26 Established 1961 Sports Monday, April 1, 2019 Harden hits 50, posts triple-double as Rockets trip Kings 119-108 Grizzlies edge Suns despite Booker’s 48 points HOUSTON: James Harden recorded a 50-point triple- star was 19-of-29 shooting while looking for his third double, and the Houston Rockets fended off the hot- straight 50-point game after scoring 59 and 50 in his shooting Sacramento Kings for a 119-108 victory on previous two games. Deandre Ayton had 17 points and Saturday at Toyota Center. Harden posted his ninth 50- 13 rebounds for the Suns before leaving with a sprained point game on the season while producing 50 points, 11 left ankle with 3:03 left in the third quarter. The rookie rebounds and 10 assists. With the Rockets clinging to a center exited shortly after scoring a basket and notice- 101-100 lead midway through the fourth quarter, ably expressed his anguish on the way back upcourt. Harden sank three free throws, converted back-to-back floaters, and added a 3-pointer to extend the advan- 76ERS 118, TIMBERWOLVES 109 tage to 111-102. Harden reached 50 points with two Tobias Harris scored 25 points, and Ben Simmons free throws with 48.8 seconds remaining. The 50-point had 20 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists to lift visit- triple-double was the fifth of his career. Clint Capela ing Philadelphia over Minnesota. Jonah Bolden scored a added 24 points and 15 rebounds, while Chris Paul career-high 19 points, JJ Redick added 16 and Jimmy chipped in 22 points and five assists for the Rockets. Butler had 12 points and 13 rebounds. Mike Scott also The Kings were officially eliminated from playoff con- had 10 points off the bench. All-Star center Joel Embiid tention after going 0 for 5 from behind the arc in the sat out for the Sixers for load management, but they fourth quarter. The Kings entered the period 15 of 24 managed to win their second in a row. Andrew Wiggins on 3s. Bogdan Bogdanovic paced the Kings with 24 paced the Timberwolves with 24 points, while Karl- points off the bench, while Buddy Hield added 21 points Anthony Towns added 21. Gorgui Dieng chipped in 13. and De’Aaron Fox paired 18 points with 10 assists. PISTONS 99, TRAIL BLAZERS 90 MAGIC 121, PACERS 116 Suddenly short-handed Detroit snapped Portland’s Khem Birch gave visiting Orlando the lead for good win streak at six with a home victory. The Pistons, who with a dunk in the second minute of the fourth quarter improved to 39-37, have won 11 in a row at home. HOUSTON: Chris Paul #3 of the Houston Rockets shoots the ball against the Sacramento Kings at the Toyota en route to a win over Indiana in an important game for Detroit won in an unlikely way, losing star forward Center in Houston, Texas. — AFP both teams. A seventh win in their past eight games Blake Griffin shortly before tipoff and catching fire only allowed the Magic (38-39) to move within one game of after a woeful first half of shooting and offense. Reggie .500 in a tightly bunched group of five teams vying for Jackson scored a game-high 28 points, and Andre Conference. Gordon Hayward had 19 points, and points, 13 rebounds). New York’s leading scorers were the final three playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. Drummond added 22, to lead Detroit. The Blazers fell to Marcus Morris and Daniel Theis added 16 apiece for Emmanuel Mudiay (24 points), Luke Kornet (17) and Aaron Gordon led the Magic with 23 points, 10 48-28, including 19-19 on the road. Enes Kanter, who the Celtics, who lost to the Nets for just the second Kevin Knox (16). rebounds and seven assists, with more than half his has been starting at center for Portland, had 20 points time in their last 13 meetings. points coming on four 3-pointers. Darren Collison led and a team-high 15 rebounds. CLIPPERS 132, CAVALIERS 108 Indiana with 24 points to go with nine assists, and HEAT 100, KNICKS 92 Montrezl Harrell scored 23 points off the bench as host Bojan Bogdanovic had 22 points. NETS 110, CELTICS 96 Dion Waiters had a season-high 28 points and Los Angeles recorded its 12th win in 14 outings by D’Angelo Russell scored 20 of his 29 points in the added six assists as Miami defeated host New York. defeating Cleveland. Harrell shot 10 of 13 from the floor, GRIZZLIES 120, SUNS 115 third quarter to lead host Brooklyn over short-handed The Heat (38-38), who have a tenuous hold on the and rookie Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went 9 of 12 to finish Jonas Valanciunas scored 14 of his career-best 34 Boston. Russell added 10 assists, Caris LeVert scored eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, with 22 points for the Clippers (46-31), who also posted