Under-manned Wizards shock Sixers
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Under-manned Wizards shock Sixers
Spencer Dinwiddie delivered a triple-double of 14 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists to power the short-handed Washington Wizards to a 106-103 NBA victory over the 76ers in Philadelphia on Wednesday.
Dinwiddie drove for a layup with 1:33 remaining to break a 98-98 tie, putting the Wizards ahead for good in a game that featured 17 lead changes -- just two of them in the fourth quarter.
Sixers center Joel Embiid warmed up after a slow start, scoring 27 points and pulling down 14 rebounds.
The Wizards, playing without Bradley Beal who is nursing a wrist injury, had 24 points from Kyle Kuzma to snap a six-game losing streak.
Embiid, Philadelphia's Most Valuable Player candidate who averaged 34 points and 10.8 rebounds in January to earn Eastern Conference player of the month honors, came out flat after sitting out Monday's overtime victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
He made just one of six shots in the first quarter, never making it to the free-throw line.
However, he led a 76ers second-quarter rally with driving baskets and pull-up jumpers. His basket early in the third put Philadelphia up 62-61 and he followed with a dunk to stretch the lead.
As Embiid was finding his range, Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris kept the 76ers in the hunt, combining for nine of Philadelphia's 12 baskets in the first quarter.
Maxey finished with 22 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Harris added 18 points, but Philadelphia saw their five-game winning streak end.
It was close in Indianapolis, where Gary Harris scored 22 points, and Wendell Carter Jr. had 19 with 18 rebounds to help the Orlando Magic rally for a 119-118 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers led by 26 points from Caris LeVert, led by as many as 17 points in the third quarter.
Harris scored 10 points in the fourth to fuel Orlando's comeback.
His back-to-back three-pointers knotted the score at 108-108 with 1:50 remaining.
Cole Anthony's steal and two free throws put the Magic ahead.
LeVert tied it up again, but Franz Wagner converted a three-point play to put Orlando ahead for good.
Josh Richardson starred in Boston, draining six three-pointers on the way to 23 points as the Celtics withstood a career-best 38 points from Charlotte's LaMelo Ball in a 113-107 victory over the Hornets.
Jayson Tatum's 19 points for Boston included two crucial late free throws. Marcus Smart added 22 points, and Jaylen Brown chipped in 15 for the Celtics.
- Grizzlies maul Knicks -
The Memphis Grizzlies schooled the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, where Grizzlies star Ja Morant scored 23 points and handed out nine assists in a 120-108 victory.
Morant had his struggles, missing all six of his three-point attempts.
But he lit up the Garden early on when he combined on a break with Ziaire Williams for a high-flying dunk that epitomized the Grizzlies' athleticism that proved too much for the Knicks.
Julius Randle finished with 18 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists for New York, but again fell prey to his emotions.
Randle was ejected late in the fourth quarter after a second technical foul. The first had come with the Knicks down by six when Randle crashed a Grizzlies huddle during a stop in play and got into a shoving match with Memphis guard Desmond Bane.
Both received technical fouls, but Bane responded with a three-pointer on the next possession as the Grizzlies raced away.
Randle was tossed after his second technical with 31.5 seconds left for complaining to officials.
T.M.Kelly--NG
