Sports
NBA roundup: Pacers overcome monster game by Nikola Jokic
Apr 6, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) defends on Denver Nuggets guard Christian Braun (0) in the second half at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images Myles Turner had 24 points, Obi Toppin added 22 and the Indiana Pacers withstood another massive Nikola Jokic triple-double to beat the host Denver Nuggets 125-120 on Sunday.
Andrew Nembhard had 19 points and six assists for the Pacers, who picked up their fourth straight win to stay in the top four of the Eastern Conference. Aaron Nesmith contributed 17 points and six rebounds.
Jokic totaled 41 points, 15 boards and 13 assists for Denver, his third triple-double in five games and 32nd of the season. Christian Braun scored 20 of his 30 points in the second half for the Nuggets, who lost their fourth straight.
Indiana built an eight-point lead in the fourth quarter before Denver whittled it to 122-120 with 43.1 seconds left. The Pacers, though, forced a turnover with 15.1 seconds to go and hit their free throws down the stretch to record the win.
Rockets 106, Warriors 96
Dillon Brooks went for a game-high 24 points, Amen Thompson spearheaded a suffocating defense that held Stephen Curry to three points, and Houston neared clinching the No. 2 seed in the West by beating Golden State in San Francisco.
Alperen Sengun had 19 points and 14 rebounds, and Northern California native Jalen Green poured in 21 points for the Rockets, who can finish no worse than tied for second in the conference.
The Warriors, meanwhile, saw a five-game winning streak come to an end. They fell into a four-way tie for fifth place in the West, a half-game behind the fourth-place Denver Nuggets with four games remaining. Buddy Hield paced Golden State with 20 points.
Bulls 131, Hornets 117
Coby White was 6-of-8 shooting from 3-point range en route to 37 points as Chicago picked up its third straight win with a road victory over Charlotte.
White finished 12-for-16 from the field while Josh Giddey chipped in with 23 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Nikola Vucevic added 16 points and 11 boards for the Bulls.
Mark Williams totaled 22 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets, who dropped their eighth game in their last nine. KJ Simpson had 18 points and seven assists for Charlotte, and Jusuf Nurkic came off the bench for 18 points.
Raptors 120, Nets 109
Jonathan Mogbo led eight Toronto players in double figures by tying a career-high 17 points to go with 11 rebounds and seven assists in beating host Brooklyn for its fifth win in eight games.
Ochai Agabji had 15 points for Toronto, RJ Barrett and AJ Lawson added 13 apiece, while Cole Swider and Jamison Battle finished with 12 each.
Reece Beekman finished with 14 points to lead the Nets, who dropped their 19th in 24 games, while Trendon Watford, Drew Timme, Keon Johnson, Dariq Whitehead and Maxwell Lewis all finished with 13 points.
Lakers 126, Thunder 99
Luka Doncic scored 30 points to lead Los Angeles to a road win over Oklahoma City.
The Lakers finished with a season-high 22 3-pointers on 40 attempts (55 percent). Austin Reaves had 20 points; he and Doncic were two of four Los Angeles players with four or more 3-pointers.
The Thunder have dropped back-to-back games for the second time this season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 26 points, extending his streak of scoring 20 or more points to 71 games.
Hawks 147, Jazz 134
Onyeka Okongwu posted 27 points and 12 rebounds to lead Atlanta over visiting Utah and end a three-game losing streak.
Trae Young added 23 points and 15 assists for the Hawks, while Caris LeVert chipped in with 21 points. Atlanta led by 17 at the half.
Keyonte George netted a career-high 35 points off the bench for the Jazz, and Collin Sexton finished with 27 points and six assists.
Celtics 124, Wizards 90
Payton Pritchard, who finished with 20 points, helped Boston add to its record-setting total of made 3-pointers in the home win over Washington.
Derrick White had 19 points for Boston, which was 24-of-52 shooting from long range two days after setting the league’s single-season mark for made 3-pointers in a season. Sam Hauser added 18 points off the bench, and Jaylen Brown scored 15.
Alex Sarr tallied 16 points to lead Washington, while Justin Champagnie chipped in with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
Trail Blazers 120, Spurs 109
Toumani Camara poured in 23 points and took 10 rebounds as host Portland did just enough to beat San Antonio.
