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Nightly Pulse: NBA news & highlights from Jan. 14

Catch up on all the NBA news, scores and highlights from tonight's action with our Nightly Pulse live blog.

NBA.com Staff

🏀Tuesday’s slate of games🏀

  • Thunder 118, 76ers 102 (Final)
  • Cavaliers 127, Pacers 117 (Final)
  • Suns 117, Hawks 122 (Final)
  • Kings 115, Bucks 130 (Final)
  • Pelicans 119, Bulls 113 (Final)
  • Nuggets 118, Mavericks 99 (Final)
  • Nets 132, Trail Blazers 114 (Final)

📝Final notes📝

  1. The Cavaliers returned to earning W’s, beating the Pacers 127-117. The victory ends Indiana’s six-game win streak and avenges Cleveland’s loss to them on Sunday. The win puts Donovan Mitchell and Co. back on the right track to set the stage for a showdown Thursday against the West-leading Thunder. 
  2. The Kings’ win streak ends at seven. They were bombarded by Milwaukee buckets in the first quarter, giving up 47 points, before ultimately losing 130-115. Giannis Antetokounmpo picked up his 50th career triple-double in the game, becoming just the 12th player to reach that number in the history of the NBA. 
  3. NBA stars shined tonight, with nine players going north of 30 points on the evening. Donovan Mitchell (35), Giannis Antetokounmpo (33), Trey Murphy III (32), Shai Gilegous-Alexander (32), Trae Young (43), Kevin Durant (31), Devin Booker (35), Jamal Murray (45), and Scoot Henderson (39) all accomplished the feat. 

🌟🌟Top performers🌟🌟

  • Giannis Antetokounmpo: 33 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists. 
  • Trae Young: 43 points, five assists, and three steals. 
  • Scoot Henderson: 39 points (13-18 FG), four rebounds, and six assists. 
  • Donovan Mitchell: 35 points, nine rebounds, three assists. 
  • Jamal Murray: 45 points (18-26 FG), six assists, and two steals.

🗑️Nets end skid🗑️

Brooklyn came into this evening losers of five straight, but they got back into the win column with a 132-114 win over the Trail Blazers.

The Nets had three scorers go over 20 points, with Cameron Johnson’s 24 leading the way. Noah Clowney and Keon Johnson were also part of the club, scoring 20 each.

Portland got a superb performance from Scoot Henderson, who shot 8-10 from three and scored 39 points, but ultimately it wasn’t enough to help them earn a win.

⛰️Denver mounts W⛰️

The Nuggets rolled, defeating the Mavericks for a second straight time, 118-99.

Denver has now won four games in a row, bringing its record to 24-15, as it closes in on the Grizzlies and Rockets in the West.

Murray was massive, scoring 32 points in the first half and finishing with 45. Jokić finished with a triple-double, scoring 10 points, tacking on 10 assists, and 13 rebounds.

🏹40 and still going🏹

Jamal Murray is relentless with the offense this evening and is now up to 45 points on 18-26 shooting, including 5-9 from long distance.

The Nuggets currently hold a commanding 109-88 lead over the Mavericks with just a few minutes remaining in the game.

🛴Scoot on a mission🛴

Henderson is still cooking, heading to halftime with 25 points and four assists, including this lob to set up Deandre Ayton for his first bucket of the night.

Portland trails the Nets, 66-61 at the half though. Brooklyn has received 12 points a piece from Keon Johnson and Jalen Wilson and has also got 11 from Cameron Johnson, who is returning from injury.

📜Jokić making history   📜

Nikola Jokić earlier tonight became the fastest player to reach 15K+ PTS, 7,500+ REB, and 5K+ AST and later became the first center to reach 5,000 assists since Kareem-Abdul Jabbar. 

Not to mention, the Denver big man has already recorded another triple-double, scoring 10 points, and tacking on 10 assists, and 13 rebounds.

The Nuggets have a sizable lead, 91-62 on the Mavericks in the final couple of minutes of the third quarter.

🔥Scoot🔥

Scoot Henderson is on a tear for Portland, scoring 17 points in the first quarter on 6-6 shooting.

However, it’s the Nets who put up a 40-piece in the game’s initial frame, and lead 40-30.

🪽Pelicans fly🪽

New Orleans controlled the second half, beating Chicago 119-113.

Williamson was a force throughout, scoring 21 points and adding seven rebounds, and nine assists. Trey Murphy III struggled from distance, but still finished with 32 points, shooting 12-12 from the charity stripe, and 7-7 inside the arch.

LaVine started slow, and his six straight games of 30-plus points came to an end, but he still finished with 25 points to lead all Bulls scorers.

