Darius Garland
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 23 | 1 | 11 | 9/20 | 1/4 | 4/4 | 1 | 0 |
Darius Garland posted his sixth double-double in his last seven games as the Cleveland Cavaliers took down the Oklahoma City Thunder, 94-87. Garland finished the night with 23 points and 11 assists to continue his strong seven-game stretch where he has averaged 21 points and 12.3 assists.
Alongside Garland, the frontcourt of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley went off. Allen finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds and two blocks. Then there’s Mobley who posted his sixth double-double of the season as he finished with 15 points and a season-high 17 rebounds.
Cleveland got up 75-54 in the third quarter and from there, the Cavs never let the Thunder pull closer than within six points. The Cavaliers core trifecta continues to play well as they continue to make their case as a legitimate Playoff team this season.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 29 | 9 | 6 | 12/23 | 3/7 | 2/5 | 3 | 1 |
This was pretty much the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander show. He led the team in scoring (29), rebounds (9) and assists (6) while shooting 12-of-23 from the field. Beyond Shai, Josh Giddey scored eight points and five rebounds before fouling out. Lugentz Dort scored ten points before getting ejected for elbowing Kevin Love.
The only other players that finished in double figures for the Thunder were Kenrich Williams with 12 points and Aaron Wiggins with 11 points as they both came off the bench. Just a rough night across the board for Oklahoma City.
Khris Middleton
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 34 | 6 | 5 | 12/20 | 5/7 | 5/5 | 1 | 0 |
With Giannis Antetokounmpo out, Khris Middleton went to work as he dropped 34 points to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to the 133-127 victory over the Sacramento Kings. This was a game where everyone ate for the Bucks.
Jrue Holiday accompanied Middleton with 26 points as the second leading scorer for Milwaukee. George Hill and Pat Connaughton combined for 32 points. Donte DiVincenzo came off the bench and scored 20 points in 24 minutes. Even Bobby Portis had 12 rebounds which led the team and was four points away from a double-double.
The Bucks only won one quarter in this game being the 2nd quarter, but they dominated that quarter 35 to 19. That outburst before halftime is what really locked up this game for Milwaukee.
Tyrese Haliburton
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 24 | 6 | 12 | 8/14 | 5/8 | 3/5 | 1 | 0 |
With no De’Aaron Fox and a quiet night from the bench, Sacramento’s starting lineup played a large part in keeping this game close.
Harrison Barnes led the team with 29 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field. Tyrese Haliburton stepped up big in the backcourt, finishing with 24 points and 12 assists while knocking down five threes.
Next in the hierarchy is Terence Davis, who dropped 22 points and seven rebounds. Then rounding things out, the combination of Richaun Holmes and Marvin Bagley III went for 30 points and 13 total rebounds.
As mentioned before, the Kings pretty much dominated this game for three quarters, but the quarter they lost was just too much to overcome. One of the many struggles of being a young team in search of a direction.
Chris Paul
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 18 | 4 | 16 | 8/11 | 0/2 | 2/2 | 4 | 0 |
The Phoenix Suns advanced to an NBA-best record of 36-9 with their sixth straight win as they defeated the Indiana Pacers, 113-103. When reading off the Suns’ box score, there are double-doubles all over the place.
Chris Paul finished with 18 points and 16 rebounds. JaVale McGee finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds in only 18 minutes. Even Bismack Biyombo got in on the fun with 21 points and 13 rebounds coming off the bench. Then there’s Mikal Bridges who had himself a good night with 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field to lead the team in scoring.
This was one of those games that truly flexed Phoenix’s depth considering they were without both Deandre Ayton and Frank Kaminsky in the frontcourt.
Goga Bitadze
| PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% | FT% | STL | BLK |
| 16 | 11 | 2 | 6/14 | 0/3 | 4/6 | 0 | 1 |
Practically the entire Indiana Pacers’ starting five missed this game due to injury, but all that did was open up an opportunity for the young guns to strut their stuff.
Second year forward Goga Bitadze notched a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Coming off of a big game winning shot a few nights ago, rookie Chris Duarte stepped up and finished with 17 points, four rebounds and four assists.
But we can’t forget to mention arguably the Pacers’ most exciting player, Lance Stephenson, who has been solid since returning to Indiana and came off the bench and dropped 17 points in 17 minutes while shooting an efficient 7-of-9 from the field.
Considering how undermanned they were coming in; Indiana was actually much more competitive in this matchup than anyone could’ve anticipated. Especially when they entered the game as 13-point underdogs.