However, both the Blazers and Spurs were officially eliminated from playoff contention following the Sacramento Kings’ win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Shaedon Sharpe added 21 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists for Portland. Stephon Castle led San Antonio with 22 points, and Devin Vassell scored 21.
Knicks 112, Suns 98
OG Anunoby continued the surge he began during Jalen Brunson’s absence, and Brunson returned to New York’s lineup by scoring 32 points in a win over visiting Phoenix.
Anunoby is averaging 23.8 points per game while shooting 49.4 percent from the field — including 41.8 percent on 3-pointers — over the last 16 games. Brunson finished with 15 points and six assists in his first game since March 6.
Devin Booker scored 40 points for the skidding Suns, whose play-in hopes dimmed further with their sixth straight loss. Phoenix is 2 1/2 games behind the 10th-place Dallas Mavericks.
Bucks 111, Pelicans 107
Playing without a resting Giannis Antetokoumpo, Milwaukee rode 29 points from Gary Trent Jr. and double-doubles from Brook Lopez and Ryan Rollins to a road win against New Orleans.
Lopez totaled 20 points and 12 rebounds to go with four blocks for the Bucks, while Rollins finished with 14 points and 10 assists. Kevin Porter Jr. added 20 points and Kyle Kuzma scored 17 for Milwaukee, which won its fourth straight.
Antonio Reeves paced the Pelicans with 23 points and Yves Missi chipped in with 18 points and 12 boards. Lester Quinones scored 17 points and Bruce Brown had 16 for New Orleans, which lost its third straight.
Kings 120, Cavaliers 113
Zach LaVine made seven 3-pointers, including three in the fourth quarter, to finish with a game-high 37 points as visiting Sacramento pushed past Cleveland.
The win sent the Kings to the ninth seed in the Western Conference, a half-game ahead of the Mavericks, and also denied the Cavaliers the opportunity to clinch the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Sacramento won both games over the Cavaliers this season.
DeMar DeRozan had 28 points and seven assists for the Kings, while Domantas Sabonis added 27 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Ty Jerome paced Cleveland with 20 points off the bench, and Donovan Mitchell had 19 points, six boards and six assists.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Stars run win streak to 8 with OT defeat of Predators
Feb 28, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger (29) stops a shot by Nashville Predators right wing Jonathan Marchessault (81) during the first period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Jason Robertson’s goal 1:47 into overtime capped a comeback and gave the host Dallas Stars a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
Wyatt Johnston had a goal and an assist and Nathan Bastian also scored for the Stars, who trailed 2-0 with less than four minutes left in the second period. Jake Oettinger stopped 25 shots.
It was Dallas’ eighth win in a row.
Michael Bunting and Steven Stamkos scored the goals for the Predators, who are 1-1-2 in their last four. Luke Evangelista had two assists and Juuse Saros made 22 saves.
Robertson converted a cross-crease pass from defenseman Miro Heiskanen for the OT winner.
Bastian tied the game at 2 5:31 into the third period. He controlled and deposited the rebound of a shot by defenseman Thomas Harley.
Johnston’s power-play goal with 3:42 remaining in the second period put Dallas on the board and made it 2-1. He put in a cross-crease pass from Jamie Benn. It was Johnston’s 20th power-play marker of the season. He has 32 goals overall.
The Predators took a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals 1:09 apart.
Bunting opened the scoring with a power-play goal with 5:34 left in the opening period when he whipped in a shot from the left circle.
Stamkos started the rush on his goal by stealing the puck from Benn along the boards just outside the Dallas blue line. After taking a pass from Evangelista, Stamkos fired in his 30th goal from the inside edge of the right circle with 4:25 remaining in the first. It’s the 10th time in his career that Stamkos has reached the 30-goal mark.
Saros made a spectacular save on Johnston with a little less than nine minutes left in the opening period. Johnston took a pass cutting in off the right wing and skated across the top of the crease. But Saros used his right pad and stick to deny Johnston’s shot.
Nashville defenseman Adam Wilsby left early in the second period with a lower-body injury.
The Stars’ Roope Hintz missed his second consecutive game due to an illness.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Crew earn draw vs. Sporting KC on late goal
Feb 28, 2026; Kansas City, Kansas, USA; Sporting Kansas City forward Shapi Suleymanov (93) controls the ball during the first half against the Columbus Crew at Children’s Mercy Park. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images Diego Rossi scored in the 82nd minute Saturday night, allowing the visiting Columbus Crew to salvage a 2-2 draw with Sporting Kansas City.
