WASHINGTON (AP) — Josh Hart had 23 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists for his third triple-double of the season, Karl-Anthony Towns had 32 points and 13 rebounds, and the New York Knicks beat the Washington Wizards 126-106 on Monday night for their eighth straight victory.
It was the second game in three nights between the teams. On Saturday night, the Knicks (23-10) outlasted the Wizards 136-132 in overtime behind 55 points from Jalen Brunson.
Jonas Valanciunas equaled his season high with 22 points for Washington (5-25). Alex Sarr and Malcolm Brogdon each had 18.
There was a scary moment with 3:07 to play in the third quarter when Washington rookie guard Bub Carrington fell backward while guarding a player and hit a Knicks player’s knee and then the back of his head on the court.
Carrington left in a wheelchair, covering his face and did not return with a post-traumatic headache.
BULLS 115, HORNETS 108, OT
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Coby White narrowly missed his first career triple-double, finishing with 23 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and Torrey Craig scored 18 with five 3-pointers after halftime as Chicago held on to beat Charlotte in overtime.
Nikola Vucevic added 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls (15-18).
Miles Bridges had 31 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for the Hornets (7-25), who’ve lost 16 of 17.
Trailing by 3 in regulation, Bridges missed a corner 3 to tie it and Vucevic was fouled. But the Bulls center missed both free throws, giving Charlotte another chance. This time, Bridges connected on a leaning 3-pointer with 2 seconds left to send the game into OT.
The extra period was all Chicago.
The Bulls raced to an eight-point lead as White scored on a drive and Vucevic and Craig knocked down 3s.
The Ball brothers matchup never materialized. LaMelo missed the game wrist soreness. Brandon Miller (sprained ankle) also sat for the Hornets. Zach LaVine (toe soreness) and Ayo Dosunmu (soleus strain) were out for Chicago.
CLIPPERS 116, PELICANS 113
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Norman Powell scored 35 points, James Harden hit go-ahead free throws with 17.9 seconds left and Los Angeles held on to defeat New Orleans.
With the Pelicans — losers of 10 straight and 19 of 20 — trying to tie the game, Harden adroitly fouled rookie center Yves Missi, whose 12-point, nine-rebound and five-block performance was tarnished by his missed free throw that could have tied it at 114 with 4.3 seconds left.
Officials prematurely blew the whistle because they thought Missi’s foul shot missed the rim. They called for a jump ball at center court after video review.
Ivica Zubac won the tip back to Harden, who made two more free throws with less than two seconds remaining to complete his 27-point performance. CJ McCollum shot from half court and hit the front rim.
Zubac finished with 20 points and 16 rebounds for the Clippers, who’ve won three straight and five of six.
NUGGETS 132, JAZZ 121
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 36 points, 22 rebounds and 11 assists to lift Denver to a win over Utah Jazz.
Russell Westbrook also had a triple-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists and finished 7 for 7 from the field with zero turnovers.
Jamal Murray also had 10 assists — the Nuggets had 38 as a team — to go along with 20 points.
Jordan Clarkson scored 24, and Collin Sexton had 22 for the Jazz (7-24), who have lost three in a row.
Utah led 66-64 at the break, but Denver outscored the Jazz 34-23 in the third to build some separation.
Both teams were missing a starting forward. Denver’s Aaron Gordon sat out with a right calf strain and Utah’s John Collins missed his fourth straight game with a hip bruise.
KINGS 110, MAVERICKS 100
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — De’Aaron Fox scored 33 points, and Sacramento beat short-handed Dallas to give Doug Christie his first win as the interim head coach after the Kings fired Mike Brown last week.
The Kings went on a 17-2 run to end the third quarter and take an 83-77 lead. Sacramento started the fourth on an 11-4 run, extending the lead to double digits on a 3-pointer by Trey Lyles.
Lyles had 14 points off the bench. DeMar DeRozan also had 14 points, and Domantas Sabonis had 17 points and 17 assists.
Dallas led by 18 in the first quarter before the Kings cut it to 60-56 at halftime.
The Mavericks were without Kyrie Irving (shoulder), Klay Thompson (illness), Dereck Lively II (hip) and Naji Marshall (suspension), in addition to Luka Doncic being out for at least the next month with a calf strain.
Spencer Dinwiddie and PJ Washington both had season highs for the Mavericks. Dinwiddie scored 30 points and Washington had 28.
CAVALIERS 113, WARRIORS 95
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Darius Garland scored 25 points, Donovan Mitchell scored 23 and Cleveland extended their winning streak to seven games with a victory over Golden State.
Dean Wade had 10 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, and Jarrett Allen had 12 points and nine rebounds.
Moses Moody led the Warriors with 19 points. Jonathan Kuminga had 18 points with 10 rebounds, and Trayce Jackson-Davis had 16 points and a game-high 16 rebounds.
Dennis Schroder had 12 points, and Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins each added 11 for the Warriors.
76ERS 125, TRAIL BLAZERS 103
PORTLAND (AP) — Joel Embiid had 37 points and nine rebounds as Philadelphia defeated Portland.
