The first game of a busy Saturday in the NBA did not disappoint. Paul George hit an and-one 3-pointer in the closing seconds to give the Thunder a dramatic victory over the 76ers. The Thunder's win continued an amazing streak, as it was their 19th straight victory over the Sixers.
Still to come, Luka Doncic and the Mavericks will take on the Pacers, the Celtics will look to continue their winning ways against the Hawks and the free-falling Grizzlies will face another tough test against the Raptors. Plus, the Lakers will visit the Rockets.
Later on, James Harden extended his 30-point streak to 19 games with a 48-point performance in the Rockets' OT win over the Lakers.
NBA schedule for Saturday, Jan. 19
*All times Eastern
- Oklahoma City Thunder 117, Philadelphia 76ers 115 (Box Score)
- Charlotte Hornets 135, Phoenix Suns 115 (Box Score)
- Sacramento Kings 103, Detroit Pistons 101 (Box Score)
- Indiana Pacers 111, Dallas Mavericks 99 (Box Score)
- Milwaukee Bucks 118, Orlando Magic, 108 (Box Score)
- Boston Celtics 113, Atlanta Hawks 105 (Box Score)
- Toronto Raptors 119, Memphis Grizzlies 90 (Box Score)
- Miami Heat 117, Chicago Bulls 103 (Box Score)
- Houston Rockets 138, Los Angeles Lakers 134 (Box Score) -- OT
- Denver Nuggets 124, Cleveland Cavaliers 102 (Box Score)
Harden drops 48 to extend 30-point streak to 19 games
James Harden continued his historic streak during the Rockets' win over the Lakers. He finished with 48 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals. He's now scored at least 30 points in 19 straight games. Only Wilt Chamberlain has had a longer streak.
🚀 @JHarden13 passes Elgin Baylor with his 19th consecutive 30-point game... only Wilt Chamberlain (four separate streaks, with the longest being 65 games) has more! pic.twitter.com/DIgoygbHmS
— NBA (@NBA) January 20, 2019
Smart ejected in Celtics win
Veteran guard Marcus Smart has always worn his emotion on his sleeve. He certainly displayed his fiery personality when he made a beeline for Hawks forward DeAndre' Bembry in the third quarter and was ultimately ejected for his role in the altercation. Both players received technical fouls for the incident.
Marcus Smart went at DeAndre' Bembry after getting ejected 😮 pic.twitter.com/9Mw765MzGO
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 20, 2019
Raptors defeat Grizzlies via the long ball
The Raptors connected on 10 threes against the Grizzlies in the third quarter alone on Saturday. As a team, they finished shooting nearly 48.0 percent from beyond the arc when it was all said and done.
The @Raptors knock down a quarter franchise-record 10 threes in the 3rd on NBALP! #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/aqSA73dw2f
— NBA (@NBA) January 20, 2019
Hield wins it at the buzzer
The Kings had just one last heave in an effort to steal a win from the Pistons and that's exactly what they did. Buddy Hield was able to get enough space to connect on the game-winning three off of one leg.
BUDDY HIELD BEATS THE BUZZER FOR THE WIN! 🚨
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 20, 2019
Presented by @Tissot pic.twitter.com/Hj8wRhai4b
Vucevic posterizes Wilson
Just 24 hours removed from a tough loss to the Nets, the Magic are certainly giving the Eastern Conference-leading Bucks all they can handle. Nikola Vucevic announced his presence in the second quarter when he drove around Brook Lopez and absolutely posterized D.J. Wilson.
.@NikolaVucevic put 'em on a poster! 😳 #PureMagic pic.twitter.com/ECMMm3HbWu
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 20, 2019
Collins throws down lob from Young
The Hawks have quite the young one-two punch in the form of Trae Young and John Collins. In the second quarter against the Celtics, Young threw up a beautiful alley oop that Collins slammed down with one hand.
breaking news:
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) January 20, 2019
john collins is a baaaad man.
but y'all already knew that. pic.twitter.com/4iZOnnc2vz
George plays hero for Thunder
After blowing a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter, the Thunder were down by two points in the closing seconds, and appeared to be heading towards a disappointing loss. Instead, Paul George came up clutch, hitting an and-one 3-pointer to win it for OKC. George finished the game with 31 points, six rebounds and five assists. This was the 19th straight win for the Thunder over the Sixers.
PAUL GEORGE 4-POINT PLAY FOR THE WIN! @okcthunder | #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/A5fq9bM3Ez
— NBA (@NBA) January 19, 2019
Simmons deposits putback slam
The Thunder will make sure that they block out Ben Simmons from now on. Joel Embiid missed a 3-pointer in the second quarter, but Simmons read the miss perfectly and deposited the putback slam with authority.
Ben cleaning up the miss! 💥
— NBA (@NBA) January 19, 2019
Halftime on #NBAonABC:#ThunderUp 59#HereTheyCome 56 pic.twitter.com/sHZjppqxZO
Adams throws down one-handed lob
Center Steven Adams is often the forgotten man for the Thunder, but he made his presence felt off a beautiful feed from teammate Paul George. George threw up a picture-perfect alley oop and Adams slammed it home with one hand.
Steven Adams rolls for the OOP! 🔨#ThunderUp 21#HereTheyCome 11
— NBA (@NBA) January 19, 2019
📺: #NBAonABC pic.twitter.com/7sKJ6KIYDc
Drummond ruled out with concussion
Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond was hit in the nose in the first half of Friday's game against the Miami Heat and didn't return to the contest. Despite it originally being tabbed as a nasal injury, the Pistons have listed Drummond in concussion protocol and he won't play in Saturday's game against the Sacramento Kings. Drummond is currently averaging 16.3 points and an NBA-leading 14.9 rebounds for a Pistons team that currently has just a 20-24 record on the season.