Nightly Beat: NBA recap & highlights from Jan. 21

The Trail Blazers' defense stifled the Heat in the second quarter, allowing only 17 points. They head into halftime with a 61-55 lead.

⚔️NBA rivalry week kicks off with a five-game slate⚔️

Magic vs. Raptors (

Live on NBA League Pass

)

Trail Blazers vs. Heat (

Live on NBA League Pass

)

Knicks vs. Nets (

Live on TNT/truTV/MAX

)

76ers vs. Denver (

10 ET, Live on TNT/truTV/MAX

)

Wizards vs. Lakers (

10:30 ET, Live on NBA League Pass

)

Portland clamps down

Anfernee Simons and Deandre Ayton are doing the damage, with Simons pouring in 17 on 5-7 long-range shooting, and Ayton has 14 and grabbed nine boards.

Knicks lead at the break

New York outscored Brooklyn, 35-25 in the second quarter to take a 59-51 lead at the half.

Karl-Anthony Towns perked up in the second frame and finished the half with 14 points on 6-9 shooting and pulled down eight rebounds. Bridges has 10, as the only other Knick in double figures. Hart continues to put together a well-rounded stat line and could be on his way to a triple-double with five points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals.

Cameron Johnson and D’Angelo Russell continue to lead the way for the Nets with 12 points each, while Russell has also dished out six dimes.

Big block➡️Big dunk

Day’Ron Sharpe gets up and delivers a big block on Mikal Bridges. Jalen Wilson grabs the loose ball, pushes the floor, and finds Noah Clowney for the big dunk.

The Knicks started to pull away in the second and built a 13-point lead, but Brooklyn fought back to get within five, 50-45, with a couple of minutes remaining in the first half.

☀️Heater in Miami☀️

It’s been a high-scoring affair thus far between the Heat and Trail Blazers, with Miami currently holding a 40-38 lead early in the second quarter.

Duncan Robinson hit three triples in the first and is sitting on 11 points, while Anfernee Simons has a team-high 11 for Portland.

The rookie Kel’el Ware is making his first career start for the Heat and is making an impact in the process, with four points, four rebounds, and two blocks. He also took flight for this nasty dunk,

Making the Magic happen✨

Orlando jumped out to a 32-11 lead on Toronto, but the Raptors clawed back a bit, to bring the score to 37-21 after one.

Paolo Banchero has been a force early, scoring eight points, with three rebounds, and two assists. Anthony Black and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope each have nine though on perfect 3-3 shooting to lead the Magic.

Bruce Brown is leading the Raptors with 10 off the bench and was a big part of slowing Orlando’s first-quarter momentum.

Battle of the Boroughs is on️

The Nets currently hold a 26-24 lead over the Knicks in a tightly contested, back-and-forth battle thus far.

Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, and OG Anunoby have each scored five for the Knicks, and Josh Hart is already filling up the stat sheet with three points, five rebounds, four assists, and a steal.

The Nets are being paced by Cameron Johnson, who has seven, while D’Angelo Russell has chipped in five, with two assists, and a block.

Check out some of the first quarter highlights below,

3️⃣Stories

Even with the return of Paolo Banchero, injuries may be catching up to the Magic. After a strong start to their season, they now sit at 23-21, as losers of three straight and playing to a 3-7 record over their last 10. Franz Wagner (oblique) should be returning soon, although it’s unclear when Jalen Suggs (back) and Goga Bitadze (concussion) will be. They have a good opportunity tonight to start moving back in a positive direction when they take on the 10-32 Raptors. 

It’s a battle of the boroughs when the Nets host the Knicks to kick off rivalry week. This game will also feature the return of Mikal Bridges to the Barclays Center for the first time since being traded to New York this past offseason. Since moving Bridges, a series of injuries and a couple of other trades have led to a rough season thus far for the 14-29 Nets. They’ll be looking to play spoiler here, as the Knicks come in at 28-16, fresh off a Martin Luther King Jr. Day win over the Atlanta Hawks.

The 76ers are losers of six straight with injuries remaining a significant issue. While Joel Embiid (knee), Kyle Lowry (hip), and Caleb Martin (hip) will remain out, they could see the return of Paul George (groin), Guerschon Yabusele (knee), and Andre Drummond (toe), who are each listed as questionable. It’ll be vital for the 76ers to get healthy moving forward as they currently sit 2.5 games out of a play-in spot at the midpoint of the season. On the other side, the Nuggets are getting healthy, and have won each of their four games Aaron Gordon has played in since returning from injury. This will be a battle of two teams seemingly headed in opposite directions, but the 76ers will be working to change that with an upset victory to cap off tonight’s TNT doubleheader.