Julius Randle had 24 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, Jalen Brunson scored 21 points and the New York Knicks overcame an early 21-point deficit to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 108-97 on Sunday night.
Evan Fournier came off the bench to add 17 points for the Knicks, who were playing a night after an overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
‘It was great,’ Randle said. ‘I think the biggest difference between last night and tonight, where I thought we could have won, was tonight it was our defense.’
Joel Embiid had 31 points for the 76ers, going 18 of 19 from the free throw line, and grabbed 14 rebounds.
Philadelphia had won nine of its previous 10 games. The 76ers also blew a 21-point lead in a 119-109 loss to Orlando on Monday.
New York Knicks Julius Randle (30) shoots for three points against the Philadelphia 76ers
‘It’s never easy,’ Embiid said. ‘A 20-point lead in the NBA, that’s nothing. Any team can come back and that´s what they did tonight.’
Philadelphia went ahead by 21 points in the first quarter, but the Knicks continued to chip away and cut it to 53-51 at halftime.
Randle’s 3-pointer to start the second half put New York ahead 54-53, its first lead since 2-0.
Philadelphia went back up by eight and led 79-76 heading into the fourth quarter.
Tyrese Maxey opened the final quarter with a three-point play, but the Knicks scored the next 10 points and capped a 15-2 run on Fournier´s 3-pointer, giving them a 91-84 lead.
They never trailed again.
‘I thought our second unit came in and struggled,’ 76ers coach Doc Rivers said. ‘This is the second time that has happened. The same thing happened in Orlando. Both times, we were scoring too easy. The second group comes in and thinks this is an offensive game and they didn´t see the reason the first group got the lead was because of defense.’
The 76ers pulled within three, but Randle´s floater made it 102-92 with 2:18 remaining.
Jalen Brunson and Evan Fournier celebrate in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia never got closer than eight the rest of the way.
‘It was a great team win all-around,’ Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. ‘It was great. We digged in the fourth quarter.’
Miles McBride had 14 points and Isaiah Hartenstein tied a season high with 14 rebounds for the Knicks.
De’Anthony Melton and Tobias Harris each had 14 points for the 76ers. James Harden had 12 points and 12 assists.
‘They played harder,’ Rivers added. ‘They got everything. They were the more physical team. They were tougher.’
Randle (30) reacts as his team maintains their lead in the second half against the 76ers
RAPTORS 106, GRIZZLIES 103
Pascal Siakam scored 19 points, including a pair of free throws with nine seconds left, and Toronto rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat Memphis.
Jaren Jackson Jr. missed a 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds left that would have tied the game for the Grizzlies, who played without star Ja Morant because of right wrist soreness.
Toronto won its second straight game and went 4-3 on its season-long seven-game road swing. Memphis has lost three straight and eight of nine.
Chris Boucher scored 17 points and Scottie Barnes had 16 for the Raptors. Desmond Bane led Memphis with 26 points, while Jackson had 18 points and four blocks.
Toronto Raptors Pascal Siakam (43) drives against Memphis Grizzlies David Roddy (27)
TIMBERWOLVES 128, NUGGETS 98
D´Angelo Russell had 18 points and 10 assists, Anthony Edwards scored 20 and Minnesota cruised past Denver, which was missing two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and three other starters on the second night of a back-to-back.
Rudy Gobert had 16 points for the Timberwolves, who never trailed and opened a 20-point advantage in the second quarter on the way to a seventh win in 10 games.
Along with Jokic, the Nuggets played without Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope because of injuries. Michael Porter Jr., the lone regular starter in the lineup, led Denver with 22 points.
D’Angelo Russell (0) celebrates his basket with teammate Anthony Edwards (1) against the Jazz
PELICANS 136, KINGS 104
Trey Murphy III made six 3-pointers and scored 30 points as New Orleans overcame the absence of several starters to beat Sacramento.
CJ McCollum scored 24 points for the Pelicans, who shot 57.1 percent overall and combined to hit 14 of 26 from 3-point range after struggling from deep throughout their recent 10-game losing streak.
Willy Hernangomez had 22 points and 16 rebounds, and Naji Marshall scored 17 points for New Orleans, which was missing Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas.
Malik Monk scored 16 for the Kings, who lost their second straight game without De’Aaron Fox. He is away from the team for unspecified personal reasons.
New Orleans Pelicans Trey Murphy III (25) scores against Sacramento Kings Kevin Huerter (9)
MAGIC 119, HORNETS 113
Paolo Banchero had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Wendell Carter Jr. added 20 points and 12 rebounds and Orlando took advantage of Charlotte’s poor foul shooting.
The Hornets made just one of nine free throws in the fourth quarter while Orlando was going 13 of 15. Charlotte finished 11 of 23 from the line in its fourth straight loss – Orlando wound up 27 of 30 on foul shots.
LaMelo Ball had 26 of his 33 points after halftime for the Hornets.
Markelle Fultz had 16 points and Frank Wagner chipped in with 14 for the Magic, who have won three of four.
Orlando Magic Paolo Banchero (5) brings the ball up court against the Charlotte Hornets
CAVALIERS 122, PACERS 103
Darius Garland scored 24 points, Isaac Okoro added 20 and Cleveland made 15 3-pointers to rout Indiana.
The Cavaliers shot 52.3 percent from the field, including 15 of 37 (40.5 percent) from long range, to complement a top-ranked defense that held Indiana to 43.5 percent shooting.
Jarrett Allen contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds, Evan Mobley had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Donovan Mitchell added 19 points and six assists for the Cavs.
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Myles Turner had 27 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, which has lost 12 of 14. All-Star Tyrese Haliburton finished with 15 points and 11 assists.
Cleveland Cavaliers Darius Garland (10) drives in front of Indiana Pacers guard Buddy Hield (24
