Giannis Antetokounmpo came back from a two-game absence and scored 27 points on his 27th birthday to help the Milwaukee Bucks defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-104 on Monday night.

The two-time MVP also had 12 rebounds in his return from a sore right calf as the Bucks won for the 10th time in 11 games. Milwaukee split the two games it played without Antetokounmpo, losing 97-93 at Toronto and rolling to a 124-102 home victory over Miami.

Brandon Ingram scored 24 points and New Orleans beat Dallas 107-91 on Friday night, two days after the Pelicans lost by 32 to the Mavericks at home while letting them set a franchise record for shooting percentage.

The Pelicans missed their first eight shots and started 2 of 20 before going 13 of 19 (68%) in the third quarter and outscoring Dallas 63-43 after halftime for their fourth win in six games following a 3-16 start.

The Mavericks shot 68.7% in a 139-107 win to start the home-and-home set, but surpassed the 26 misses from that outing early in the third quarter.

Luka Doncic, who had 21 points and 10 rebounds, was just 7 of 20 from the field as Dallas finished at 41% (32 of 79). The Pelicans shot 42% (37 of 89).

Joel Embiid had a season-high 43 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists, and the Philadelphia 76ers held off the short-handed Charlotte Hornets 127-124 in overtime on Monday night.

Tobias Harris returned from a one-game absence due to illness and had 21 points and 11 rebounds as the 76ers shot 52.9% from the field and earned back-to-back wins for the first time since Nov. 4-6.

Embiid had six of Philadelphia’s eight points in overtime and assisted on the other score.

The Brooklyn Nets are starting to look like the team that was so potent a season ago.

Kevin Durant scored 32 points and led the spurt that broke open the game late in the third quarter, and the Nets beat the Atlanta Hawks 117-108 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory.

“We’re finding that rhythm, we’re finding each other and it’s just getting a lot easier,” James Harden said.

Dillon Brooks and Desmond Bane scored 21 points each, and the surging Memphis Grizzlies beat the Miami Heat 105-90 Monday night.

Memphis has won five straight without leading scorer Ja Morant, who hurt his left knee against Atlanta on Nov. 26. The Grizzlies have not trailed during their streak.

All five Grizzlies’ starters finished in double figures. Steven Adams had 17 points and 16 rebounds, while Tyus Jones and Jaren Jackson scored 14 points each.

CJ McCollum scored 28 points and the Portland Trail Blazers handed the Detroit Pistons their seventh straight loss with a 110-92 victory on Tuesday night.

Ben McLemore, who had played in just six previous games for the Blazers this season, had 17 points off the bench. Portland, with Damian Lillard looking on from the bench in street clothes, snapped a three-game losing streak.

Portland has won 10 straight at home for the first time since 2009.

Trae Young had 29 points and 11 assists, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot scored 23 points and the short-handed Atlanta Hawks beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 121-110 Monday night.

Danilo Gallinari scored 20 points off the bench for Atlanta, which was without injured wings Cam Reddish, Bogdan Bogdanovich, Solomon Hill and De’Andre Hunter on the second night of a back-to-back.

Mikal Bridges and Deandre Ayton were all smiles at the postgame podium, reminiscing about a four-year turnaround for the Phoenix Suns that’s in some ways still hard to believe.

The Suns won just 19 games during their rookie seasons. Now, they’ve tied a franchise record with 17 wins — in a row.

Ayton scored 24 points, Chris Paul added 15 points and 11 assists, and the Suns won their 17th straight by beating the Golden State Warriors 104-96 on Tuesday night in an early showdown between the NBA’s top teams.

“It’s just a lot of work, a lot of mental toughness, staying with it,” Bridges said. “We knew when we first got here that we wanted to turn it around.”