Knicks roll to ninth straight NBA win

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 31 points and Josh Hart delivered his second straight triple-double to propel the New York Knicks to their ninth straight NBA victory on Wednesday, beating the Utah Jazz 119-103.

With leading scorer Jalen Brunson sidelined with tightness in his right calf, and Miles McBride also absent, Towns and Hart picked up the slack.

Towns added 21 rebounds and Hart scored 15 points with 14 rebounds and 12 assists, while Mikal Bridges chipped in with 27 points.

"Over the course of a season, whether it's injury, illness, foul trouble — you need everybody," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said of the team's ability to keep the surge going, despite being short-handed.

"As a team, if you prioritize winning and doing what's best for the group, that's what makes it enjoyable," he said. "You have everyone committed to each other. When you do that, good things come from that."

Collin Sexton and Jordan Clark scored 25 points apiece for Utah, but the Jazz suffered a fifth straight defeat.

In Detroit, the Pistons beat the Orlando Magic 105-96, but saw guard Jaden Ivey go down with what looked like a serious leg injury early in the fourth quarter.

Ivey collided with Magic guard Cole Anthony as they scrambled for a loose ball, Ivey collapsing to the court and holding his lower left leg.

He was eventually stretchered from the court.

"To see something like that — it's devastating for the whole group," teammate Tobias Harris told NBA Network after the game.

"Obviously, it's a big win for us, but, after the game, it's just the group coming together in prayer."

Ivey was enjoying an outstanding night, scoring 22 points to lead the way, as all five Pistons starters scored in double figures.

Cade Cunningham scored 19 points with eight rebounds and nine assists. Jalen Duren scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, and Harris scored 17 points for the Pistons, which never trailed.

In Washington, Jordan Poole returned from a two-game injury absence and scored 30 points to propel the Wizards to a 125-107 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

Poole connected on 10 of his 21 attempts from the field, and drilled six of Washington's 17 three-point scores.

Justin Champagnie added 15 points, and seven Wizards players scored in double figures in an encouraging performance for a team that notched just its sixth win of the season.

Chicago's Zach LaVine led all scorers with 32 points, but the Bulls were hampered by 20 turnovers leading to 33 Wizards points.

The Miami Heat, fueled by 32 points from Tyler Herro, along with 23 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists from Bam Adebayo, led wire-to-wire in a 119-108 victory over the visiting New Orleans Pelicans.

Trey Murphy III scored 34 points to lead the Pelicans, who were playing with heavy hearts after at least 15 people were killed when a US army veteran drove a pickup truck into a crowd of New Year revelers in New Orleans early Wednesday. Authorities are investigating the tragedy as an act of terrorism.

Nikola Jokic had 23 points, 17 rebounds and 15 assists for his 14th triple-double of the season and third in four games, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Atlanta Hawks 139-120.

The 15 assists were one shy of his season high of 16, which he has achieved twice.

Agencies