Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Jalen Brunson scored 25 points as the New York Knicks halted San Antonio’s 11-game NBA winning streak with an emphatic 114-89 victory at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs arrived in New York brimming with confidence after going undefeated in February, building their longest winning streak since a 13-0 run in the 2015-16 season. Wembanyama, who had struggled in the Spurs’ last two wins, came out firing, but the French superstar’s 25 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocked shots weren’t enough. Devin Vassell with 18 points and Stephon Castle with 13 were the only other Spurs players to score in double figures. They hit just nine of 34 from three-point range and were harried into their season-high 22 turnovers that the Knicks parlayed into 24 points. Bridges came up big on the defensive end with five steals.
“Good win by our guys,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “(San Antonio) is a really good team. They obviously missed some shots, but I thought our weak side defense was really good. For them to shoot 26, 27% from (three-point range), our activity on the weak side was really good.” San Antonio got off to a quick start and led by as many as 12 in the first quarter, but the Knicks were up by one at the end of the first period and never trailed again, using a 26-2 scoring run spanning the first and second quarters to seize control. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 12 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Knicks, who had six players score in double figures and held the Spurs to their season-low in points.
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– Thunder, Pistons march on –
Second-placed San Antonio’s defeat saw them lose ground in their pursuit of the Oklahoma City Thunder at the top of the Western Conference. Oklahoma City, the reigning NBA champions, improved to 47-15 after a 100-87 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in Texas. The returning Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the OKC scoring with 30 points, edging closer to Wilt Chamberlain’s record for the most consecutive games of 20 points or more. Sunday’s performance was Gilgeous-Alexander’s 123rd consecutive 20-point game, leaving him three adrift of matching Chamberlain’s historic mark of 126 set between 1961 and 1963.
The Minnesota Timberwolves, meanwhile, remain firmly in the playoff hunt after scoring an impressive 117-108 defeat of the Denver Nuggets in Colorado. Minnesota recovered from an 11-point first quarter deficit after a 36-19 second quarter, thanks to 21 points from Anthony Edwards and 20 points from Jaden McDaniels. Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points, which included five three-pointers.
At the top of the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons maintained their grip on the standings with a 106-92 defeat of the Orlando Magic in Florida. An upset looked on the cards after Orlando led throughout the first half to edge into a 57-50 lead at the break. But Detroit outscored Orlando 56-35 in the final two quarters to seal a win which lifts the Pistons to 45-14 in the East. The Pistons have a healthy lead over the second-placed Boston Celtics, who improved to 40-20 on Sunday with a 114-98 defeat of the Philadelphia 76ers.
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