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Nightly Pulse: NBA news & highlights from Mar. 28

Follow along on all the latest NBA highlights, scores and news tonight with our Nightly Pulse live blog covering all the action.

NBA.com Staff

🏀NBA scores tonight

Pistons 133, Cavaliers 122 (Final)

Raptors 108, Hornets 97 (Final)

Clippers 132, Nets 100 (Final)

Warriors 111, Pelicans 95 (Final)

Timberwolves 124, Suns 109 (Final)

Knicks 116, Bucks 107 (Final)

Nuggets 129, Jazz 93 (Final)

✍️ Big NBA takeaways tonight

  • Pistons take down Cavs sans Cunningham: The Pistons were in for a tough matchup Friday against the East’s top team, the Cavaliers. The difficulty got ratcheted up when Cade Cunningham was ruled out. Fortunately for Detroit, a number of players stepped up in Cunningham’s stead to bank a statement win. Tim Hardaway Jr. poured in 32 points and three Pistons recorded double-doubles. With the win, the Pistons have tripled their win total from a year ago and clinched a winning season.
  • Knicks flex muscle in Milwaukee: The Knicks showed why they’re one of the league’s toughest teams on the road with an impressive 116-107 win over the Bucks tonight. A great sign for the Knicks is that it wasn’t all about Karl-Anthony Towns or Josh Hart dominating. They got a massive performance offensively from OG Anunoby, who had his second 30-point game in his last three outings. 
  • Western Conference playoff race heating up: The Clippers, Warriors and Timberwolves are all within a half-game of each other in the Western Conference standings. The Clippers sit in the coveted sixth spot while the Warriors and T’Wolves trail closely behind. All three were in action tonight, and all three got wins. This finish line sprint in the West is going to be something else. 

🥇Top NBA performers tonight

  • Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers: 31 points (25 in first half) six rebounds, four steals and two blocks in win vs Nets.
  • Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks: 30 points, nine rebounds, seven assists in return vs Knicks.
  • Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets: 27 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and four steals in win over Jazz.

Honorable mention: Drew Timme, Brooklyn Nets: 11 points and 10 rebounds to record a double-double in his NBA debut.

⛰️ Nuggets win in dominant fashion

Nuggets 129, Jazz 93

The highlight of the night, and maybe the season, was Nikola Jokic’s unbelievable halftime buzzer beater from way beyond halfcourt.

That was just one moment in what was a dominant win for the Nuggets as they cruised to their second straight victory.

Jokić wasn’t the only Nugget to provide a spark, though. Christian Braun had 16 points on 7-for-11 shooting

Peyton Watson got to show off his hops, too.

🌉 Dubs get the dub in Nola

Warriors 111, Pelicans 95

The Warriors got all they could handle from the Pelicans tonight but managed to pull away in the fourth to get get an important win and keep pace in a crowded Western Conference playoff picture. Their 22-9 run in the fourth made all the difference.

Steph Curry dropped 23 points in his return to lead all Golden State scorers and Moses Moody provided one of the nastiest dunks of the night with this wild right-handed slam.

🗣️Dunk of the night

Denver has given us highlights galore tonight including the incredible Jokić halfcourt heave but this Peyton Watson dunk deserves its flowers too.

Now that is a windmill. And the best dunk across the league tonight per our dunk score metric.

🐺 Timberwolves take down Suns

Timberwolves 124, Suns 109

Julius Randle set the tone tonight with 10 points in the first four minutes of action to help fuel a quality victory for the T’Wolves. Randle finished with 25 points, which was his highest total since March 12.

Minnesota was on fire from deep on the night, shooting 48.7 percent from beyond the arc.

And of course, we had a ridiculous Anthony Edwards dunk to round it out.

🃏 Joker’s wild

We’re running out of ways to describe what Nikola Jokić can do on the basketball court. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, he casually swishes a buzzer beater from his own three-point line. Seriously.

🗽 Knicks get big win in Milwaukee

Knicks 116, Bucks 107

Giannis Antetokounmpo returned to action for the Bucks tonight but the Knicks managed to show why they’re one of the best road teams in the league with what was effectively a wire-to-wire victory. The Knicks are now 22-15 on the road, good for fifth in the league.

A big development out of New York has been the recent play of OG Anunoby. The veteran popped off for 31 points and is averaging 28.4 points per game over his last five.

🦖 Raptors nab third straight W

Raptors 108, Hornets 97

The Raptors refuse to go away in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt as they banked a third consecutive win tonight. Jokob Poeltl was too much to handle for the Hornets with 24 points on 50 percent shooting to go with 12 rebounds and three assists.

Jamal Shead had a strong night off the bench with 17 points as well. His 17 points tie his career high, which he set earlier in the week against the Spurs.

The Raptors are off Sunday before a road matchup against the 76ers.

⛵ Clippers cruise to second straight win

Clippers 132, Nets 100

The Clippers’ east coast swing is off to a great start with wins over the Knicks and Nets to get it started. Kawhi Leonard was sensational again with 25 points in the first half to help build a big lead. He finished with 31 to go with four steals and two blocks.

The Nets had a fun story of their own tonight though as Drew Timme made his NBA debut and had 11 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.

