Wizards halt 16-game losing streak

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KYLE Kuzma scored a season-high 31 points to help the visiting Washington Wizards snap a 16-game losing streak with a 105-103 win over the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

The Wolves cut the deficit to 105-103 on Mike Conley’s three foul shots with 15.1 seconds left. They had a chance to tie the game after Nickeil Alexander-Walker stole the ball, but he missed a final 3-point attempt.

Jordan Poole scored 19 points for Washington, which avoided a franchise-record-setting 17th straight loss and won for the first time since beating the visiting Chicago Bulls 125-107 on Jan. 1. Bilal Coulibaly added 14 points, Jonas Valanciunas recorded 13 points and 10 rebounds and Kyshawn George had 11 points for the Wizards.

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Minnesota’s Jaden McDaniels collected 23 points and 12 rebounds and Rudy Gobert had 16 and 16, respectively. Stars Anthony Edwards (illness) and Julius Randle (groin) were both unavailable, and Naz Reid did not return after exiting with a right finger sprain as the Timberwolves had their five-game winning streak snapped.

In other games, it was the Lakers 128, Knicks 112; Nets 110, Rockets 98; Thunder 144, Kings 110; Pacers 132, Hawks 127; Heat 105, Spurs 103; Nuggets 107, Hornets 104; Jazz 113, Magic 99; and Blazers 127, Suns 108.

Lakers 128, Knicks 112

LeBron James put on another show at Madison Square Garden, posting a triple-double as Los Angeles pulled away from host New York.

James, who turned 40 in December, led all players Saturday with 33 points and 12 assists while adding 11 rebounds as he improved to 23-8 all-time at Madison Square Garden. He raised his averages in games there to 28.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 7.6 assists. The triple-double was James’ 10th of the season.

Austin Reaves added 27 points for the Lakers, who have won eight of their last 10 games. Former Lakers player Josh Hart had 26 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists for his seventh triple-double of the season for the Knicks. New York had its five-game winning streak snapped and also lost forward OG Anunoby to a right foot sprain.

Nets 110, Rockets 98

D’Angelo Russell scored 18 points, Ziaire Williams flirted with a double-double and visiting Brooklyn knocked off Houston.

After snapping a seven-game losing streak with a road win over the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday, the Nets recorded back-to-back victories for the first time since late November. They did so by shooting 49.4 percent from the floor, posting a 60-50 advantage in paint points, and limiting Houston to 40 percent shooting from the floor.

Six Nets players scored in double figures. Among them, Williams paired 21 points with eight rebounds, while Day’Ron Sharpe tallied 13 points off the bench. Jalen Green scored a game-high 29 points for the Rockets, who played a second consecutive game without All-Star center Alperen Sengun (calf). Steven Adams posted 11 points, seven boards and three blocks filling in for Sengun.

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