By Johnny Askounis/ [email protected]
In a remarkable performance on an eventful NBA night on Monday, Alperen Sengun recorded a game-high 32 points to lead the game. Houston Rockets to a 123 to 118 victory against the Wizards of Washington at Capital One Arena. The 23-year-old Turkish center shot 12 of 20 from the field and added 13 rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal. Despite eight turnovers in 38 minutes, he remained effective. “They were guarding one-on-one and we lost a few balls like that. Attacking the crowd, that was the key, I think,” he noted in a post-match interview regarding his adjustments to Wizards‘defense.
Meanwhile, Trae Young was ejected for entering the court to argue with a referee, just days before his projected debut with the Wizards against the Utah Jazz THURSDAY. After the match, teammate Bilal Coulibaly praised Young’s leadership: “It means a lot. He’s been really involved since he got here, on the field, off the field, in training, when we fly, when we’re in different cities, and all that.
The backup Rockets The center behind Sengun, Switzerland’s Clint Capela, contributed four points and eight rebounds in 11 minutes. For the hosts, Frenchman Coulibaly led the scoring with 23 points to play with two blocks, a steal and a rebound in 27 minutes, with Serbian Tristan Vukcevic (left thigh bruise) joining Frenchman Alex Sarr (right hamstring strain) on the injury report.
Latvian Kristaps Porzingis (general illness) having missed a fifth consecutive game during the 2025-26 regular season, the Warriors of the Golden State fell 114-101 against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Chase Center. The Dutch reserve options for head coach Steve Kerr ranged from Quinten Post scoring nine points to Malevy Leon with six scoreless minutes.
The visitors recovered from a 17-point deficit, buoyed by Switzerland’s Yanic Konan Niederhauser who had 11 points, nine rebounds, four blocks and two steals in 21 minutes. However, Frenchman Nicolas Batum recorded six unsuccessful minutes and Serbian Bogdan Bogdanovic did not play.
Monday results
Washington Wizards – Houston Rockets 118-123
Milwaukee Bucks – Boston Celtics 81-108
Utah Jazz – Denver Nuggets 125-128
Warriors of the Golden State – Los Angeles Clippers 101-114
Ranking
Eastern Conference
1. Detroit Pistons 45-14
2. Boston Celtics 41-20
3. New York Knicks 39-22
4. Cleveland Cavaliers 38-24
5. Toronto Raptors 35-25
6. Philadelphia 76ers 33-27
7. Miami Heat 32-29
8. Magic of Orlando 31-28
9. Atlanta Falcons 31-31
10. Charlotte Frelons 30-31
11. Milwaukee Bucks 26-34
12. Chicago Bulls 25-36
13. Wizards of Washington 16-44
14. Brooklyn fillets 15-45
15. Indiana Pacers 15-46
Western Conference
1. Oklahoma City Thunder 47-15
2. San Antonio Spurs 43-17
3. Houston Rockets 38-22
4. Minnesota Timberwolves 38-23
5. Denver Nuggets 38-24
6. Los Angeles Lakers 36-24
7. Phoenix Suns 34-26
8. Golden State Warriors 31-30
9. Los Angeles Clippers 29-31
10. Portland Trail Blazers 29-33
11. Memphis Grizzlies 23-36
12. Dallas Mavericks 21-39
13. New Orleans Pelicans 19-43
14. Utah Jazz 18-43
15. Kings of Sacramento 14-48
-The top 6 teams in each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seventh through tenth in each conference advance to the Play-Ins