👀 Close game brewing in Nola

The Pelicans trail the Warriors by one going into the fourth quarter. Steph Curry is up to 21 points with five threes thus far to lead the Warriors, while Bruce Brown and Yves Missi have provided the offense for the Pelicans.

Tune in to NBA League Pass to see if the Warriors can hold off the Pelicans for an important road win.

😅 Pistons hold off Cavs for statement win

Pistons 133, Cavaliers 122

Things got tense in Detroit as the home team saw a 21-point third-quarter lead evaporate into a one-score game with just three minutes to go.

However, the Pistons locked in and outscored the Cavs 14-5 in the waning minutes to stave off the comeback and secure the dub.

To make things more impressive for Detroit, they pulled off beating the East’s best team despite missing Cade Cunningham.

Tim Hardaway Jr. stepped up in a big way with 32 points, including seven made threes. Ausar Thompson, Jalen Duren and Dennis Schröder all recorded double-doubles as well. And Isaiah Stewart had one of the plays of the night. Check it out

Donovan Mitchell was sensational for the Cavaliers tonight with 38 points on 12-for-24 shooting.

🍿 Cavs mounting comeback in Motor City

The Cavaliers trailed the Pistons by as many as 21 late in the third quarter but have mounted a furious comeback to cut the lead to two points with three minutes to go.

Get to NBA League Pass now to catch the ending. You’re not going to want to miss this.

🏀 Knicks take 11-point lead into half in Milwaukee

The Knicks have been a strong road team all season and they’re showing up again tonight in Milwaukee with a 60-49 halftime advantage.

Mikal Bridge has been the offensive catalyst with 19 points in 19 minutes while Delon Wright has provided a nice punch with 12 points in 14 minutes.

🚫 Yves Missi says access denied

Yves Missi may have been put on a poster earlier tonight, but he evened the score with this incredible block of his own. Missi came into tonight tied for 13th in the league with 92 blocks this season and is adding to that total.

🔮 How’d he do that?

Minnesota’s Nickeil Alexander-Walker worked some magic with this up-and-under layup to give the Timberwolves a double-digit lead.

The Timberwolves and Suns are battling it out right now on NBA TV.

🚀 Kawhi is going OFF

Kawhi Leonard is doing it all tonight against the Nets. He’s up to 25 points with three steals and two blocks while shooting 8-for-11 from the floor and 3-for-4 from deep.

The Clippers put together a dominant second quarter with 42 points to take a 20-point lead into the locker room.

⬆️ Moses Moody. Elevation.

Moses Moody showed off the hops in New Orleans, getting to the rack and throwing down a nasty jam over an elite rim protector in Yves Missi.

The Warriors trail the Pelicans by six late in the first quarter.

💪 Julius Randle setting the tone

Minnesota’s Julius Randle has come out on fire tonight against the Suns with 10 points in the first four minutes.

The T’Wolves have opened a double-digit lead over the Suns in the early goings. Catch this crucial Western Conference clash on NBA TV.

😄 Debut Drew

Drew Timme is making his NBA debut tonight after tearing it up for the Long Island Nets this season. A March Madness legend in his own right, it’s only fitting he debuts while the Sweet 16 is going on.

Check out Timme’s first NBA bucket 👇

Kawhi Leonard doing it all

The Clippers are in Brooklyn tonight and Kawhi Leonard is showing up big time. Peep the steal to the dunk in traffic here.

Leonard is up to six points and a steal through one quarter, but the Clippers trail the nets 27-26.

🤯 Ausar. Awesome.

Get a look at Ausar Thompson’s unbelievable athleticism as he soars to finish off the alley oop in transition. He got all the way up.

Things are heating up in Detroit with the Cavs and Pistons going back and forth on NBA League Pass.

🥤 Donovan Mitchell. Blender mode.

This move to get to the hoop by Donovan Mitchell was ice cold 🥶

The Cavs have stormed back in the second quarter to knot things up against the Pistons. Catch the action on NBA League Pass.

🔥No Cade, no problem (so far)

The Pistons are without its star point guard, Cade Cunningham, for tonight’s marquee matchup against the Cavaliers. Detroit has rallied in his absence, though, taking a 31-26 lead through the first quarter.

Tim Hardaway Jr. has stepped up big time with 13 points (4-5 FG, 3-4 3PT) and Jalen Duren is off to a strong start with six points and six boards.

👨‍🍳 Chef Curry back in the kitchen

After a two-game absence, Stephen Curry is back in action for tonight’s game in New Orleans. Since the All-Star break, Curry is averaging 26.5 points per game on 49 percent shooting from the floor.

Yeah, it looks like Steph is ready to go.

🔑NBA storylines tonight

  • Phoenix’s tough road to the playoffs continues: The Suns have been battling for a playoff spot down the stretch and the schedule has been a gauntlet. Friday marks Phoenix’s fifth straight game against a team expected to make the playoffs and as it stands, all but one remaining game will be against a team of that caliber.
  • Clippers continue key road stretch: The Clippers are also jockeying for playoff position and are in the midst of a four-game east coast road swing. They take on the Nets tonight before heading to Cleveland for a big test Sunday.
  • Beasts of the East go toe-to-toe: The Bucks return home from a five-game road swing to take on the Knicks, who have clinched a playoff spot and sit third in the Eastern Conference standings. The key storyline for Milwaukee is the return of Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was sidelined for Wednesday’s loss in Denver.

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