NBA round-up: CJ McCollum scores 40 as Portland Trail Blazers defeat Milwaukee Bucks

CJ McCollum poured in 40 points as the Portland Trail Blazers handed the high-flying Milwaukee Bucks a 118-103 loss at the Moda Center to earn their fifth victory in their last six games.

Milwaukee Bucks 103-118 Portland Trail Blazers

CJ McCollum scored a season-high 40 points to lift the Portland Trail Blazers past the visiting Milwaukee Bucks 118-103 on Tuesday night.

McCollum made 17 of 26 shots from the field and also had six assists and five rebounds as Portland won for the fifth time in six outings.

Evan Turner contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds off the bench for the Trail Blazers, who shot 52.7 per cent from the field and made 17 of 43 (39.5 per cent) from three-point range.

Giannis Antetokounmpo collected 23 points, nine rebounds and six assists, and Khris Middleton added 22 points, eight boards and six assists for the Bucks.

Lillard and McCollum each scored 13 points as Portland took a 57-51 lead into half-time. Brook Lopez had 16 points and Antetokounmpo 13 for Milwaukee.

The Bucks trimmed the margin to 74-70 in the third quarter. The Blazers used a 9-2 run to extend their lead to 83-72. Portland’s advantage was 91-77 heading into the final period.

Milwaukee cut the difference to 91-85 early in the fourth quarter. Turner hit back-to-back buckets to open Portland’s lead to 10 at 98-88.

The Bucks answered with a 5-0 spurt to get to within 98-93, but McCollum’s three-pointer made it 101-93 with 6:48 to play.

Antetokounmpo’s dunk – his eighth of the game – cut it to 101-95. The Blazers answered with an 8-0 run to go ahead 109-95 with 4:23 left. The Bucks got no closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

Brooklyn Nets 104-82 Phoenix Suns

Caris LeVert continued his excellent start to the season by scoring 26 points as the Brooklyn Nets opened a four-game road trip with a 104-82 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

The Nets won consecutive games for the first time this season by countering a sluggish shooting performance with effective defense. Brooklyn shot 44.6 per cent but allowed a season-low 34.6 per cent shooting and forced 20 turnovers two nights after forcing a league-high 27 in Sunday’s rout of Philadelphia.

LeVert reached 20-plus points for the seventh time by shooting 10 of 16. He helped the Nets clinch the win with a nifty up and under layup move on rookie big man Deandre Ayton that opened a 90-74 lead with 5:44 remaining.

LeVert became the first Net to score at least 20 points in seven of the first 11 games since Brook Lopez in 2012-13.

D’Angelo Russell added 15 points while Spencer Dinwiddie contributed 12 as the Nets recorded their third double-digit win of the season. Joe Harris added 11 while Jarrett Allen chipped in 10 as the Nets piled up 54 points in the paint.

Devin Booker led the Suns with 20 points but shot 6 of 21 from the floor. Ayton added 15 points and 13 rebounds but shot six of 17 as Phoenix turned in their worst shooting performance of the season and shot under 40 per cent for the third time.

Atlanta Hawks 102-113 Charlotte Hornets

Kemba Walker scored 29 points as the host Charlotte Hornets pulled away from the Atlanta Hawks in the fourth quarter for a 113-102 victory.

The Hornets went on a 17-4 run early in the fourth to turn an 84-83 deficit into a 100-88 lead, and they went on to lead by as many as 15 points from there.

Marvin Williams played a key role in the rally, with eight fourth-quarter points including two three-pointers. He finished with 20 points for the game.

Walker came into the game averaging 28.0 points per game, fifth best in the NBA, but he had not hit his average in any of the previous three games. He finished the night 12 of 22 from the field and 4 of 10 from three-point range. He also had seven assists, three rebounds and three steals.

The Hornets got 13 points apiece from Jeremy Lamb and Malik Monk, and 10 points from Nicolas Batum, who also hit a key three-pointer in the fourth-quarter surge.

The Hornets have won two straight and three of their past four. The Hawks have now lost five of their past six.

Jeremy Lin led the Hawks with 19 points. Trae Young had 18 points and 10 assists but scored only four in the second half. Kent Bazemore finished with 16 points, and Alex Len scored 12.

Washington Wizards 100-119 Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks made their home fans hold their breath in the fourth quarter before holding on with a late surge to snap a six-game losing skid with a 119-100 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Dallas was on their way to an easy win in the second quarter with a lead that bulged to as many as 24 points and was 70-49 at half-time.

But as the Wizards got off to a 7-0 start to the third quarter, and then kept chipping away, the Mavs might have started thinking about the 26-point lead they lost earlier this season at Atlanta.

Behind hot shooting from Otto Porter Jr, and a spurt from John Wall, who finished with a game-high 24 points, Washington made it 97-91 with 7:04 to go. Dallas called timeout and then went on a 15-5 run spurred by Dennis Smith Jr to put the game on ice.

Rookie Luka Doncic led Dallas in scoring with 23 points, plus six rebounds and three assists, and Harrison Barnes finished with 19 points.

Porter, who hit five of six shots from beyond the arc, and Bradley Beal, just 7-of-17 from the floor, each had 19 points. Those two and Wall were the only Wizards to score in double figures.

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(c) Sky News 2018: NBA round-up: CJ McCollum scores 40 as Portland Trail Blazers defeat Milwaukee Bucks