Denver, Lob City?

Russell Westbrook and DeAndre Jordan connect twice on alley-oops, with the second one more impressive than the first.

The Nuggets have built a 58-39 lead over the Mavericks late in the second quarter. Murray is up to 25 points on 10-12 shooting.

Irving has nine for Dallas in his return to play from a back injury, but his team is going to need more offense to get back in this game in the second half.

🦌Bucks beat Kings👑

Milwaukee outscored the Kings, 47-26 in the opening quarter and never looked back, earning a 130-115 win.

Giannis played to a triple-double, putting up a 33-point, 11 rebounds, and 13 assist line. Lillard was hot early in the first quarter, then capped the game with a pair of triples, finishing with 24 points, five rebounds, and seven assists. Brook Lopez also went north of 20 points, pouring in 21.

The Kings seven-game win streak comes to an end with the loss, but they still received strong offensive performances from De’Aaron Fox (20 points, 11 rebounds, six assists) and DeMar DeRozan (28 points, six rebounds, and four assists).

🔥Hot start in Denver🔥

The Nuggets have jumped out to a 36-21 lead over the Mavericks after a quarter of play. A large part of that has been the play of Jamal Murray, who has already totaled 19 points on 7-9 shooting.

🦅Hawks soar🦅

Trae Young was on one tonight, putting up 43 points on 6-12 long-range shooting, guiding the Hawks to a 122-117 win over the Suns.

Onyeka Okongwu was massive off the bench for Atlanta, scoring 22 points and yanking down 21 rebounds in 27 minutes.

The Suns’ star duo of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant were keeping pace with Young for most of the night, scoring 35 and 31 respectively, but ultimately Phoenix fell short in their first game of a five-game road trip.

🔨Authoritative finish🔨

Garland finds Mobley, who then lobs it up for Allen who finishes it as the Cavaliers pull away to a 127-117 win over the Pacers.

Cleveland’s stars came to shine, with Donovan Mitchell leading the quartet with 35 points. Darius Garland finished with 24 and chipped in seven dimes, while Mobley tallied a double-double, scoring 22 and cleaning the glass 13 times, and Jarrett Allen totaled 16 points and nine rebounds.

Indiana had seven players reach double figures amid the absence of Tyrese Haliburton (hamstring). Siakam paced the squad with 23, but ultimately Cleveland’s firepower, after being held under 100 points in their previous meeting, was too much tonight.

🌩️Thunder strike🌩️

The Thunder took down the 76ers, 118-102.

Without Embiid, George, or Maxey, it was going to be an uphill fight for the 76ers. They trailed most of the night, getting as close as six points to start the fourth before the Thunder went on another run.

Gilgeous-Alexander was efficient, scoring 32 points on 12-15 shooting, and also dishing out 9 assists. Jalen Williams also filled up the stat sheet, scoring 24, pulling down four rebounds, earning six assists, to go with three steals and a block.

Justin Edwards was Philadelphia’s leading scorer, pouring in 25 points.

🎪Welcome to the circus🎪

Everything is going right for Milwaukee, who has a 75-54 lead over the Kings at the break, including this circus shot from Ryan Rollins below.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a huge first half, scoring 19 on 81-2 shooting, with six boards, and five dimes.

🪄✨Gets fancy🪄✨

Nembhard fakes a kick out to Siakam on the perimeter, stays moving toward the lane, and finds Turner for the easy lay-in.

The Cavaliers have found their groove in the second half, currently outscoring the Pacers 38-28 in the third frame as it nears its end. They now hold a 100-89 lead over the Pacers.

Mitchell has pushed his scoring output to 33.

😤Zion😤

Jose Alvarado misses a three, but Zion Williamson is there to clean it up with a strong putback for two of his 11 points.

The Bulls and Pelicans have hit the midpoint of the second quarter, with Chicago holding a 46-44 lead.

Zach LaVine, who came into tonight with six straight 30-plus point games is stuck on zero, but Nikola Vučević has picked up the slack, leading the Bulls with 13 points. 

🦌Fear the deer🦌

Damian Lillard is on fire to start, scoring 10 quick points on 3-4 long-range shooting, including this four-point play.

Milwaukee has gone on a 14-2 run and has opened a 34-17 lead on the Kings late in the quarter.

Thunder roaring🔊

Oklahoma City holds a 15-point lead at the half over the 76ers, 58-43.

Gilgeous-Alexander has been the centerpiece of the Thunders early success this evening, scoring 19 points on a perfect 8-8 shooting. The Kia MVP candidate also has two rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block.

Justin Edwards has scored 11 off the bench to lead Philadelphia.

