PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Damian Lillard scored 30 points, Giannis Antetokounmpo added 25 and the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 124-109 in the season opener for both teams Wednesday night.
Lillard scored 15 points in the third quarter and finished with six 3-pointers, nine rebounds and five assists.
Antetokounmpo shot 8 for 11 from the floor and had a game-high 14 rebounds as Milwaukee got double-figure scoring from six players.
Taurean Prince and Bobby Portis scored 16 points apiece for the Bucks, how had 16 3-pointers.
Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points and Andre Drummond had 13 points and 11 rebounds for Philadelphia, which was without injured stars Joel Embiid and Paul George, who are sidelined due to knee injuries.
PACERS 115, PISTONS 115
DETROIT (AP) — Myles Turner scored 20 points, Pascal Siakam and Bennedict Mathurin had 19 each and Indiana rallied to beat Detroit, spoiling coach J.B. Bickerstaff’s debut.
Detroit led by 12 points and was ahead after each of the first three quarters in a closely contested game with 13 lead changes and four ties, but couldn’t hang on for the win.
The Pacers overcame an eight-point deficit in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Pistons 33-19 in the quarter in the season-opening game for both teams.
Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton had 15 points and T.J. McConnell added 14.
The Pacers are coming off a surprising run to the Eastern Conference finals and retained key players such as Siakam, an All-Star forward who signed a max contract.
Cade Cunningham scored 22 of his 28 points in the second half for the Pistons, whose trio of veteran newcomers had solid performances.
CAVALIERS 136, RAPTORS 106
TORONTO (AP) —Evan Mobley scored 25 points, Donovan Mitchell had 21 and Cleveland Cavaliers routed Toronto.
Caris LeVert shot 8 for 9 and scored 19 points, and Jarrett Allen had 14 for the Cavs, whose biggest lead was 33. Cleveland won for the first time in five season-opening meetings with Toronto.
Raptors forward Scottie Barnes shot 3 for 14 and scored nine points in a disappointing season debut.
Toronto’s Chris Boucher scored 18 points off the bench, Gradey Dick added 16 and guard Immanuel Quickley scored 13 points in 14 minutes before exiting because of an injury.
MAGIC 116, HEAT 97
MIAMI (AP) — Paolo Banchero scored 33 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, Franz Wagner scored 23 and Orlando rolled past Miami in the opener for both teams.
Gary Harris added 18 for Orlando, all on 3-pointers. The Magic were 18 of 49 from 3-point range.
Terry Rozier scored 19 for Miami, which celebrated “Pat Riley Court” night with a halftime ceremony. Nikola Jovic scored 15 and Tyler Herro added 14 for the Heat.
Orlando led by as many as 32 in the second half.
HAWKS 120, NETS 116
ATLANTA (AP) — Trae Young had 30 points, Onyeka Okongwu added a career-high 28 and Atlanta opened the season with a victory over Brooklyn.
Young, who also had 12 assists, sealed it with a pair of free throws with two seconds remaining.
Okongwu made 11 of 12 shots from field and all six free throws to eclipse his previous best of 22 points.
Cam Thomas led the Nets with 36 points, but it wasn’t enough to prevent a loss for Jordi Fernández in his NBA head coaching debut.
Atlanta’s Jalen Johnson, coming off a $150 million contract extension, had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Zaccharie Risacher, the first overall pick in the NBA draft, made his first shot from 3-point range but finished with just seven points on 2-of-8 shooting for the Hawks.
PELICANS 123, BULLS 111
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Brandon Ingram scored 33 points, icing the game with a baseline turnaround jumper with 1:46 to go, and New Orleans overcame Zion Williamson’s absence to defeat Chicago in both clubs’ season opener.
CJ McCollum scored 23 for New Orleans and newly-acquired point guard Dejounte Murray had 14 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.
Williamson was ruled out shortly before the game because of an illness, marking his 207th missed regular-season game since he was drafted No. 1 overall in 2019.
Zach LaVine scored 27 points, and Nikola Vucevic had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Bulls, who trailed for most of the second half and by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Smith scored 15 points, and Josh Giddey added 14 points for Chicago.
Jordan Hawkins scored 13 for the Pelicans.
HORNETS 110, ROCKETS 105
HOUSTON (AP) — LaMelo Ball had 34 points and 11 assists in his return from an ankle injury and Grant Williams made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 40 seconds left to give Charlotte a win over Houston.
Jalen Green scored five quick points to tie it before Williams put the Hornets on top with his step-back 3 to make it 106-103. Ball, who was playing in his first regular-season game since Jan. 26, added two free throws after that to secure the victory.
Green led Houston with 28 points and Alperen Sengun added 25 points and 18 rebounds in his return after missing the last 19 games of last season with a severely sprained ankle.
GRIZZLIES 126, JAZZ 124
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Ja Morant had 22 points, 10 assists and five rebounds in his return to action to lead Memphis to a victory over Utah.
Morant appeared in just nine games last season after serving a 25-game league suspension before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury. Santi Aldama scored 27 points and Desmond Bane added 24 more for the Grizzlies.
Lauri Markkanen had 35 points and nine rebounds for Utah. Jordan Clarkson chipped in for 17 points and seven assists off the bench. Walker Kessler had 16 points and 14 rebounds.
The Jazz erased a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter and tied it at 116 on Kessler’s tip-in with 2:48 left. Aldama scored back-to-back baskets to put the Grizzlies in front for good.
WARRIORS 139, TRAIL BLAZERS 104
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Stephen Curry had 17 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds before sitting for the fourth quarter, and Golden State opened the season with a rout of Portland.
Buddy Hield had 22 points off the bench for the Warriors, who missed out on the playoffs last year.
Portland led by as many as nine points in the opening quarter, but the Warriors pulled ahead and led 62-50 at the break. Curry had a 3-pointer to open the second half and Golden State led by as many as 37 points the rest of the way.
Portland was led by Scoot Henderson with 22 points off the bench. Shaedon Sharpe didn’t play because of a shoulder injury.
SUNS 116, CLIPPERS 113, OT
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kevin Durant scored 25 points, Bradley Beal added 24 and Phoenix beat Clippers in overtime, spoiling Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome debut in the opener for both teams.
James Harden had 29 points and 12 rebounds for the Clippers. He had a chance to send it to double overtime, but missed the second of two free throws with 4.8 seconds remaining.
Jusuf Nurkic gave the Suns a three-point advantage with a pair of free throws. The Clippers had one last chance to send it to another extra session, but Grayson Allen forced a turnover near midcourt after the inbounds pass.
Ivica Zubac had 21 points for the Clippers, but fouled out with 2:15 remaining in overtime.
The Associated Press
