NBA Roundup: Olynyk Hears Cheers, Then Sinks Celtics

Boston — Kelly Olynyk scored a career-high 32 points in his rousing return to Boston, and the undermanned Miami Heat hung on Wednesday for a 90-89 victory over the Celtics.

On a night when the Celtics honored their former forward in his first game back, the popular Olynyk received a standing ovation from Boston fans and led the Heat (16-15) to another win against the top team in the Eastern Conference. Josh Richardson had 19 points and six assists for Miami, which took two of three in the season series. The Heat ended Boston’s 16-game winning streak earlier this season with a victory at home.

Olynyk signed with Miami as a free agent during the offseason. His previous high was 30 points on Dec. 15, 2014.

When this one was over, he took photos with fans.

Kyrie Irving paced the Celtics (26-8) with 33 points, but missed a jumper from the right wing that bounced off the rim at the buzzer. Jaylen Brown scored 16 and Marcus Smart had 15.

Boston big man Al Horford went 2 for 10 from the floor with eight rebounds and fouled out with 8:14 to play.

Miami led 87-76 with 2½ minutes left before Irving sparked a 13-3 run with nine points.

Miami pulled out to a 71-60 lead when Olynyk drained consecutive 3-pointers in front of Boston’s bench with just under 10 minutes to go.

The Celtics sliced it to 79-75, but Richardson converted a three-point play and Olynyk nailed a 3 on consecutive possessions with less than five minutes left.

The Heat went on a 15-2 run midway through the third quarter, taking their first lead and building a 58-51 advantage on Bam Adebayo’s one-handed flip in the lane.

Thank You: The Celtics honored Olynyk as the “Hero Among Us” for doing more than 100 community appearances and helping raise thousands of dollars for their charity when he was with the team.

Notes: Jayson Tatum dislocated his right pinkie when it was stepped on after he dove for a loose ball in the opening minutes. He went straight to the locker room, but returned late in the first quarter. … F Daniel Theis played with a mask after surgery for a broken nose Tuesday. … F Guerschon Yabusele pretends to shoot an arrow and does a “dab” after he hits a 3.

Raptors 129, Hornets 111

Charlotte, n.c. — DeMar DeRozan scored 18 of his 28 points after halftime and the Raptors overcame a slow start to beat Charlotte for their fourth straight win.

Serge Ibaka scored 15 of his 24 points in the first half for Toronto.

Pacers 105, Hawks 95

Atlanta — Victor Oladipo scored 23 points, Myles Turner had 20 and Indiana beat Atlanta. Bojan Bogdanovic had 19 points as Indiana won for the second time in five games.

Kings 104, Nets 99

New York — George Hill scored 22 points, Zach Randolph added 21 and the Kings completed their first back-to-back sweep of the season.

The Kings got off to a sizzling start following their victory in Philadelphia a night earlier, then held on after Brooklyn cut a 21-point lead to two with just over a minute to play.

Bulls 112, Magic 94

Chicago — Denzel Valentine had 16 points and 10 rebounds, Nikola Mirotic had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and the Bulls beat Orlando for their seventh straight win.

The Bulls had lost 10 straight with Mirotic out of the lineup prior to his return Dec. 8, and they haven’t lost since to improve to 10-20.

Thunder 107, Jazz 79

Oklahoma City — Russell Westbrook had 24 points and 10 rebounds to help Oklahoma City roll past Utah.

Westbrook made 10 of 13 shots and had seven assists and four steals.

Lakers 122, Rockets 116

Houston — Rookie Kyle Kuzma set career highs with 38 points and seven 3-pointers, and the Los Angeles Lakers overcame 51 points from James Harden to end the Rockets’ 14-game winning streak.

It was Houston’s first loss since Nov. 14 and snapped a three-game skid for the Lakers.