NBA ROUND-UP: The nets roll to another win over Pelicans as LeBron James and co thrash the Hawks

The Brooklyn Nets outlived the undermanned New Orleans Pelicans 108-102 on Friday night.

Kevin Durant had 33 points and 10 rebounds and Kyrie Irving had 19 points and hit a deep 3 with 44 seconds left to give the Nets a 106-100 lead and doom New Orleans to their fifth home loss of the season.

TJ Warren scored 15 points for Brooklyn and Royce O’Neale added 14, including a 3-pointer with 2:27 left.

The Brooklyn Nets outlived the undermanned New Orleans Pelicans 108-102 on Friday night

CJ McCollum scored 28 points and Naji Marshall had a career-high 23 points for the Pelicans in their second game since losing Zion Williamson for what is expected to be about three weeks with a right hamstring strain.

Jose Alvarado added 17 points, and Jonas Valanciunas had 12 points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans, which hasn’t had forward Brandon Ingram (left big toe bruise) in the lineup in 20 games.

The Pelicans led for much of the game but struggled to make shots in the second half, finishing with 39.8 shot percent (35 of 88). New Orleans made just two of 12 3s in the second half after making 10 of 17 in the first.

Brooklyn shot 43.5 percent (37 of 85), including 15 of 33 from deep.

Kyrie Irving scored 19 points and hit a deep 3 with 44 seconds left to give the Nets the lead

After being down 15 in the second quarter and 11 at halftime, the Nets opened the third quarter on a 17-5 run capped by O’Neale’s second Chance 3 to take a 70-69 lead. From then on the game stayed tight until the final minutes.

Marshall helped the Pelicans get off to a quick start with 10 points in the first quarter, highlighted by three 3-pointers, the last of which gave New Orleans a 24-14 lead.

After missing his first five shots, Durant made three of his next four, including a 3 that cut it to 28-27 by the end of the opening period.

Alvarado’s 3 and his drive serve sparked an 11-0 run that gave the Pelicans a 43-28 lead in the second quarter, and New Orleans led 64-53 at halftime.

ATLANTA HAWKS 114-130 LA LAKERS

LeBron James had 25 points and 10 assists on his return from illness, Russell Westbrook added 18 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists and the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Atlanta Hawks 130-114 on Friday night for their first winning streak in four games in just under a year.

Kendrick Nunn had 23 points in a career-best performance with the injury-strewn Lakers, who were never behind in their second win over the Hawks in eight days.

Los Angeles won in Atlanta on December 30, with James scoring 47 points on his 38th birthday.

LeBron James had 25 points on his return from illness as the Lakers thrashed the Hawks

The Lakers jumped to a 26-point lead in the first half of the rematch and comfortably held on to their fifth win in six total games. They had not won four consecutive games since January 7, 2022, when they also defeated Atlanta in Los Angeles.

Thomas Bryant had 19 points and 13 rebounds for LA while Dennis Schroder had 21 points.

Trae Young scored 21 of his 32 second-half points for Atlanta. The Hawks lost five out of six.

NEW YORK KNICKS 112-108 TORONTO RAPTORS

Julius Randle had 32 points and 11 rebounds, Mitchell Robinson had 10 points and 18 rebounds before fouling and New York beat Toronto for their fourth straight win.

Jalen Brunson had 26 points, Quentin Grimes had 16 and Immanuel Quickley had 13 as the Knicks won north of the border for the first time in more than seven years and went on an 11-game losing streak against the Raptors.

New York’s last win in Toronto was a 111-109 win on November 10, 2015. After that game, the umpires confirmed that missing Knicks star Carmelo Anthony had overstepped the bounds in a crucial game late in the fourth quarter.

Fred VanVleet scored 28 points and Gary Trent Jr. had 27 for the struggling Raptors. Toronto has lost seven of its last eight at home and 11 of 14 overall.

Julius Randle had 32 points and 11 rebounds as the Knicks beat Toronto for a fourth straight game

CHICAGO BULLS 126-112 PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

Zach LaVine made 11 of 13 3-pointers for 41 points, and the Chicago Bulls defeated Philadelphia 126-112 on Friday night to end the 76ers’ home-win streak on 11.

LaVine hit three 3-pointers in less than a minute and a half of the game to give Chicago an 88-74 lead with 3:33 in the third quarter. He was two away from his career high for 3-pointers.

