Spurs 111, Mavericks 86
Tony Parker had 21 points and nine assists, Manu Ginobili had several key baskets among his 20 points and the San Antonio Spurs handed the host Dallas Mavericks their sixth straight loss on Sunday night.
Dirk Nowitzki had eight points on 3-of-9 shooting a week after making a surprise return in a 38-point loss to the Spurs in San Antonio.
The Spurs led all the way, with Tim Duncan helping a 20-6 start by hitting several jump shots. He finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.
Darren Collison scored 18 points to lead the Mavericks, whose losing streak is their longest since January of their championship season in 2010-11.
Dallas was within five in the third quarter when Ginobili hit a 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down, and he made an even longer 3 with the shot clock inside a second to put San Antonio ahead 80-70. He finished the third quarter the same way he did the second — with a last-second shot that put the Spurs up by 12.
Nowitzki struggled again a week after making his season debut at San Antonio. He missed his first three shots of the second half before finally hitting a driving layup to get Dallas within six.
Pistons 96, Bucks 94
Tayshaun Prince made two free throws with 10.9 seconds left to give host Detroit a victory over the Milwaukee Bucks after the Pistons blew a 14-point lead.
Prince scored 20 points, and Greg Monroe added 14 points and 10 rebounds for Detroit, which had five players in double figures. Charlie Villanueva and Brandon Knight added 11 points apiece, and Jason Maxiell scored 10 for the Pistons.
Monta Ellis had 30 points and nine assists, and Erson Ilyasova scored 24 points for the Bucks.
Kings 118, Celtics 96
Isaiah Thomas scored 27 points and made one of host Sacramento’s two four-point plays in the second half as the Kings handed the Boston Celtics their third consecutive lopsided loss on a California road swing.
John Salmons added 23 points off the bench, Jason Thompson scored 20 and DeMarcus Cousins had 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his first career triple-double for the Kings.
The Kings were in control for most of this game and then pulled away with their long-range shooting in the fourth quarter. James Johnson and Jimmer Fredette made 3-pointers early in the fourth and then Salmons’ 3-pointer midway through the quarter gave the Kings a 100-84 lead.
Clippers 107, Jazz 96
Jamal Crawford scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and the host Los Angeles Clippers beat the Utah Jazz for their 17th consecutive victory, becoming the third team in NBA history to record a perfect month.
The Clippers went 16-0 in December to join the 1995-95 San Antonio Spurs and 1971-72 Lakers as the only teams to go undefeated over a month.
Caron Butler led the Clippers with 29 points, making all six of his 3-pointers. Chris Paul added 19 points and nine assists.
Al Jefferson scored 30 points to lead Utah.
