Knicks rally to beat Rockets as Pistons and Spurs advance
The Knicks bounced back from a humiliating loss to Detroit with a gritty victory that moved them back into a tie for third place in the Eastern Conference.
Jalen Brunson
New York's Jalen Brunson scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half and the Knicks erased an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Houston Rockets 108-106 at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Eastern Conference leaders Detroit Pistons, picked up their fifth straight win and the San Antonio Spurs kept the pressure on the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder with their eighth straight victory.
The Knicks' victory was a bounce-back from a humiliating loss to Detroit with a gutsy win that put them back in a tie for third place in the East.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 25 points and OG Anunoby added 20 for New York, which led by as many as 13 points in the first half, but were losing 75-93 with 10:53 to play.
Brunson's layup, after teammate Jose Alvarado's second steal in 20 seconds, tied the score at 103 with 1:26 remaining and Brunson put the Knicks up for good, 105-103, with 29 seconds left.
Kevin Durant scored a game-high 30 points for the Rockets, but 20 Houston turnovers that resulted in 30 Knicks points proved too much to overcome.
The Pistons recovered from a slow start to post a 126-110 victory over the Bulls in decline in Chicago.
Detroit outscored the Bulls 44-26 in the third quarter to take control, building a 28-point lead and extending its record to 42-13.
Jalen Duren led the way, returning from a two-game suspension for his role in a Feb. 9 brawl in Charlotte to score 26 points and grab 13 rebounds.
All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham added 18 points and 13 assists and Tobias Harris contributed another 18 points for the Pistons, who are six games ahead of the Boston Celtics at the top of the East, with the Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers a game further back.
Australian point guard Josh Giddey scored 27 points to lead the Bulls, but Chicago has lost eight straight games.
San Antonio also took advantage of a struggling opponent and beat the reeling Sacramento Kings 139-122.
Sacramento suffered their 16th consecutive loss, a franchise record.
Spurs French superstar Victor Wembanyama scored 28 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. He added a steal and four blocks, three of them in the first two minutes.
Starters De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle and reserve Keldon Johnson scored 18 points apiece for the Spurs, who repelled a Sacramento attack in the third quarter that allowed the Kings to cut the deficit to one before San Antonio pulled away again.
Green delivers
Javon Carter had tied it for the Magic with 1.1 seconds remaining in the second overtime period before Green scored the game-winner.
It was just Green's sixth basket in 26 attempts on a tough night for shots.
He finished with 16 points for the Suns, who were led by Grayson Allen's 27 points off the bench in his return from a four-game injury absence.
Orlando's Desmond Bane led all scorers with 34 points, but was ejected for fouls early in the first overtime.
Phoenix's celebrations were marred by a hand injury to Dillon Brooks, who left the game in the first quarter and did not return. They were already without Devin Booker, who has a strained right hip.
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