De’Aaron Fox scored 29 points, and the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder for their third win over the defending NBA champs in the past two weeks.
The Spurs also defeated the Thunder in an NBA Cup semi-final on 13 December and in San Antonio on Tuesday. The teams meet again on 13 January in Oklahoma City.
Victor Wembanyama had 19 points and 11 rebounds and Stephon Castle had 19 points and seven assists for the Spurs (23-7). San Antonio shot 53.6% from the field and held the Thunder to 38.9% shooting.
It was San Antonio’s eighth straight win and Oklahoma City’s first home loss of the season. The Thunder entered the day at the top of the Western Conference standings, with the Spurs in second.
Minnesota Timberwolves 138-142 Denver Nuggets (OT)
Nikola Jokić recorded a 56-point triple-double and set an NBA record with 18 points in overtime, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 142-138 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night.
Jokić broke Stephen Curry’s record of 17 overtime points from 2016, making it the highest by any player in regular season or NBA playoffs.
Jokić added 16 rebounds and 15 assists and Jamal Murray scored 35 points as the Nuggets improved to 3-0 this season against the Wolves, who got 44 points from Anthony Edwards, only to see him get ejected in the extra period for arguing foul calls.
The Nuggets won despite being down three starters, including Cameron Johnson, who injured his right knee at Dallas on Tuesday night.
Edwards made good on his prediction for a big Christmas night performance, leading Minnesota back from a 15-point deficit in the final five and a half minutes of regulation and hitting a twisting three-pointer with 1.1 seconds left in regulation to tie it at 126-all.
Cleveland Cavaliers 124-126 New York Knicks
Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, reserve Jordan Clarkson had 25 and the New York Knicks came from 17 down in the fourth quarter to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-124 on Thursday and win on Christmas Day for the third straight year.
Reserves Tyler Kolek and Mitchell Robinson sparked the comeback after the Cavaliers led 103-86 early in the final period. Kolek had 16 points and nine assists, and had fans chanting his name after a late block on Donovan Mitchell that originally was called a foul but was overturned on review. Robinson hustled after offensive rebounds to keep possessions alive and finished with 13 boards.
Brunson made the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:05 remaining, after he, Kolek and Clarkson all hit from behind the arc in a 13-2 run that cut Cleveland’s 12-point lead to 111-110.
Mitchell had 34 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Darius Garland added 20 points and 10 assists, but the Cavaliers blew their chance at a third straight win.
Dallas Mavericks 116-126 Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry scored 23 points and knocked down a key three-pointer with 3:45 left to help seal it, Jimmy Butler added 14 points, nine assists and nine rebounds, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Dallas Mavericks 126-116 on Thursday.
Mavericks rookie star Cooper Flagg had 27 points on 13-for-21 shooting, six rebounds and five assists in his Christmas Day debut while Brandon Williams scored 26 off the bench.
Klay Thompson returned to face his former Warriors team in the holiday matinee after missing Tuesday’s home game against the Nuggets with soreness in his left knee.
And former Splash Brother Curry kept sneaking a peak of Thompson’s warmup before they met at midcourt for a greeting and embrace. Thompson received a warm ovation when he entered the game for the first time with 5:51 remaining in the opening quarter.
Mavericks center Anthony Davis didn’t return after exiting in the second quarter with groin spasms. Davis had three points, three rebounds and two blocked shots in 11 minutes.
Houston Rockets 96-119 LA Lakers
Amen Thompson scored 26 points to lead six players in double figures and the Houston Rockets never trailed in beating Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers 119-96 on Thursday night.
Kevin Durant added 25 points and nine assists for the Rockets, who ended a two-game skid while improving to 7-7 on the road. Thompson had seven rebounds and five assists.
Doncic scored 25 points and LeBron James added 18 points for the Lakers, who fell to 25-27 in their 27th consecutive appearance on Christmas and 52nd overall in a tradition that began in 1949. They’ve dropped three in a row overall.
Doncic and James were a combined 4 of 11 from three-point range. They also combined for nine of the Lakers’ 16 turnovers. Doncic returned after missing a loss at Phoenix after injuring his left leg in a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers last weekend.
James and Durant squared off in the highest-scoring matchup in NBA history. No two opposing players ever entered a game with more combined career points.
