NBA: Joel Embiid fuels Sixers past LeBron-less Lakers

LOS ANGELES (REUTERS) - Joel Embiid scored a game-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, James Harden added 24 points and the visiting Philadelphia 76ers escaped a test from a Los Angeles Lakers squad playing without LeBron James, prevailing 126-121 on Wednesday (March 23).

James was a late scratch from the Lakers' line-up with left knee soreness, but Dwight Howard helped pick up the slack in his absence. Howard scored 24 points - his most in a game since November 2018 - and matched Russell Westbrook for the top mark on the team.

Behind the veteran duo, Los Angeles went into the fourth quarter trailing by just two points. The Lakers remained within striking distance throughout the final period, but they could not bridge the gap.

Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris backed Embiid and Harden with 21 and 20 points, respectively. Maxey also dished seven assists and grabbed five rebounds to finish the night with a rating of plus-17, second on the Philadelphia roster only to Harris' plus-20.

Maxey and Harris keyed a crucial Sixers run late, as Austin Reaves scored on a putback with 5min 31sec remaining in regulation that pulled the Lakers within 107-104. Harris scored on the ensuing Philadelphia possession, then rebounded a missed free-throw attempt by Howard.

Maxey added a bucket on the other end, then hit a three-pointer following a Lakers turnover. The quick 7-1 burst gave the Sixers some cushion down the stretch, and Los Angeles were unable to pull within a single possession the rest of the way.

Los Angeles finished with the edge in points in the paint at 66-60 and connected on one more three-point attempt than Philadelphia. The Sixers shot 10 of 27 from the deep, and the Lakers went 11 of 30.

Los Angeles also dominated in bench points, with Malik Monk's 23 and Carmelo Anthony's 20 pacing the Lakers' reserves to 48 total. Philadelphia's reserves finished with 27 points, led by Georges Niang and DeAndre Jordan each with nine.

However, the Sixers' 22-of-28 to 10-of-16 advantage at the free-throw line made a big difference, as well.

In Memphis, Desmond Bane and De'Anthony Melton scored 23 points apiece for the Grizzlies, who blew an 18-point lead before executing down the stretch in a 132-120 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.

The Nets fell despite getting 43 points from Kyrie Irving and 35 from Kevin Durant, and despite Memphis playing without Ja Morant, who sat out a second straight game due to a sore right knee.

The Grizzlies reached 50 wins for the fifth time in franchise history and improved to 15-2 in games Morant has missed this season.

In Boston, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown each scored 26 points to lead the Celtics to a 125-97 win over visiting Utah.

The Celtics led by as many as 32 points on the way to their fifth consecutive win, and they snapped a four-game losing streak against the Jazz.

In Portland, Dejounte Murray recorded 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds to help visiting San Antonio steamroll the Trail Blazers 133-96.

In Minnesota, Deandre Ayton dominated his match-up with Karl-Anthony Towns with a career-high 35 points and 14 rebounds, helping visiting Phoenix outlast the Timberwolves 125-116.

Devin Booker saved 11 of his 28 points for the final 4:36 as the Suns rallied from as much as a 15-point deficit to earn their sixth straight win and their 18th victory in their past 22 games.

In Detroit, Jerami Grant had 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists and the Pistons t scored 23 unanswered points in the third quarter while rolling to a 122-101 win over Atlanta.

In Oklahoma City, Theo Maledon scored 17 of his season-high 25 points in the fourth quarter as they beat the Orlando Magic 118-102 to snap a 10-game overall losing streak and an 11-game home losing streak.

In Indianapolis, Damian Jones tipped in a Trey Lyles miss with two-tenths of a second remaining, allowing Sacramento to overtake Indiana for a 110-109 win over the Pacers.

Jones' heroics came after former Sacramento standout Buddy Hield, traded to Indiana last month, fumbled the ball out of bounds with 14 seconds left and the Pacers holding a one-point lead. Lyles could do no better than to get off a 25-footer, but the ball ended up in friendly hands and Jones converted the winning shot.

In Charlotte, RJ Barrett scored 30 points as visiting New York ended the Hornets' five-game winning streak with a 121-106 win.

In Dallas, Jalen Brunson scored 16 of his game-high 28 points in the third quarter and the Mavericks, playing without Luka Doncic (ankle), completed a season sweep of visiting Houston, winning 110-91.

In Miami, Jordan Poole scored 30 points and dished nine assists as short-handed Golden State beat the Heat 118-104.

Damion Lee, Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga each scored 22 points for the Warriors, who ended a three-game losing streak. Golden State rested Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Otis Porter Jr. and was also without star guard Stephen Curry (left foot).

Kyle Lowry led the Heat with 26 points and nine assists. Bam Adebayo added 25 points and nine rebounds, and Jimmy Butler scored 20 points.