🏃🏾‍♂️‍➡️On the run🏃🏾‍♂️‍➡️

Mathurin gets the steal, feeds T.J. McConnell who leads the break then drops it off for Mathurin to finish with the flush.

The Pacers have caught back up with a 31-25 second-quarter performance to cut the Cavaliers lead to one, 62-61 at the break.

Mitchell’s scoring barrage has slowed down slightly, but he’s still sitting on a robust 27 first-half points on 10-13 shooting to lead all scorers. Siakam is treading closely though, with 21 on 9-11 shooting, and he also has five rebounds.

This game is set for a do-not-miss second half and can be seen on either TNT, Tru TV or stream it on MAX.

⏰Just in time⏰

Bogdan Bogdanović beats the clock to nail a tough three before the end of the first quarter to give Atlanta a 33-31 lead over the Suns. 

Trae Young leads all scorers with 13 points, including two triples from near the logo.

🏋🏽‍♂️Strong finishes🏋🏽‍♂️

More highlights from a tightly contested battle in Indiana:

First Mitchell finishes the difficult shot as he falls to the floor, earning an and-1, then Myles Turner gets found by Ben Sheppard on the cut and detonates at the rim for a massive throwdown.

The Cavaliers have opened up a 10-point lead, 54-44 with a few minutes remaining in the first half.

👍Well Dunn👍

Ryan Dunn takes flight and finishes the Tyus Jones lob on the break for two of his seven points.

The Hawks though have a 18-12 lead early, as Trae Young has already connected on a pair of threes and leads all scorers with 10 points.

🕸️Weaving his web🕸️

Donovan “Spida” Mitchell has poured in 19 points on 7-9 shooting, including 3-4 from three after a quarter of play in Indiana. His performance has pushed Cleveland out to a 37-30 lead, as they work to start a new win streak after the Pacers snapped their previous one of 12 games Sunday.

🔵⚪️🔴Yabu coming through🔵⚪️🔴

Yabusele takes the lane and slams it home for two of his five points, which leads all 76ers scorers.

As probably expected, without George, Embiid, or Maxey, Philadelphia is struggling early, trailing the Thunder 29-11 late in the first. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has yet to miss, shooting 4-4 for 9 points, and he also already has three assists, a block, and a steal.

💪Dunk fest early💪

A trio of dunks opens the action between the Pacers and Cavaliers.

First, on the opening possession, Darius Garland finds Jarrett Allen with a lob, then Bennedict Mathurin gets the Pacers on the board with a dunk on the fast break, and lastly, Evan Mobley pump fakes Myles Turner up in the air to clear room for a two-handed finish.

It’s been a high-scoring affair early, with Cleveland holding a 25-22 lead as these squads have just past the midpoint of the first quarter. Donovan Mitchell already has 12 points, while Pascal Siakam has put up 10 for Indiana.

⛹🏽‍♂️Ready to ball⛹🏽‍♂️

Kyrie Irving will return to play tonight after being out of action since Jan. 1 due to a back injury. The Mavericks were 2-3 during his absence, and having their star guard back on the court should be a boost for Dallas when they host the Nuggets at 9:30 ET on TNT, Tru TV, and MAX.

🪑Philadelphia trio sits🪑

Paul George (ankle), Joel Embiid (foot), and Tyrese Maxey (hand) have all been ruled out for tonight’s game.

The 76ers will start Reggie Jackson, Ricky Council IV, Eric Gordon, Kelly Oubre Jr., and Guerschon Yabusele against the 32-6 Thunder.

3️⃣🔑Stories

  1. The Pacers ended the Cavaliers’ 12-game win streak Sunday evening with a dominant second-half performance. The result was a 108-93 victory, and Indiana became the first team this season to hold Cleveland under 100 points. The most impressive factor might be that they did it without Tyrese Haliburton who departed early due to hamstring tightness. The Pacers’ star point guard is considered doubtful tonight, so Indiana will likely need another repeated team effort to defeat Cleveland again and push their win streak to seven games. 
  2. Speaking of streaks, the Kings will enter Milwaukee tonight riding high with seven straight wins and have gotten back over .500 with a 20-19 record. A big part of their recent surge has been improved defensive play, something they’ll likely need to keep on display as they work to contain the Bucks’ star duo, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. 
  3. The Nuggets and Mavericks will square off again after Denver defeated Dallas 112-101 on Sunday. This matchup could feature the return of Kyrie Irving, who hasn’t played since Jan.1 due to a back injury. He is currently listed as questionable, and getting the star guard back would be a major boon for the Mavericks, who are 2-3 since Irving has been absent. 

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