Joel Embiid had 38 points, 76ers beat Celtics 122-110

Joel Embiid had 38 points and 11 rebounds, Tobias Harris scored 23 points and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Boston Celtics 122-110 on Friday night.

Seth Curry returned to the Sixers’ starting lineup following a seven-game absence because of a positive COVID-19 test and scored 15 points.

Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 42 points and nine rebounds, and Marcus Smart had 20 points.

Embiid followed a 42-point outing in a win over Boston on Wednesday night with another fantastic effort. He made 14 of 15 from the free-throw line -- a near-flawless retort after some mild criticism from Smart.

Smart said Embiid “flails and gets the calls” after the All-Star center went to the line 21 times in his 42-point game. The Celtics shot just 20 free throws in that loss and none in the fourth quarter.

CAVALIERS 125, NETS 113

CLEVELAND (AP) — Collin Sexton had 25 points and nine assists, Andre Drummond added 19 points and 16 rebounds and Cleveland beat Brooklyn for the second time in three days.

Nets superstar forward Kevin Durantwas held out as a precautionary measure as he continues his comeback from right Achilles tendon surgery.

Kyrie Irving scored 38 points, and James Harden had 19 points and 11 assists for Brooklyn, which lost 147-135 in double-overtime to the Cavaliers in the debut of its high-scoring trio Wednesday night. Durant scored 38 points in that game and played 50 minutes, so the Nets rested him Friday with another game scheduled Saturday.

ROCKETS 103, PISTONS 102

DETROIT (AP) — Jerami Grant’s driving layup on the final play came too late, and Houston held on to beat Detroit.

Down one with 3.4 seconds remaining, the Pistons inbounded to Grant, who faked a handoff to Blake Griffin and then drove down the right side of the lane. Time clearly ran out before he laid the ball in, but he was also bumped by Houston’s P.J. Tucker. Replays showed that contact also came after time expired, and after a review, the game ended.

Eric Gordon scored 20 points for Houston. Grant scored 21 points for Detroit, which rallied from a 20-point second-quarter deficit and nearly erased a four-point gap late in the fourth.

PAVERS 120, MAGIC 118, OT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Malcolm Brogdon hit the decisive 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in overtime, lifting Indiana past Orlando.

Evan Fournier’s 3-point attempt bounced off the rim at the buzzer for Orlando.

Brogdon led the Pacers with 23 points. Jeremy Lamb and Myles Turner each scored 22 points, and Domantas Sabonis had 18.

Fournier scored 26 points for the Magic. Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and 12 rebounds.

HAWKS 116, TIMBERWOLVES 98

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Trae Young scored a season-high 43 points, Clint Capela had 13 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocks and Atlanta topped Minnesota.

Young scored 25 points in the first half as the Hawks took a 19-point lead at halftime. He reached 40 points late in the third quarter with a step-back 3-pointer that put the Hawks up 84-59.

Capela had six blocks in the first half as Atlanta held Minnesota to 43 points on 16-of-35 shooting.

Malik Beasley was one of the few bright spots for Minnesota with 17 points. Minnesota has lost four straight and 11 of its last 12 after starting the season 2-0.

RAPTORS 101, HEAT 81

TAMPA , Fla. (AP) — Norman Powell scored 23 points, OG Anunoby added 21 and Toronto recovered to beat Miami after blowing a 21-point.

Pascal Siakam had 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Raptors. They never trailed on their way to avenging a loss to the Heat on Wednesday night.

Kendrick Nunn led the Heat with 20 points.

BULLS 123, HORNETS 110

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Zach LaVine continued his strong play with 25 points and nine assists, leading Chicago past Charlotte for its third straight victory.

Lauri Markkanen added 23 points, and Coby White had 18 points and eight assists.

Gordon Hayward led Charlotte with 34 points. The Hornets have lost four straight.

Image credits: AP