Rossi took advantage of a failed clearance by defender Wyatt Meyer, who tried to head a crossing pass out of danger but instead deflected the ball right to Rossi. Given time to settle the ball and fire, Rossi wired a dart by goalie John Pulskamp and into the left corner for his second goal in as many matches.
Wassou Abou Ali also tallied for the second straight game for the Crew (0-1-1, 1 point). Dejan Joveljic registered a brace for Kansas City (0-1-1, 1 point), giving it a 2-1 lead in the 72nd minute when he gathered in a loose ball in the box and threaded a shot through a defender’s legs that rolled into the left corner.
Joveljic brought his team level in the 48th minute, finishing a beautiful counterattack. Jacob Davis fed him directly in front of the net and Joveljic toed a shot that goalie Patrick Schulte (two saves) had no chance to stop.
After a slow start, Columbus finished the match with slight advantages of 10-8 in shots and 5-4 in shots on frame. The Crew possessed the ball 52.5% of the time and attempted 16 crosses, 11 more than Kansas City.
Both teams opened the season last weekend with road losses. Columbus gave up a late goal to fall 3-2 against Portland and Kansas City experienced a lapse just before halftime, giving up two quick goals in a 3-0 defeat against San Jose.
Kansas City had the run of play for most of the first half-hour before Pulskamp made a shocking mistake in the 33rd minute. He tried to play the ball off the ground and offered up a nonchalant pass that Abou Ali was able to intercept, giving him an easy right-footed kick into an open net.
That play aside, Pulskamp (three saves) might have been the difference in enabling Kansas City to at least earn a draw. Columbus generated enough quality chances to log 3 1/2 expected goals, according to the league’s statistical service.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Henri Veesaar, No. 18 North Carolina hold off Virginia Tech
Feb 28, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) and Virginia Tech Hokies forward Amani Hansberry (13) fight for the ball in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images Henri Veesaar matched his career high with 26 points as No. 18 North Carolina pulled away from Virginia Tech in the second half for an 89-82 victory on Saturday night in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Seth Trimble put up 20 points as the Tar Heels (23-6, 11-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) won for the fourth time in their last five games without top scorer and rebounder Caleb Wilson, a star freshman who is out with a broken left hand.
Reserves Jonathan Powell and Zayden High added 15 and 12 points, respectively, as the North Carolina bench outscored its counterparts from Virginia Tech 32-13.
The Tar Heels shot 55.8% from the floor (29 of 52) as they remained perfect at home, marking the first season they’ve won their first 17 home games since the Dean E. Smith Center opened 40 years ago.
Veesaar also pulled down seven rebounds to help North Carolina to a 34-22 edge on the boards and an 11-2 margin on second-chance points.
Neo Avdalas supplied 19 points and five assists for Virginia Tech (18-11, 7-9), which came up short of gaining its third Quad 1 victory in its pursuit of a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Tobi Lawal and Ben Hammond scored 16 points apiece and Amani Hansberry provided 11 points in 19 minutes before fouling out for the Hokies, who have not won at North Carolina since 2007.
After a 3-pointer by Virginia Tech’s Jaden Schutt tied it 57-57 with 13:51 left, North Carolina took the lead for good with a seven-point run.
Veesaar triggered it with a two-handed slam off an alley-oop feed from Powell, who followed with a 3-pointer. Trimble finished off the burst, spinning free off his dribble for a driving layup that made it 64-57.
A 3-pointer by Veesaar with 6:22 left gave North Carolina a 76-65 lead, which matched its largest of the game.
In the first half, the teams traded nine-point runs and finished a fast-paced period tied 44-44.
The Tar Heels’ run came midway through the half and was fueled by reserves including Kyan Evans, who drilled a 3-pointer to cap the burst and give North Carolina a 21-16 lead.
Powell later made a triple to give the Tar Heels the biggest lead of the half at 30-22.
But the Hokies answered with a 9-0 spurt triggered by a 3-pointer from Schutt.
–Field Level Media
Stars run win streak to 8 with OT defeat of Predators
Crew earn draw vs. Sporting KC on late goal
