Ja Morant scores 20 to guide Grizzlies to third straight victory, Jalen Brunson leads Knicks win

Desmond Bane scored 30 points, Ja Morant added 20 and the Memphis Grizzlies defeated Houston 113-99 on Wednesday night to send the Rockets to their 11th straight loss.

Morant wasn’t nearly as dominant against Houston as he was Tuesday night when he scored 28 of his 39 points in the third quarter of a win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

The game came after a police report said he allegedly showed a 17-year-old boy a gun after hitting him over the head and threatening a mall security staff member last summer.

Morant also had seven assists and seven rebounds against the Rockets without playing in the fourth quarter to help the Grizzlies to their third straight win. The win snapped an eight-game road streak in the opener of a four-game road trip and was the Grizzlies’ first win outside Memphis since Jan. 14 at Indiana.

“Our goal was to try to right the ship,” coach Taylor Jenkins said. “And any time you can start a road trip with a win, it just gives you a different mindset for the rest of it.”

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) makes a layup against the Houston Rockets

Morant reacts after sinking a 3-pointer against the Houston Rockets during the first half

After scoring the final six points of the third quarter, Bane, who had nine rebounds and six assists, opened the quarter with five points, capped by a 3-pointer, to extend the Grizzlies’ lead to 90-68.

Houston scored the next five points, including a 3 from Josh Christopher, but the Grizzlies used an 8-1 run to make it 98-74 with nine minutes to go. Jenkins took out most of his starters shortly after that with the game getting out of control.

Bane discussed the difference in the team after halftime.

“We made some adjustments and we were able to get some stops that allowed us to go out in transition,” he said. “We were getting big shots in the first half and they weren’t going down, but in the second half they started going down.”

Bane made six of the team’s 17 3-pointers and Dillon Brooks added four and finished with 16 points.

Jalen Green scored 20 points and Kenyon Martin Jr. 19 for Houston.

Green was disappointed that the Rockets let things slip away in the third quarter after holding close early.

“I’m not sure exactly what happened,” he said. ‘They just hit big shots, started hitting 3-pointers and stuff. We were pretty solid on defense overall during the game, they just went on that run and we couldn’t catch them.

Memphis Grizzlies Desmond Bane, front, drives around Houston Rockets guard Kevin Porter Jr.

Memphis led by 3 early in the third quarter before going on a 16-5 run to make it 69-55 with 5½ minutes remaining in the quarter. The Grizzlies got a 3-pointer from Bane and two from Brooks to power that run.

A 3-pointer by Tari Eason got Houston within 11 later in the third when Morant made a nifty shot back into the lane before hitting another short jumper on the next possession to make it 79-64.

Jae’Sean Tate made back-to-back baskets for Houston, but Bane scored the final six points of the quarter to put the Grizzlies up 85-68 entering the fourth.

“I thought our execution was pretty much the same for all four quarters,” Jenkins said. “We started making shots in that third, they gave us the juice we needed to build a good lead in the fourth.”

KNICKS 142, NETS 118

Jalen Brunson scored 30 of his 39 points in the first half as New York posted its seventh straight victory, defeating Brooklyn.

The Knicks made nearly 80 percent of their shots in a 47-point first quarter and posted their second win over the Nets since their crosstown rivals traded Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Brooklyn had won all nine of their previous meetings, including the first two this season.

Quentin Grimes scored 22 points and Julius Randle added 21 points, eight rebounds and eight assists as the Knicks opened a two-game lead over the Nets for the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Cam Johnson scored a season-high 33 points for the Nets. They have lost four in a row.

Jalen Brunson of the Knicks dribbles up the court during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets

DOLLARS 139, MAGIC 117

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 31 points and NBA-leading Milwaukee hit a season-high 26 3-pointers to defeat Orlando and extend their winning streak to 16 games.

The Bucks’ franchise record for consecutive wins came in their 1970-71 championship season, when they won 20 in a row.

Orlando’s Cole Anthony scored a season-high 28 points. Markelle Fultz added 21.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) of Milwaukee Bucks drives against Franz Wagner of Orlando Magic

76ERS 119, HEAT 96

Tyrese Maxey scored 27 points, James Harden added 23 as Philadelphia took control early en route to a win over Miami.

Tobias Harris scored 18 points, while Paul Reed had 16 points, 14 rebounds and a plus-26 in 29 minutes for the 76ers, who played without All-Star center Joel Embiid, out with a sore left foot. The 76ers are 9-4 when Embiid doesn’t play this season.

Bam Adebayo scored 20 points for the Heat. They beat Philadelphia on the road Monday but trailed by 25 points in the rematch at home.

Philadelphia 76ers Tyrese Maxey (0) dribbles the ball against Miami Heat forward Caleb Martin

CELTS 117, KNIGHTS 113

Jayson Tatum scored 18 points in a pivotal third quarter and finished with 41 points as Boston held on to beat Cleveland.

Tatum added 11 rebounds and eight assists in Boston’s first win in three games against Cleveland this season. In the 20th 40-point game of his career, the 24-year-old Tatum passed Giannis Antetokounmpo for seventh place on the NBA’s under-25 scoring list.

Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell scored 44 points and dodged injury after a knockdown in the third quarter.

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) pushes to the basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers

LAKERS 123, THUNDER 117

Dennis Schroder scored 26 points and trailing Los Angeles beat Oklahoma City.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis were sidelined with right foot injuries and D’Angelo Russell sat out with a sprained right ankle.

Troy Brown Jr. scored a season-high 19 points and Austin Reaves added 19 for the Lakers. They have won four out of five.

Jalen Williams scored 24 points for the Thunder. Oklahoma City is 0-5 since the All-Star break.

Lakers Dennis Schroder goes to the basket past Oklahoma City Thunder forward Dario Saric

BULLS 117, PISTONS 115

Zach LaVine scored 41 points and Detroit called too many timeouts, helping Chicago hang on for the win.

The Pistons trailed by two points with 9.7 seconds left when they called a second consecutive timeout, one more than they had, to trigger a technical foul that gave LaVine a free throw that he made.

DeMar DeRozan scored 21 points, including two on the line on the extra possession the Pistons gave the Bulls to help seal their 14th straight series win.

Bojan Bogdanovic scored 34 for the Pistons. They have lost six straight games for the third time this season.

Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine (8) shoots over Detroit Pistons guard Killian Hayes (7)

PELICANS 121, TRAIL BLAZERS 110

Brandon Ingram scored a season-high 40 points and the New Orleans Pelicans beat Portland 121-110 on Wednesday night in the first meeting between Damian Lillard and former Trail Blazers teammate CJ McCollum.

McCollum added 24 points to help the Pelicans snap a four-game losing streak.

Lillard scored 41 points for the Trail Blazers. He raised both fists while on the floor after making a hard shot in the third quarter, and added a free throw to give the Blazers an 85-80 lead.

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (left) drives to the basket against New Orleans