Tyrese Maxey added 23 points for the Sixers. Kelly Oubre Jr. had 15 points and eight steals, and Guerschon Yabusele had 16 points off the bench.
Anfernee Simons led the Blazers with 25 points on 9-of-18 shooting. Deni Avdija had 17 points but also 10 turnovers. Shaedon Sharpe, Toumani Camara and Deandre Ayton each scored 12.
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns, right, looks to shoot the ball over Washington Wizards forward Alexandre Sarr (20) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Dec. 30, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Investigators were looking into whether others were involved in the rampage that killed 15 people and injured dozens when the driver of a pickup truck sped through a crowd of pedestrians in New Orleans’ bustling French Quarter district early on New Year’s Day.
The FBI is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism and said it does not believe the suspect acted alone. The agency said the driver, a U.S. citizen from Texas, was killed in a shootout with police.
Investigators found guns and what appeared to be an improvised explosive device in the vehicle — which bore the flag of the Islamic State group — along with other explosive devices elsewhere in the French Quarter.
Wednesday's attack unfolded on Bourbon Street, known worldwide as one of the largest destinations for New Year’s Eve parties. Large crowds also gathered in the city ahead of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl that had been scheduled for later Wednesday at the nearby Superdome. The game was postponed until Thursday afternoon following the attack.
Here’s what we know about the attack:
Police said the driver steered around a police blockade and raced through a crowd along Bourbon Street around 3:15 a.m. Wednesday as revelers gathered to celebrate the new year. At least 15 people were killed and about 30 injured. Two police officers wounded in a shootout with the suspect were in stable condition.
Authorities also found potential explosive devices in the French Quarter, the FBI said. Surveillance footage showed three men and a woman placing one of multiple improvised explosive devices, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press.
The FBI said the driver was 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, an Army veteran from Texas.
President Joe Biden said the FBI told him that Jabbar posted videos on social media just hours before the attack indicating that he was inspired by the Islamic State group.
An IS flag was found on the vehicle's trailer hitch, the FBI said. The bureau is trying to determine if Jabbar was associated with any terrorist organizations.
Alethea Duncan, an assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s New Orleans field office, said during a news conference that the agency does not believe Jabbar acted alone.
Jabbar enlisted in the Army in 2007, working in both human resources and information technology. He deployed to Afghanistan in February 2009 for nearly a year, and later transferred into the U.S. Army Reserve, the service said in a statement. Jabbar left the military in 2020 with the rank of staff sergeant.
Court records show Jabbar faced a deteriorating financial situation in 2022 while separating from his then-wife. Jabbar said he was behind on house payments and had accumulated credit card debt and wanted to quickly finalize the divorce.
At the time, court documents show he made about $10,000 a month doing business development and other work for the consulting firm Deloitte. In a statement, Deloitte said Jabbar had “served in a staff-level role” since being hired in 2021 and that the company was doing all it could to assist authorities.
Guns and pipe bombs were found in the suspect's vehicle, according to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin obtained by The Associated Press. The devices were concealed within coolers and wired for remote detonation with a remote control that also was found in the vehicle, the bulletin said.
Biden said Wednesday evening the FBI was looking into whether an explosion outside a Las Vegas hotel owned by President-elect Donald Trump was connected to the New Orleans attack.
Fireworks and camp fuel canisters were found in a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel early Wednesday, killing a suspect inside the vehicle.
Authorities said Bourbon Street was filled with revelers toasting the start of 2025 and in the city for the college football playoff game between No. 2 Georgia and No. 3 Notre Dame when the attack occurred.
Among the victims were an aspiring nurse, a former football player and a single mother. Officials have not yet released the names of the people killed.
City documents show New Orleans has been in the midst of a major project to remove and replace post-like barriers called bollards designed to prevent vehicle attacks along Bourbon Street. That project began in November and involves replacing old bollards with new removable stainless steel bollards.
Wednesday's attack in New Orleans is the latest example of a vehicle being used as a weapon to carry out mass violence. The trend has alarmed law enforcement officials because such attacks can be difficult to protect against. Last month, a 50-year-old Saudi doctor plowed into a Christmas market teeming with holiday shoppers in the German city of Magdeburg, killing four women and a 9-year-old boy.
Associated Press reporter Tara Copp contributed from Washington.
This story has been corrected to show that the Sugar Bowl was moved to Thursday afternoon, not Thursday night.
An Orleans Parish Coroner van is seen on Bourbon Street during the investigation of a pickup truck crashing into pedestrians on Bourbon Street in front of the Royal Sonesta Hotel in the French Quarter in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
Emergency services attend the scene on Bourbon Street after a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon Street, Wednesday Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The FBI investigates the area on Orleans St and Bourbon Street by St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter where a suspicious package was detonated after a person drove a truck into a crowd earlier on Bourbon Street on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)
The scene after a vehicle drove into a crowd on New Orleans' Canal and Bourbon Street, Wednesday Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Investigators work the scene after a person drove a vehicle into a crowd earlier on Canal and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
