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Nightly Pulse: NBA news & highlights from March 11

Stay in the know on tonight's NBA action with the latest news, scores and highlights from around the league.

NBA.com Staff

🏀Tuesday’s NBA schedule🏀

 

 

  • Wizards 103, Pistons 123 (Final)
  • Nets 104, Cavaliers 109 (Final)
  • Bucks 114, Pacers 115 (Final)
  • Clippers 120, Pelicans 127 (Final)

📝Final notes📝

  1. Cleveland needed a comeback to do it, trailing by as many as 18 to the Nets, but finished the job in the fourth for their 15th consecutive win. Darius Garland was masterful in the fourth, scoring 18 and leading the charge to secure the win. Cleveland is now just the sixth team in NBA history with two separate 15+ win streaks and the 2nd team since 2000, joining the 2006-07 Suns.
  2. The Pacers pulled off a win, ending a three-game skid thanks to an incredible four-point play by Tyrese Haliburton in the final seconds, bringing Indiana into a tie with Milwaukee for the No. 4 seed in the East. The game was a nail-biting, neck-and-neck battle, with 21 lead changes and 22 ties. Although these teams currently share the same record, the Bucks still do hold the tiebreaker for now. These teams will meet again on Saturday in Milwaukee.
  3. The Pistons handled their business, beating Washington by 20 in their return home from a four-game road trip. With the win and Milwaukee loss, they’re now in a virtual tie with the Bucks and Pacers, as all three teams are 18.5 games back of the Cavaliers in the East. Detroit will host the Wizards again on Thursday.

🌟🌟Top performers🌟🌟

  • Darius Garland: 30 points, four rebounds, eight assists, and four steals. 
  • Cade Cunningham: 27 points, eight rebounds, 10 assists, and a steal. 
  • Pascal Siakam: 25 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and a steal.
  • Zion Williamson: 22 points, 10 rebounds, 12 assists, and a block.

🪽Pelicans soar🪽

 

New Orleans staved off any comeback attempts by the Clippers and pulled off a 127-120 win.

The Pelicans’ trio of Zion Williams, Murphy III, and CJ McCollum all went north of 20, with Williamson posting a triple-double with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists, while CJ racked up a team-high 23, and Murphy III added 21.

The Clippers’ star duo of Harden and Leonard delivered in the loss, but it wasn’t enough, with Harden dishing out 17 dimes to go with 25 points and Leonard scoring a game-high 29.

🤯What a bucket😱

 

The Pacers pulled out a 115-114 win over the Bucks on an insane four-point play bucket from Haliburton,

Haliburton then nailed the free-throw to get the one-point advantage, and then Giannis missed what would be a game-winning bucket as time expired.

This game was tight from start to finish, with 21 lead changes and 22 ties.

Siakam finished as the game’s leading scorer, with 25 points, but also chipped in 12 boards and five assists. Haliburton finished with 14 and 110 assists, while Mathurin added 17 off the bench.

Brook Lopez ended up as the Bucks’ leading scorer with 23, doing most of his damage in the fourth. Giannis finished with a double-double, pouring in 19 points and grabbing 17 rebounds.

✈️Murphy III takes flight✈️

 

CJ McCollum nears halfcourt and spots Trey Murphy III headed toward the basket, sends the lob, and Murphy III finishes with the reverse slam,

The Pelicans are still holding off the Clippers, taking a 98-90 lead in the final quarter.

💥More dunks💥

Siakam is having himself a game and is the matchup’s leading scorer with 25, including this explosive slam,

The Pacers and Bucks are tied 103-103, just past the midpoint of the fourth quarter.

Mo’ wins for Motown

 

The Pistons took care of business, beating the Wizards by 20, 123-103.

Cunningham finished as the team’s leading scorer, racking up 27 points, to go with 10 dimes and eight rebounds. Jalen Duren also posted a double-double, with 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Malik Beasley shot 4-for-6 from distance and scored 14 off the bench.

Marcus Smart led the Wizards off the bench with 16 points, while Jordan Poole and Bub Carrington each added 15.

 

⚔️Streak reaches 15⚔️

 

Cleveland struggled early in this one but played to an 18-point advantage in the second half to secure a 109-104 win over the Nets.

Garland was masterful in the fourth, scoring 18 of his 30 points in the final frame, and finished with four boards, eight dimes, and four steals. The Cleveland frontcourt duo was also superb, with Mobley scoring 21, pulling down nine rebounds, and dishing out six assists, while Jarrett Allen notched a 23-point, 13-rebound double-double and blocked three shots.

Cam Thomas was the Nets’ leading scorer with 27.

Obi brought the🔨

 

The Bucks and Pacers are in a nail-biter, knotted up at 84 later in the third.

These squads are also making plays and rattling rims, like Obi Toppin, who goes into the lane with bad intentions and draws an and-1 with a ferocious two-handed finish,

It’s shaping up to be a must-see final quarter. If you’re not near a TV to watch on TNT or truTV, find another screen and stream it on Max.

Clippers are getting out of the hole

New Orleans has led by as much as 21 in this one, leading from the jump, but the Clippers have trimmed things down to 61-51 after two.

Kawhi Leonard has been instrumental in the comeback, scoring 15 points, including this bucket set up by a Kris Dunn steal,

The seven dimes from Harden haven’t hurt either, including this nearly half-court lob to Derrick Jones Jr., who takes flight for the finish,

Oh, and a three-ball at the buzzer to end the half helps too,

 

Bucks charging🔋

 

Milwaukee has taken the lead over Indiana, 67-65, near the midpoint of the third quarter.

Who else but Giannis would be the one helping get it done, with Lillard setting him up for the strong two-handed slam,

Antetokounmpo is up to 16 points, and Lillard has dished out nine assists.

