NBA Roundup: Five Players Ejected as Magic Drop Wolves

Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) goes to the basket as Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) defends during the second quarter at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on Feb 3, 2023. Jeffrey Becker/USA TODAY Sports via Field Level Media

Cole Anthony came off the bench to lead seven Orlando scorers in double-figures with 20 points, and the Magic rode a dominant second half to a 127–120 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday in an ejection-filled game at Minneapolis.

The Magic went on an 8–0 run early in the third quarter to lead by double digits, a cushion they kept for most of the second half.

The lead swelled to as many as 22 points in the fourth quarter after a melee late in the third period led to the ejection of five players. Jalen Suggs and Mo Bamba were ejected for scuffling with Minnesota’s Austin Rivers, while the Timberwolves’ Taurean Prince and Jaden McDaniels were tossed along with Rivers for their involvement.

Bamba and Suggs were part of the balanced scoring night for the Magic, with Bamba knocking down 3 of 7 from 3-point range en route to 11 points and Suggs coming off the bench to notch 10 points. Anthony also matched Paolo Banchero with a team-leading eight rebounds and dished six assists, matching the game high.

D’Angelo Russell shot 6-for-16 from beyond the arc and led all scorers with 29 points. He grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and added six assists for Minnesota. Anthony Edwards shot just 5-for-15 from the floor as his run of games scoring at least 23 points ended at eight.

Pistons 118, Hornets 112

Jaden Ivey had 24 points and seven assists, and Saddiq Bey contributed 22 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer in the late going, as host Detroit downed Charlotte.

Bojan Bogdanovic added 21 points, Alec Burks chipped in with 16, Jalen Duren collected 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Isaiah Stewart added eight points, 16 rebounds and six assists. Detroit overcame 23 turnovers, which led to 30 Hornets points.

LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier led Charlotte with 23 points apiece, but Ball shot 7 of 23 from the field. Mason Plumlee added 13 points, and Gordon Hayward chipped in 12.

Raptors 117, Rockets 111

Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr. caught fire in the middle two periods as Toronto rallied from an early double-digit deficit to top host Houston.

VanVleet scored 16 of his game-high 32 points in the third quarter after Trent scored 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting in the second. Trent finished with 29 points and combined with VanVleet to hit 10 of 20 3-point attempts. Pascal Siakam added 23 points and six rebounds, and Chris Boucher chipped in 11 points, eight boards and three blocks off the bench.

The Rockets, who again were without starting guards Jalen Green (calf) and Kevin Porter Jr. (foot), were led by Eric Gordon’s 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Alperen Sengun tallied 21 points, Kenyon Martin Jr. had 20 and Josh Christopher added a season-high 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting off the Houston bench.

Suns 106, Celtics 94

Despite having a thin bench, Phoenix used a strong fourth quarter to pick up a road win against Boston.

Mikal Bridges led the Suns with 25 points. Chris Paul scored 15 to go with eight assists and six rebounds, and Dario Saric (14 points, game-high 13 rebounds) and Deandre Ayton (14 points, 10 boards) both logged double-doubles.

Boston’s Jaylen Brown led all scorers with 27 points and added eight rebounds. Jayson Tatum had a poor shooting night, hitting 3 of 15 from the floor en route to 20 points, and Derrick White added 19 points.

Hawks 115, Jazz 108

Trae Young responded to not being named an All-Star by scoring 27 points and De’Andre Hunter added 26 points to lift Atlanta to a victory over Utah in Salt Lake City.

Onyeka Okongwu contributed 15 points and 11 rebounds and Dejounte Murray tallied 13 points and eight assists to help the Hawks improve to 2–1 on their five-game road trip. Clint Capela hauled in a game-high 13 rebounds and scored nine points for Atlanta.

Lauri Markkanen, who just earned his first All-Star Game invitation, was one of three Jazz players to produce at least 20 points, scoring 25 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. It was the 20th consecutive game in which Markkanen scored 20 or more. Jordan Clarkson scored 24 and Mike Conley, playing his 1,000th NBA game, chipped in with 20 points and eight assists.

Pacers 107, Kings 104

Buddy Hield dropped a team-high 21 points on his former team and Indiana took advantage of the absence of De’Aaron Fox to hold off Sacramento in Indianapolis.

Myles Turner logged 14 points and 13 rebounds and Aaron Nesmith added 17 points for the Pacers, who were playing the second day of a back-to-back set that opened with a 112–111 home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.

Following a video tribute that welcomed him back after he was traded by the Pacers to the Kings last February, Domantas Sabonis put up 15 points, a game-high 16 rebounds and six assists for Sacramento, which saw a two-game winning streak come to an end. Indiana had lost 11 of its previous 12 games.

Trail Blazers 124, Wizards 116

Anfernee Simons scored 20 of his 33 points in the third quarter, helping visiting Portland overcome a 20-point deficit in a victory over Washington.

Simons drained nine 3-pointers and added six assists as the Trail Blazers outscored the Wizards 73–47 in the second half. Portland’s Damian Lillard collected 29 points and six assists, and Trendon Watford scored a season-high 21 points off the bench.

The Trail Blazers, who recorded their fifth win in the last six games to reach .500 on the season. Bradley Beal scored 34 points and Kristaps Porzingis collected 32 points and eight rebounds for the Wizards, who saw their season-high six-game winning streak come to a halt.

76ers 137, Spurs 125

Joel Embiid poured in 33 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as visiting Philadelphia swamped reeling San Antonio.

Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points for the 76ers, who won for the ninth time in its past 10 games. James Harden added 16 points and eight assists.

Rookie Malaki Branham set a career high for the second straight game with 26 points for the Spurs, who lost their eighth straight game and fell for the 16th time in 18 contests. Keldon Johnson added 18 points.