Boston defeats Philadelphia 117-99 to win their eighth straight game. Regarding Boston

Boston defeats Philadelphia 117-99 to win their eighth straight game. Regarding Boston.

NBA

With 31 points from Jaylen Brown, the Boston Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 117-99 to win their ninth game in a row. With 29 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, Jayson Tatum helped the NBA’s top-ranked Celtics defeat an Eastern Conference opponent at home for the 25th time in a row. Despite making just five of twenty-two 3-pointers and committing fourteen turnovers, Boston prevailed. Leading the 76ers with 32 points and five assists was Tyrese Maxey. With 8:49 remaining in the game, the 76ers had narrowed their lead over Boston to 91-89 after cutting their lead from 14 points to 11 at the start of the fourth quarter. In response, the Celtics scored 17 points in a row, with Tatum scoring eight of them.

Tuesday night’s game saw the New Orleans Pelicans defeat the New York Knicks 115-92 behind 26 points from Trey Murphy III and 24 from Brandon Ingram. For the Pelicans, Zion Williamson added 21 points. With 23 points, Donte DiVincenzo led the Knicks, while Bojan Bogdanovic scored 20 points off the bench. The Knicks, who are currently missing players Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, and Mitchell Robinson, did not play after Jalen Brunson suffered from neck spasms and Isaiah Hartenstein suffered from Achilles tendinopathy.

The Orlando Magic defeated the Brooklyn Nets 108-81, with Franz Wagner scoring 17 of his 21 points in the first half. Moritz Wagner chipped in with five rebounds and 16 points. For Orlando, Markelle Fultz and Cole Anthony both scored 12 points after coming off the bench. In his third start for the Nets, Dennis Schroder scored fifteen points. Trendon Watford finished with eight rebounds and 14 points. Leading scorer for Orlando, All-Star forward Paolo Banchero, missed his second straight game due to sickness after participating in the team’s first 57 games.

Chris Paul proved his worth to the Warriors in his first game back after seven weeks, as Golden State defeated the Washington Wizards 123–111. Stephen Curry had a disappointing evening despite Klay Thompson’s 25 points. For the first time since November 23, 2012, Curry was kept scoreless in the first half of the regular season. Three of the seven shots he missed were air balls. Of the seven, six were from 3-point range. While the rest of the Warriors hit 17 for 30 from beyond the arc, Curry finished with 18 points and 4 of 16 3-pointers. Tyus Jones led the Wizards, who had lost 12 games this season, with a career-high 17 assists.

With four minutes remaining, Max Strus scored his fifth 3-pointer of the game, a 59-footer, to give the Cleveland Cavaliers a thrilling 121-119 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. With 2.9 seconds remaining, P.J. Washington’s slam gave the Mavericks the lead. The Cavs swiftly inbounded the ball, and Evan Mobley tossed it back to Strus, who scored four 3-pointers in a 67-second run to keep Cleveland in the game. After dribbling for a while, Strus shot from way beyond mid-court. The Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse crowd went wild as teammates tackled Strus as it swished through the net.

The Atlanta Hawks defeated the Utah Jazz 124-97, never trailing after scoring the opening 12 points behind Jalen Johnson’s 22 points and 13 rebounds. After All-Star point guard Trae Young missed at least four weeks of action due to a ruptured ligament in his left pinky finger, the Hawks have won two straight games. Now that he is handling the ball more frequently, Dejounte Murray scored 17 points and dished out 11 assists. With 22 points, Utah was led by Collin Sexton. In his debut in Atlanta following his trade to the Jazz in 2023, John Collins managed just five points.

In the half, Anthony Edwards returned from a near-injury scare to score 34 points, and the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the San Antonio Spurs 114-105 in the absence of All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns. Towns had a personal reason for missing the game. Towns honored a high school teammate on Instagram earlier in the day. Prior to the game, Chris Finch, the coach of Minnesota, expressed his hope that Towns would miss just one game. In his most recent game against fellow Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, who scored 17 points and pulled down 13 rebounds, Rudy Gobert, who had been out due to a sprain to his left ankle, contributed 13 points and 17 rebounds for the Timberwolves.

With 24 points from Giannis Antetokounmpo, 23 from Damian Lillard, and 21 from Bobby Portis, the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Charlotte Hornets 123–85 to record their most decisive win of the year. Despite Charlotte scoring the fewest points any team had scored in a half this season, Milwaukee led 58–26 at the half. The 25 points the Bucks gave up in their 94-81 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on March 3, 1972, was the lowest point total the team has ever allowed in the first half of a game. For the Hornets, Miles Bridges scored 17 points.

With 26 points by Cade Cunningham, the Detroit Pistons defeated the Chicago Bulls 105-95 to snap a six-game losing run. The Pistons, who have the worst record in the NBA, overcame a tough defeat at New York City the night before to win just their ninth game of the year, despite strong performances from Nikola Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan, and Andre Drummond of Chicago. In the fourth quarter, Detroit extended a one-point lead to 101-90 with a 12-2 run. With 17 points from Simone Fontecchio and 15 from Jaden Ivey, the Pistons defeated the Bulls for just the second time in their previous 18 meetings. Vucevic finished with 10 rebounds and 25 points. DeRozan finished with 25 points. Drummond chipped up with 11 rebounds and 20 points.

The Miami Heat won their fifth straight game on Tuesday night, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers 106-96 behind the 22 points and nine assists of Jimmy Butler and 19 points from Terry Rozier. Rozier, who was playing in his first game since suffering a knee injury on February 11 against Boston, was one of three players who made a comeback for Miami. Following a one-game ban for their participation in an on-court fight in New Orleans on February 23, Butler and Nikola Jovic both returned to the court. The Blazers had a 15-point lead thanks to Anfernee Simons’ 26 points. For his 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, Jerami Grant was efficient.

The Oklahoma City Thunder won their sixth straight game, defeating the Houston Rockets 112-95 behind 31 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder kept Houston to 38.9% shooting thanks to the 24 points and 13 rebounds of Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. Minnesota and Oklahoma City are tied for the top record in the Western Conference. For the Rockets, Jabari Smith Jr. scored 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Alperen Sengun finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Two nights prior, Houston had also been defeated by the Thunder.

NHL

In his injury return, Matthew Tkachuk not only assisted but also scored a goal as the Florida Panthers defeated the Buffalo Sabres 3-2. With 4:24 remaining in the first quarter, Tkachuk gave Florida a 2-1 lead on a power play goal. The squad never let it go as they won for the eighth time in nine games and moved into a tie for first place in the Eastern Conference with the Boston Bruins, who are currently idle. Each team has eighty-two points. For Florida, Brandon Montour scored once and had two assists. The Sabres, winners of three straight, were led in scoring by Dylan Cozens and Tage Thompson.

The New Jersey Devils defeated the San Jose Sharks 7-2 thanks to goals and two assists from Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes. After falling behind 1-0, New Jersey rallied for seven goals in a row to move to 16-10-2 away from home. After dropping three straight games, the Devils are now five points outside of a postseason berth. Dawson Mercer, Brendan Smith, Colin Miller, Jesper Bratt, and Kevin Bahl all scored for New Jersey. Timo Meier returned to San Jose with two assists. The Sharks’ goals came from Justin Bailey and Nico Sturm.