Cavaliers get the lead

 

Cleveland has outscored the Nets 20-11 thus far in the fourth and now leads the game 98-97.

This tough drive and finish from Isaac Okoro is what put them out in front, 96-94, and they still lead, 98-97 with just a few minutes remaining.

Garland has been clutch in the comeback, scoring 12 of his 24 points in the fourth.

Get your popcorn🍿

 

The Cavaliers outscored the Nets 28-23 in the third quarter but still trail, 86-78.

Despite his team being behind, Donovan Mitchell is enjoying the show from the sidelines and likely anticipating a comeback.

Part of the show Mitchell is enjoying is a beyond half-court buzzer beater from Craig Porter Jr. to end the third,

We should expect an exciting finish in Cleveland as they look to earn their 15th win.

Pacers lead at the break

 

Indiana takes a 57-55 lead into halftime against the Bucks in a pivotal battle for playoff positioning.

Bennedict Mathurin came off the bench and delivered buckets for the Pacers, making three of four three-point attempts and scoring 11 points,

Pascal Siakam is the leading scorer for Indiana and already has a double-double with 10 boards, in addition to his 16 points, including this throwdown,

Giannis is doing what he can for the Bucks, though, scoring 12 points, with nine boards, four assists, and showing off his work around the basket here,

🛠️Pistons going to work🛠️

Detroit has jumped out to a 66-49 lead over Washington at the break.

Cunningham is getting it done and filling up the box score with five assists, eight rebounds, and 15 points, including the tough fadeaway that turned into an and-1 opportunity,

Jalen Duren is also getting the job done, scoring 11 points with eight boards and two blocks.

Jordan Poole and Richaun Holmes are the Wizards’ leading scorers with 12 apiece.

Bucks bench duo

 

Milwaukee’s newest members, Kevin Porter Jr. and Jericho Sims, connect for an oop, for Sims only bucket and one of Porter Jr.’s two assists,

However, the Pacers have the lead 36-34 early in the second quarter, partly due to the hustle of T.J. McConnell, who doesn’t give up on the play and gets himself on the board,

⚠️Upset alert?⚠️

 

Brooklyn continues to lead the Donovan Mitchell-less Cavaliers in Cleveland and takes a 63-50 lead into the break.

Cam Thomas started to catch fire in the second quarter and now has 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting, including back-to-back threes to keep Cleveland at a distance, late in the second.

Cleveland is shooting just 5-for-19 from three thus far, but have gotten 14 points, four boards, and four assists from Evan Mobley.

Lillard🤝Giannis

 

The Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo connection is on point early. Lillard serves up the lob to Giannis for the easy dunk,

The Bucks have an 18-17 lead over the Pacers on TNT early, with Giannis already pouring in six points and grabbing six boards.

Nets cooking early🥘🍳🔥

 

Brooklyn is still running hot, currently beating Cleveland 38-30 early in the second quarter. 

Their current success is coming from beyond the arc, where they’ve hit 7 of 15 attempts, including this Jalen Wilson buzzer-beater at the end of the first,

Clean-up crew🧹🪣

 

Tobias Harris misses the off-balance fadeaway near the bucket, but Jalen Duren is there to clean it up with a strong one-handed putback.

Then, later, Harris misses a contested lay-in with the first quarter nearing its end, and Simone Fontecchio flies in to slam it in just before the buzzer,

The Pistons are out to a 35-21 lead over the Wizards after a quarter play. Cade Cunningham has eight points and five boards but also picked up two early fouls.

Richaun Holmes is the Wizards’ leading scorer after racking up a fast eight points off the bench in four minutes.

Bullseyes from deep🎯🎯🎯

 

Ziaire Williams and the Nets are looking to play spoiler and put an end to the Cavaliers’ win streak.

Williams is doing his part, scoring a quick nine points on 3-for-3 long-range shooting, and we’re knotted up at 16 near the midpoint of the first quarter.

👟New kicks👟

 

Tyrese Haliburton will be returning from a hip flexor injury tonight when he takes the floor against the Bucks at 7:30 ET. When he does, he’ll be debuting his new WWE DX-inspired Puma’s, the All-Pro Nitro PE’s.

 

3️⃣🔑Stories

 

  1. Cleveland will be going for their 15th straight win tonight when they travel to Brooklyn to face the Nets. The Cavaliers continue to compile rare feats. With a win tonight, the Cavs would become just the 6th team in NBA history with two separate 15+ win streaks and the 2nd team since 2000, joining the 2006-07 Suns. They recently became the second team in NBA history to win 14 straight games while scoring 110-plus points in each, joining the 1985-86 champion Celtics.
  2. The No. 4 and No. 5 seeds in the East will battle when the Bucks take on the Pacers on TNT, truTV, and streaming on Max. These two teams are separated by one game, with Milwaukee currently leading the season series, 2-0, and holding the tiebreaker. With a Pacers victory, these squads would be tied, each sharing a 36-28 record, while a Bucks win would create a two-game gap and give Milwaukee a tighter grip on home court in the first round, especially since they’d be guaranteed to hold the tiebreaker over Indiana. 
  3. The Pistons will return home after a four-game road trip and host the Wizards. Detroit has a firm grasp on the No. 6 seed in the East, with a five-game lead on the No. 7 Hawks, but maybe more importantly for Detroit, they’re within one game of the No. 4-seeded Bucks. With a win tonight by Detroit and a Pacers loss, they would move up to the No. 5 spot, while wins by the Pacers and Pistons this evening would push all three teams into a virtual tie. However, Milwaukee and Indiana would hold a slightly better win percentage than Detroit due to having played one less game and having one less loss.

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