a points in the fourth quarter and also collected 20 15 points and DeMarre Carroll and Joe Harris chipped won their second straight game and reached .500 for 110-108 victory over Cleveland on March 22. Jordan rebounds as Memphis posted a road win over Phoenix. in 13 each as the Nets put a 2-5 road trip behind them the first time since Jan. 27. Miami got double-doubles Clarkson scored 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the Mike Conley added 33 points for Memphis, which sur- in their first home game since March 11. Brooklyn (39- from Goran Dragic (10 points, 10 assists), Kelly Olynyk floor, and rookie Collin Sexton added 21 for the Cavaliers vived 48 points by Phoenix’s Devin Booker. The Suns 38) remained in seventh place in the Eastern (12 points, 11 rebounds) and Hassan Whiteside (17 (19-58), who fell to 6-32 on the road. — Reuters Ashes rivals Warner Australia bowlers and Bairstow deny report of combine in IPL Warner rift record stand BANGALORE: David Warner and Jonny Bairstow set a record for the highest opening stand in the Indian MELBOURNE: Australia’s four frontline Premier League (IPL), with both players notching cen- bowlers, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat turies for Sunrisers Hyderabad yesterday. Warner and Cummins and Nathan Lyon, have denied a Bairstow put on 185 in just 16.2 overs in a 118-run victo- media report they were prepared to boycott ry over Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore, sur- last year’s fourth test against South Africa if passing Gautam Gambhir and Chris Lynn’s opening David Warner was picked for the match. stand of 184 against Gujarat Lions in the 2017 season. Vice captain Warner was suspended for the Former Australia vice-captain Warner is fighting for a match in the immediate aftermath of a ball- spot in their World Cup squad after completing a 12- tampering scandal in the third test in Cape month suspension for his involvement in the ball-tam- Town, which resulted in a 12-month ban for pering scandal in Cape Town last year. The 32-year-old the opening batsman and captain Steve Smith. showed he has lost none of his power-hitting ability as Local media, however, reported on he finished unbeaten on 100 from 55 balls, which includ- BANGALORE: Sunrisers Hyderabad cricketer Jonny Bairstow (R) celebrates with his teammate David Warner (L) Thursday that the bowlers had considered ed five fours and five sixes. after scoring century (100 runs) during the 2019 Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket match between boycotting the match if Warner, who was Warner was playing the anchor role, while Bairstow Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore at The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium. —AFP identified as the instigator of the plot for stepped up the scoring rate to belt 114 from 56 deliver- Cameron Bancroft to scuff up the ball with ies, before falling to Indian leg-spinner Yuzvendra sandpaper, was selected. Chahal. England opener Bairstow smashed 12 fours and just 30 runs, including captain Kohli and South African chase of 186 appear easy but his dismissal on 99 in the “We are extremely disappointed in an arti- seven sixes for his second-ever Twenty20 hundred, talisman AB de Villiers. Afghanistan off-spinner penultimate over derailed Delhi who ended up tied with cle (that) claims we intended to withdraw while Warner recorded his third consecutive 50-plus Mohammad Nabi finished with four wickets for Kolkata’s score needing the Super Over to decide the from the fourth test during last year’s tour of score to top the IPL scoring charts this season. Hyderabad as the hosts clinched a convincing victory. winner. Kolkata fast bowler M. Prasidh Krishna conced- South Africa had David Warner been free to “He’s great fun, just going ahead with hitting the ball,” Earlier, South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada was ed 10 in the Super Over, leaving the marauding Andre play,” the four bowlers said in a Cricket Bairstow said of Warner after Hyderabad finished with in his shorts and relaxing in the dressing room before Russell, who scored 62 off 28 balls in the team’s innings Australia statement yesterday. 231-2. “It’s fantastic to bat in the middle with him.” being forced to make a quick transition and conjure up of 185-8, with a relatively simple task. “This claim is disappointing on a number With the colossal partnership in Hyderabad, Warner his lethal yorkers for the Delhi Capitals in their pulsating But Rabada had other plans as he produced immacu- of fronts but most importantly because it is and Bairstow also became the first pair to make three Super Over win.