Jusuf Nurkic scores 24, Blazers beat Sixers 130-115

Jusuf Nurkic scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Damian Lillard had 17 points and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 130-115 on Saturday.

The Sixers struggled in their second game without All-Star center Joel Embiid, who is expected to miss at least a week with a sore left knee. Ben Simmons had 29 points and 10 assists and Tobias Harris scored 20.

Without Embiid, the Sixers couldn't keep up in a matchup between the fourth-place teams in each conference. The Blazers (36-23) have won three in a row, including a 22-point victory over Golden State before the All-Star break. Philadelphia (38-22) is 4-4 this month.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons (25) takes a shot during the first half on an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP PhotoLaurence Kesterson)

Portland opened the second half on a 17-6 run to build a 76-62 lead. Maurice Harkless had consecutive dunks and CJ McCollum also had a dunk in that stretch. Jake Layman's dunk off an alley-oop pass from Lillard extended the lead to 99-80, and the Blazers were up 100-82 going into the fourth.

The Sixers never challenged in the final quarter, scoring more than two straight points only once after they were already down 21.

Enes Kanter had 16 points and eight rebounds for Portland, which won at Brooklyn on Thursday night.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Jimmy Butler (23) takes a shot over Portland Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic (27) during the first half on an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP PhotoLaurence Kesterson)

The game was back and forth in the first half until the Blazers outscored Philadelphia 16-7 over the last four minutes of the second quarter to take a 59-56 halftime lead. Nurkic had 10 of the 16.

TIP-INS

Trail Blazers: Improved to 12-15 on the road. ... Kanter played in his second game with his team after being waived by the Knicks. ... G Evan Turner sat out because of left knee soreness. Turner was the No. 2 overall pick by Philadelphia in the 2010 NBA draft. ... Al-Farouq Aminu and McCollum each had 15 points.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Jimmy Butler (23) takes a shot over Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) during the first half on an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP PhotoLaurence Kesterson)

76ers: Fell to 24-8 at home. ... Veteran Amir Johnson played four minutes and scored two points, one day after volunteering to play for the Delaware Blue Coats of the G League because he hadn't appeared in a game since Jan. 26. ... JJ Redick shot 1 of 10. ... Jimmy Butler had 15 points.

UP NEXT

Trail Blazers: Visit Cleveland on Monday night.

Portland Trail Blazers forward Maurice Harkless (4) takes a shot over Philadelphia 76ers forward James Ennis III (11) during the first half on an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP PhotoLaurence Kesterson)

76ers: Visit New Orleans on Monday night.

More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/tag/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons (25) takes a shot over Portland Trail Blazers forward Al-Farouq Aminu (8) during the first half on an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019, in Philadelphia. (AP PhotoLaurence Kesterson)

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero had 31 points and 14 rebounds, Jalen Suggs added 24 points and the Orlando Magic handed Cleveland the worst playoff loss in franchise history, winning 121-83 on Thursday night to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 2-1 in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Franz Wagner finished with 16 points and eight assists for the Magic, who led by 43 points in the fourth quarter on the way to the third-largest margin of victory in a playoff game. They earned their first playoff victory since 2019 and the first on their home floor since April 26, 2011.

They can even the series with a victory at home Sunday.

Jarrett Allen had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who shot 39% from the field and 23.5% from 3-point range. Caris LeVert added 15 points and Donovan Mitchell had 13 points and seven assists.

76ERS 125, KNICKS 114

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid scored 50 points, making all four 3-point attempts and scoring 18 in a potential series-shifting third quarter to lead Philadelphia to a win over New York in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Embiid boldly stated “we’re going to win this series” after the 76ers dropped Game 2.

With one of the finest postseason efforts of his career, Embiid became the third player to ever score 50 points against the Knicks in the postseason and kept the hope of a Philadelphia series comeback very much alive.

The Knicks lead the series 2-1. Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Embiid was 13 of 19 from the floor overall, made 19 of 21 free throws and hit five 3-pointers.

NUGGETS 112, LAKERS 105

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Aaron Gordon had 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and Denver moved to the brink of the second round with a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series..

Jamal Murray scored 22 points as the defending NBA champion Nuggets won their 11th consecutive meeting with LeBron James and the Lakers in dominating style.

Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight road win over Los Angeles, starting with its sweep of last season’s Western Conference finals.

Game 4 is Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever rallied from an 0-3 playoff deficit.

Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) makes a shot as he gets past Cleveland Cavaliers guard Sam Merrill (5) during the second half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)