJ Barea provided 14 points, six rebounds and six assists. Kristaps Porzingis did not play after breaking the league's coronavirus testing protocol on Saturday.
The Boston Celtics gained some key separation in the third quarter after a back-and-forth first half to notch a 117-103 victory over the Phoenix Suns in an NBA restart scrimmage in Orlando.
Jaylen Brown paced the Celtics with a game-high 21 points on 7-for-13 shooting, including a 3-for-6 tally from three-point range. Gordon Hayward delivered 17 points, six boards, three assists and one block. Jayson Tatum finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, two assists and one steal. Marcus Smart led the second unit with 10 points, five rebounds and five assists. Kemba Walker, who has been battling knee soreness, was able to log nine minutes of action and record six points and one rebound.
The Celtics were outplayed on both ends of the floor over the first 12 minutes by the Suns, who rang up 32 points while limiting Boston to 29. However, coach Brad Stevens' squad turned the game around during the middle periods, when they outscored Phoenix by a 65-49 margin. The expansion of a four-point half-time advantage to 13 points by the end of the third quarter gave the Celtics the breathing room they needed to notch the double-digit win.
Devin Booker led the way for the Suns with 17 points, adding nine assists and four rebounds. Mikal Bridges followed with 16 points and also supplied five boards, one assist and three blocks. Cameron Johnson supplied 13 points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal. Dario Saric turned in 12 points, eight boards and two assists. DeAndre Ayton registered 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Ricky Rubio made his scrimmage debut and totalled six points, four assists, two rebounds and one steal.
Andre Roberson hit two three-pointers with less than a minute to play as the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied to a 102-97 victory against the Philadelphia 76ers in a restart scrimmage in Orlando.
The Thunder trailed by as many as 24 points in the third quarter and were down 86-72 with 10 minutes to play in the fourth quarter before fightig back. Oklahoma City went on an 8-0 run to tie, 92-92, with 3:20 remaining and took their first lead since the opening quarter with less than a minute remaining when Roberson drilled his first triple for a 98-97 lead. A few moments later, Roberson sank another trey to ice the game with 12.9 seconds to go. Those were his only points of the game.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for the Thunder with 16 points, seven rebounds, two steals and five assists, while Steven Adams totalled 11 points and nine rebounds. Luguentz Dort chipped in with 13 points in a surprise start at shooting guard.
The 76ers were without Joel Embiid, who injured his right calf Friday, but Ben Simmons flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 14 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. Al Horford had 13 points, nine boards and three assists, while Josh Richardson (10 points, four steals, three assists, two rebounds and two blocks) and Shake Milton (11 points, four boards, two assists) formed a productive backcourt tandem.
