NBA Roundup: Celtics Edge Nets for Sixth Straight Win

New York — Jayson Tatum had a driving dunk and a 3-pointer on consecutive late possessions, pulling the Boston Celtics out of a late hole and leading them to an 87-85 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night.

Playing without Al Horford because of a sore left knee, Boston won its sixth straight heading into its trip to London to face Philadelphia on Thursday.

The Celtics were trailing by one when Tatum got the ball and drove for a powerful slam that gave them an 84-83 lead. Kyrie Irving missed on Boston’s next possession but wrestled the ball away from DeMarre Carroll and got it to Tatum in the corner near the Boston bench, and his 3 made it 87-83 with 45 seconds to play.

The Nets cut it two on Joe Harris’ tip and had a bunch of chances to tie in the final seconds, but missed a series of shots near the basket, with DeMarre Carroll appearing to be injured during the sequence.

Irving finished with 21 points, and Tatum added 14.

Spencer Dinwiddie had 20 points for the Nets, who were bidding for their first three-game winning streak of the season. Harris had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Both teams shot under 40 percent, with the Celtics perhaps worn out after a draining week in which they beat Cleveland on Wednesday and Minnesota on Friday in nationally televised games at home. But they played their usual rock-solid defense, limiting the Nets to 33 percent shooting from the field and 19 percent from 3-point range.

Notes: The Celtics missed their first five free throws before Irving made the second of his two attempts in the second quarter. Jaylen Brown was 0 for 4 in the first half. Boston finished 8 for 15. … The Celtics have won the last eight meetings, including three close games this season.

Warriors 121, Clippers 105

Los Angeles — Steph Curry scored a season-high 45 points without playing the fourth quarter and the Warriors ran away from Los Angeles for their fourth straight victory.

Curry took advantage of the guard-depleted Clippers, making 11 of 21 shots, including 8 of 16 3-pointers, going against rookie Juwan Evans and G-League call-up Tyrone Wallace.

The Clippers’ Blake Griffin suffered a concussion late in the first quarter when he stumbled driving into the lane from the right wing and hit his head on JaVale McGee’s right elbow.

Griffin fell to the floor immediately, and remained down for several minutes as team physicians tended to him. He walked off under his own power and went to the locker room.

Cavaliers 131, Magic 127

Orlando, Fla. — LeBron James had 33 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to just miss a triple-double in Cleveland’s victory over Orlando.

Kevin Love added 27 points, and Isaiah Thomas had 19 points and four assists in his first start since returning from a hip injury that delayed his Cavaliers debut. Dwayne Wade added 16 points.

Aaron Gordon led Orlando with 30 points, and Elfrid Payton had 20 points and five assists.

Pistons 108, Rockets 101

Detroit — Tobias Harris scored 27 points, and Detroit Pistons held on for another win against one of the NBA’s top teams.

Detroit is only four games over .500, but the Pistons have beaten Golden State, Boston, San Antonio, Minnesota and now Houston. The Rockets are without injured star James Harden, but the Pistons were missing their own standout, with Andre Drummond sidelined because of a right rib contusion.

As usual, Houston relied heavily on 3-point shooting. The Rockets went 7 for 13 from beyond the arc in the first quarter, but were only 8 for 34 after that.

Pacers 125, Bulls 86

Indianapolis — Victor Oladipo had 23 points and nine assists in three quarters in his return from a right knee injury to help Indiana beat Chicago.

Oladipo also had six rebounds and five steals to help the Pacers end a five-game losing streak. He missed the previous four games.

Domantas Sabonis added 22 points, and TJ Leaf had 15.