We Speak NBA
VanVleet Heats Up for 24 as Unbeaten Rockets Blast Bucks 132-100
Fred VanVleet scored a season-high 24 points and the Houston Rockets routed the Milwaukee Bucks 132-100 on Wednesday night to stay perfect at 5-0, the best record in the NBA.
It was VanVleet’s finest scoring performance since returning from a torn ACL. He had just three points until a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the first half, then took over the game in the third quarter, scoring 15 consecutive Houston points at one stretch to push back Milwaukee’s only real push. He finished with six rebounds and five assists, shooting 7 of 14 from the field and a perfect 6 of 6 at the line.
Amen Thompson set the early tone with 11 first-quarter points and fueled a 15-2 run bridging the first two quarters as Houston seized control. The Bucks missed 17 of their first 20 shots in the second quarter, and VanVleet’s late 3-pointer sent Houston to halftime with a 57-35 lead.
Kevin Durant scored 18 points with five rebounds, four assists and three blocks, Jabari Smith Jr. added 14 points, Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 16 off the bench, and Clint Capela contributed 10 points and eight rebounds. The Rockets shot 54.7 percent and made 17 of 38 3-pointers despite playing without Alperen Sengun (back) and Marcus Smart (elbow).
Tyler Herro led Milwaukee with 23 points and four 3-pointers, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 19 points. The Bucks’ other three starters — Myles Turner, Kyle Kuzma and Ryan Rollins — combined for just 12 points on 6-of-27 shooting.
Milwaukee fell to 1-4 with the 32-point home defeat.
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Quentin Grimes scored 23 points and Collin Sexton added 21 off the bench as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the LA Clippers 103-87 on Wednesday night at Intuit Dome, winning without Luka Doncic on the second night of a back-to-back.
Doncic was held out with back tightness after scoring 41 points in Tuesday’s loss to Portland, and Ziaire Williams also sat out. The Lakers answered with defense, forcing 24 Clippers turnovers and scoring 31 points off them, while collecting 15 steals and 17 offensive rebounds to overcome their own 21 turnovers.
The Lakers led 25-22 after a low-scoring first quarter, then broke the game open before halftime. They closed the half on a 27-7 run to lead 56-38 at the break, outscoring the Clippers 31-16 in the second quarter.
The Clippers cut the lead to single digits early in the third, but the Lakers answered with a 10-0 run, and Sexton scored 11 straight points late in the period to push the lead to 19. Los Angeles took an 85-66 lead into the fourth and never let the Clippers back within reach, even through a four-minute scoring drought late.
Austin Reaves finished with 16 points and six rebounds, Matisse Thybulle added 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting, Sandro Mamukelashvili had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Walker Kessler contributed 11 points and nine rebounds for the Lakers, who improved to 4-1.
Keaton Wagler led the Clippers with 21 points. Derrick Jones Jr. scored 15 points and Darius Garland added 14 points and five assists for the Clippers, who fell to 1-3.
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