Westbrook triple-double not enough as Wizards fall to Sixers

Russell Westbrook looked just the same in new surroundings, but his new team Washington Wizards fell 113-107 to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday, December 23 (Thursday, December 24, Manila time).

Westbrook, who got traded to the Wizards by the Houston Rockets for John Wall, tallied the first triple-double of the season with 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 15 assists.

The former NBA MVP notched the 147th triple-double of his career as he chases the 181 mark set by Oscar Robertson.

Bradley Beal added 31 points for the Wizards, but 76ers big man Joel Embiid scored 15 of his 29 points in the 4th quarter and pulled down 14 rebounds playing for the first time under new head coach Doc Rivers.

One day after the Los Angeles Lakers launched their title defense with a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, their finals foe Miami Heat were also beaten.

Evan Fournier scored 25 points for Orlando and the Magic downed the Heat, 113-107.

Terrence Ross scored 19 points and Nikola Vucevic and Markelle Fultz added 15 points each for the Magic, who trailed by 2 points with less than 5 minutes remaining.

Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 25 points and 11 rebounds.

Elsewhere, No. 1 draft pick Anthony Edwards came off the bench to score 15 points for Minnesota and the Timberwolves rallied for a 111-101 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Malik Beasley led the Timberwolves with 23 points. Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points, 11 reboundsm and 7 assists – his three-pointer with 3:06 to play giving Minnesota their first lead of the game 98-97.

It was an inauspicious debut for the No. 3 overall pick in previous draft, LaMelo Ball, who went scoreless in 16 minutes for the Charlotte Hornets, who fell 121-114 to the Cavaliers in Cleveland.

Ball, younger brother of New Orleans Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball, handed out 3 assists and came up with 2 steals.

Cleveland native Terry Rozier scored 42 points for the Hornets and Gordon Hayward, who joined the Hornets as a free agent out of Boston, added 28 but Charlotte couldn’t get past a Cavaliers team that had 7 players score in double figures led by the 27 points of guard Collin Sexton. – Rappler.com

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story said the Wizards won over the Sixers. We have corrected this story to say that the Wizards lost to the Sixers.