JORDAN Poole scored 39 points to help the host Washington Wizards overcome Nikola Jokic’s career-high 56 points and beat the Denver Nuggets 122-113 on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) to end their 16-game losing streak.
Poole hit a career-high nine 3-pointers and was one of five Wizards to score in double figures. Justin Champagnie had 23 points, and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and five blocked shots.
With Jamal Murray (hamstring) and Aaron Gordon (calf) out, the Nuggets leaned on Jokic. The three-time NBA MVP went 22-for-38 from the floor and was 3-for-5 from 3-point range. He added 16 rebounds and eight assists.
Jokic recorded the second-most points in a single game in franchise history, trailing only David Thompson’s 73-point performance in 1978.
The Wizards, who shot 48.4 percent from the floor, earned their first win since Oct. 30 despite not having No. 2 overall pick Alexandre Sarr, who missed the game with a sore back.
In other games, it was the Pistons 120, Knicks 111; Cavs 116, Hornets 102; v Thunder 119, Pelicans 109; Mavs 125, Raptors 118; Grizzlies 127, Celtics 121; and Heat 121, Suns 111.
Pistons 120, Knicks 111
Cade Cunningham finished with 29 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds to lead Detroit to its first win over host New York in 17 tries.
Cunningham shot 9 of 17 from the field and went 5-for-8 from 3-point range. Malik Beasley added 23 points off the bench, making 7 of 10 attempts from beyond the arc. The Pistons ended a three-game skid overall.
The Knicks were without their leading scorer, Karl-Anthony Towns, who missed the game because of a knee injury. Jalen Brunson had 31 points and 10 assists and Mikal Bridges added 20 points for New York, which had its four-game winning streak end.
Cavs 116, Hornets 102
Evan Mobley had a huge first quarter on his way to a career-high 41 points as visiting Cleveland held off Charlotte.
Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell each posted 18 points and Jarrett Allen tallied 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Cavaliers won their fourth game in a row.
Brandon Miller racked up 25 points, DaQuan Jeffries added 17 points off the bench and Josh Green had 16 points for the injury-riddled Hornets, who’ve lost eight consecutive games. Charlotte couldn’t overcome its 11-for-39 performance from 3-point range.