Nikola Vucevic had a triple-double for the Bulls with 19 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists. Chicago shot 57.1% from field and was 20 of 34 from 3-point range.

Zach LaVine made 11 of 13 3-pointers and scored 41 points in the Bulls’ win over the 76ers

Vucevic took advantage of Philadelphia’s undersized center tandem of PJ Tucker and Montrezl Harrell, while Joel Embiid missed his second straight game with a sore left foot.

Tyrese Maxey had 26 points and six assists for the 76ers, his best performance since returning to the lineup on Dec. 30.

Maxey has averaged 12.7 points and shot 37.5 percent from the field in his last three games since returning from a broken foot that sidelined him for six weeks.

PORTLAND TRAILPERS 99-108 INDIANA PACERS

The surprise Pacers have won five straight home games and seven of their last nine overall with a 108-99 win over the Trailblazers.

Portland was led by Anfernee Simons with 20 points. Lillard had 19 points and eight assists, and Jusuf Nurkic added 14 points and 19 rebounds — not enough for the Trail Blazers to avoid their third loss in four games.

Instead, it was the Pacers who benefited after Portland closed an eight-point deficit in the third quarter to lead 82-81 into the fourth quarter. The Trail Blazers also started quickly with an 88-83 lead.

And when the Pacers leveled at 93 with 7:54 left on Mathurin’s layup, Portland responded with four straight points.

Then Indiana upped the pressure, allowing just two free throws and no baskets in the last six minutes. Haliburton broke a 97-all tie with a small runner and, after Lillard’s free throws leveled it, Nesmith’s basket with 2:06 left gave Indiana a definitive lead.

The Pacers have won seven of their last nine overall wins with a 108-99 win over the Trailblazers

CHARLOTTE HORNETS 138-109 MILWUAKEE BUCKS

Terry Rozier posted a season-high with 39 points and Charlotte Hornets set an NBA record with 51 points in the first quarter in a win over Milwaukee.

Charlotte’s 51-point breakout marked the NBA mark for a first quarter set by Golden State against Denver in 2019. It was also a franchise record for points in a period.

Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who finished third in the league with 32.7 points per game, had a season-low nine in 22 minutes. He shot 2 of 7 from the field and 5 for 11 at the foul line.

Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo had a season-low nine in 22 minutes on Friday

DETROIT PISTON 109-121 SAN ANTONIO SPURS

Tre Jones had 25 points and San Antonio overcame the injuries of its two leading scorers to beat Detroit and go for a three-game sled.

Spurs forward Keldon Johnson did not return after injuring his left thigh four minutes from time in the first half. Devin Vassell was inactive due to a knee injury.

After a 122-119 win at defending NBA champion Golden State on Wednesday night, Detroit was trailing in a battle between two of the league’s worst records in the last three quarters. Bojan Bogdanovic had 21 points.

Spurs guard Tre Jones dropped 25 points in a win for an injured San Antonio team against Detroit

WASHINGTON WIZARDS 110-127 OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points and Oklahoma City ended a regular-season win over Washington.

Josh Giddey added 20 points, nine assists and five rebounds for Oklahoma City.

Kyle Kuzma scored 23 points for Washington.

Kyle Kuzma (L) accumulated 23 points for the Wizards but couldn’t get past Oklahoma City

DENVER NUGGETS 121-108 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS

Nikola Jokic had 28 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, Jamal Murray had 18 points in his first straight games since knee surgery, and the Denver Nuggets took advantage of Donovan Mitchell’s absence

Caris LeVert scored 22 points and Darius Garland returned from a three-game absence to score 21 points for the Cavaliers, who lost their three-game winning streak.

Mitchell rested four days after scoring 71 points in an overtime win against Chicago.

Nikola Jokic had 28 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists for the Denver Nuggets in a win

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES 128-115 LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS

Rudy Gobert had 25 points and 21 rebounds, D’Angelo Russell also had 25 and the Minnesota Timberwolves drove to a 128-115 win over the undermanned Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.

Los Angeles played the second night of a back-to-back without stars Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.

Reserve forward Norman Powell had a team-high 21 points for Los Angeles, who lost their fifth straight game.

Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert recorded 25 points and 21 rebounds in Friday’s win