Lakers rout short-handed Warriors 129-101
By Canadian Press on February 28, 2026.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Luka Doncic had 26 points, eight assists and six rebounds, LeBron James added 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers ran away from the short-handed Golden State Warriors for a 129-101 win Saturday night.
The Warriors struggled to produce enough offensive power as Stephen Curry missed his 10th straight game for Golden State still nursing a right knee injury and newly acquired center Kristaps Porzingis sat out with an illness.
Gui Santos scored 14 points to lead the Warriors in his fifth straight double-digit game and 12th in the last 13 — and this one came after he received a multi-year contract extension earlier in the day.
Gary Payton II contributed 12 points for Golden State, his seventh game out of the last nine in double digits.
James went 7 for 13 from the floor with four 3-pointers after he shot around with 11-year-old daughter Zhuri before the game after completing his own warmup in a sweet moment.
The Lakers snapped a three-game losing streak overall and a three-game skid on the road with just their third win in the last eight — and also third in eight on the road against the Pacific Division this season.
Austin Reaves scored 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting for Los Angeles, Luke Kennard had 16 points with four 3s off the bench and Deandre Ayton grabbed 10 rebounds.
HORNETS 109, TRAIL BLAZERS 93
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Brandon Miller had 26 points and eight rebounds, and the Charlotte Hornets beat the Portland Trail Blazers for their fourth consecutive victory.
Miller made six 3-pointers and the Hornets finished 16 for 42 behind the arc after totaling 72 in the previous three victories, equaling the NBA record for most in a three-game span.
Coby White added 20 points off the bench and LaMelo Ball had 15 points and eight assists. Moussa Diabate finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds and five assists as Charlotte pulled within a game of .500 at 30-31.
Jrue Holiday scored 25 points and Jerami Grant had 21 for the Trail Blazers, who played without All-Star Deni Avdija for a third straight game because of a back injury.
HEAT 115, ROCKETS 105
MIAMI (AP) — Bam Adebayo had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Pelle Larsson scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and Miami beat Houston.
Tyler Herro scored 18, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 14 and Kel’el Ware had a 13-point, 15-rebound game for the Heat. Andrew Wiggins — who needed eight stitches to close a laceration inside his mouth — had 12 points for Miami.
Kevin Durant finished with 32 points, eight assists and six rebounds for the Rockets, who got 20 points from Amen Thompson and 14 from Reed Sheppard.
Both teams had double-digit leads early; the Rockets ran out to a quick 14-4 edge, the Heat answered with a 37-14 run to take a 41-28 lead. And then things settled down, with the sides staying relatively close the rest of the way.
Neither team had a double-digit lead in the second half until Larsson hit a pair of free throws with 1:52 left for a 113-103 lead.
RAPTORS 134, WIZARDS 125
WASHINGTON (AP) — Immanuel Quickley had 27 points and 11 assists to lift Toronto to a victory over Washington.
Brandon Ingram added 24 points for the Raptors, who rebounded from back-to-back home losses to Western Conference contenders Oklahoma and San Antonio earlier in the week. Toronto is in fifth place in the East, now three games clear of the play-in group.
Will Riley scored 19 points for Washington, which lost its fourth straight game after beating Indiana twice in a row coming out of the All-Star break.
The Wizards remain without newly acquired Anthony Davis (finger) and Trae Young (knee, quad), and 7-footer Alex Sarr (hamstring) didn’t play either. Collin Murray-Boyles (thumb) did not play for Toronto.
Washington led by three in the middle of the third quarter before an 11-2 Toronto run capped by Ingram’s 3-pointer. The Raptors were up 98-92 after three and pushed the lead into double digits early in the fourth.
All five Toronto starters scored at least 18 points. RJ Barrett contributed 21, and Scottie Barnes scored 18 and Jakob Poeltl had 18 with 10 rebounds.
Bilal Coulibaly and Kyshawn George scored 14 points each for the Wizards. Washington shot 16 of 34 from 3-point range, but Toronto countered by going 42 of 63 inside the arc.
_____
The Associated Press
31
-30