Popovich matches Nelson with 1,335th career victory

San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, center, talks with Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel, right, and assistant coach David Fizdale, left, after winning an NBA basketball game, Monday, March 7, 2022, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
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SAN ANTONIO — Gregg Popovich tied Don Nelson’s NBA record with his 1,335th career victory as a coach in the San Antonio Spurs’ 117-110 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night.

Popovich, in his 26th season, will try to pass Nelson when San Antonio hosts the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.

The Spurs had lost four straight with Popovich on the precipice of matching the record, and they were in danger of extendign that skid with a late collapse against the struggling Lakers, who were without star LeBron James due to a sore left knee.

Dejounte Murray had 26 points and 10 rebounds, and Jakob Poeltl and Josh Richardson each had 18 points. Richardson was making his first start with San Antonio.

Talen Horton-Taylor had 18 points to lead Los Angeles and Russell Westbrook, Malik Monk and Carmelo Anthony added 17 points each.

NUGGETS 131, WARRIORS 124

DENVER — Nikola Jokic had his second triple-double in two nights with 32 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists, leading Denver over short-handed Golden State.

Jokic has recorded triple-doubles in 11 of his last 23 games, and leads the league with 18 this season. The reigning NBA MVP was coming off a 46-point, 12-rebound and 11-assist game in a 138-130 win over New Orleans on Sunday.

Monte Morris and Jeff Green added 18 points apiece for the Nuggets, who have won 11 of 13 and moved to 13 games over .500 for the first time this season.

The Warriors were playing with a depleted lineup after coach Steve Kerr announced Saturday that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins would miss the game to rest. Andre Iguodala and Gary Payton Jr. also were unavailable due to injuries.

76ERS 121, BULLS 106

PHILADELPHIA — Joel Embiid had 43 points and 14 rebounds, and Philadelphia beat Chicago in a showdown between two of the Eastern Conference’s top teams headed in opposite directions.

James Harden added 16 points and 14 assists, and Tyrese Maxey added 17 points for the 76ers, who have won six of seven and stayed perfect with Harden in the lineup.

Embiid, the league’s leading scorer, made 15 of 27 field goals and 12 of 16 free throws. The MVP front-runner scored at least 40 points for the 10th time this season while upping his season average to 29.7 points per contest.

Zach Lavine scored 24 points for the Bulls and DeMar DeRozan added 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Bulls, who have lost five in a row.

HEAT 123, ROCKETS 106

MIAMI — Victor Oladipo scored 11 points in in his first game in nearly a year, Tyler Herro scored 21 of his 31 points in the second quarter and Miami beat Houston.

Oladipo, playing his first game since April 8 following a second surgery to repair a right quadriceps tendon, and made an immediate impact. He took a charge on his first defensive possession, hitting the deck without any signs of problems, then took another later in the game and had a dunk near the end of his 15-minute stint.

Jimmy Butler scored 21 points for Miami, which got Kyle Lowry back after a four-game absence for personal reasons. Bam Adebayo finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Heat.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 22 points for Houston, which got 20 from Jalen Green, 16 from Josh Christopher and 14 from KJ Martin. Green was 4 for 4 from 3-point range in the game’s first 5:40, then missed his final six tries from beyond the arc.

MAVERICKS 111, JAZZ 103

DALLAS — Luka Doncic had 35 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, and Dallas held on against Utah a matchup of possible first-round playoff opponents.

Spencer Dinwiddie scored 23 points and Dorian Finney-Smith added 21 for the Mavericks, who won their fifth consecutive game and pulled within a half-game of the Jazz for the fourth seed in the Western Conference.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored 21 points and Rudy Gobert had 12 points and 13 rebounds for the Jazz, who led for just 13 seconds early in the last of their five-game road trip.

KNICKS 131, KINGS 115

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Julius Randle hit eight 3-pointers and scored 17 of his career-high 46 points in the third quarter as New York rallied from a 20-point deficit and beat Sacramento.

One night after beating the Los Angeles Clippers in a win fueled mostly by New York’s younger players, Randle rallied the Knicks with a phenomenal shooting display in the second half. He made 12 of 17 shots after halftime, going 7 for 11 from beyond the arc, and finished with 10 rebounds.

RJ Barrett had 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists to help the Knicks to their second consecutive win after seven straight losses. Immanuel Quickley added 27 points.

Domantas Sabonis had 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Kings before being ejected in the fourth quarter after receiving double technicals. De’Aaron Fox scored 24 points, and Harrison Barnes had 23.

TIMBERWOLVES 124, TRAIL BLAZERS 81

MINNEAPOLIS — Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points and 13 rebounds as Minnesota beat Portland by double digits for the second time in three days.

Malik Beasley added 19 points, and Naz Reid had 18 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for Minnesota.

Towns’ effort came in less than three quarters, as he and most of Minnesota’s starters stayed on the bench in the fourth with the game well in hand. Towns joined the home crowd in doing the wave from the bench as the Timberwolves fans reveled in their team’s blowout victory. Wolves guard Patrick Beverley added to the fun by launching T-shirts into the crowd during the fourth quarter.

PISTONS 113, HAWKS 110, OT

DETROIT — Cade Cunningham had 28 points and 10 assists, lifting Detroit over Atlanta.

Jerami Grant scored 23 and reserve Marvin Bagley had 19 points for the Pistons, who have won a season-high three straight and six of their last eight games.

Atlanta’s Bogdan Bogdanovic had 22 points before fouling out late in regulation and Trae Young had 14 points and 12 assists.

Pistons center Isaiah Stewart left the game midway through the second quarter after grabbing his right knee in pain, and didn’t return.