With Kobe watching, LeBron scores triple-double to lead Lakers to 2nd win

LOS ANGELES — When Kobe Bryant took a courtside seat in the first quarter, Staples Center buzzed with excitement for the mere sight of the most popular athlete in this building’s history.

The crowd even started a “Kobe! Kobe!” chant in the fourth quarter — and it was immediately drowned out by cheers when LeBron James hit a 3-pointer.


With the symbol of the Los Angeles Lakers’ past watching in approval, James and the Lakers’ young core proved that their present and future is pretty tantalizing, too.

James had 28 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds while leading a late rally for his first home victory with the Lakers, 128-111 over the previously unbeaten Denver Nuggets on Thursday night.

LeBron and Kobe didn’t get a chance to talk, but the longtime friendly rivals likely both left happy with the Lakers’ new direction after James’ first triple-double for LA.

“Of course I noticed him sitting right on the baseline over there,” James said. “One of the all-time Laker greats. What he’s done for this franchise in his 20-plus years here speaks wonders for me. To be able to compete against him all those years, and for me to be able to share a jersey, the same jersey as him at this point, is pretty special.”

With Bryant in attendance for the first time since LeBron’s arrival in LA, Kyle Kuzma scored 22 points and JaVale McGee added 21 to complement James’ 74th career triple-double.

But the result was even more impressive: The Lakers trailed by eight points with six minutes left in the fourth quarter before Lance Stephenson, who finished with 12 points, started a 15-2 rally with back-to-back 3-pointers.

“The first couple of games, when we fell behind, we stayed behind,” James said. “Tonight when we fell behind, we learned from our mistakes, and that’s one of the most important things in life.”

James got Staples Center rocking on a go-ahead dunk with 3:31 to play before Lonzo Ball made an artful step-back 3-pointer. Kuzma added two huge dunks down the stretch of Los Angeles’ second win in two days after an 0-3 start.

“LeBron is doing what he always does,” Denver coach Michael Malone said. “And LeBron is bringing all those guys their confidence way up. You’re seeing Kyle Kuzma and LeBron, their chemistry growing.”


Nikola Jokic scored 24 points for the Nuggets, who were off to their best start since the 2009-10 season. Jamal Murray scored 22 points and Monte Morris had 20, but Denver couldn’t answer the Lakers’ rally led by James, who posted his third career triple-double in Staples Center for his third different team.

“We just came out on the short end today, but we’ve got a couple of days off to revamp ourselves,” said Morris, who added seven assists in just his eighth NBA game.

One night after earning their first win of the LeBron era in Phoenix, the Lakers beat the Nuggets at Staples for the fourth straight time.

TIP-INS

Nuggets: Isaiah Thomas attended the game, but didn’t play while recovering from offseason hip surgery. The compact guard finished last season with the Lakers, averaging 15.6 points in 17 games after getting traded by James’ Cavaliers. … Will Barton missed his third straight game with a hip injury.

Lakers: Rookie Svi Mykhailiuk had four points. The Ukrainian guard scored his first NBA points one night earlier in Phoenix. … Fans near courtside besides Bryant included actor Michael B. Jordan, Dodgers slugger Yasiel Puig and NFL rushing leader Todd Gurley.

MISSING GUYS

The Lakers played their third straight game without suspended starters Brandon Ingram and Rajon Rondo. Ingram will miss one more game for his role in the Lakers’ brawl with the Houston Rockets last weekend, while Rondo can return Saturday in San Antonio.

KOBE’S HOUSE

Bryant sat with Lakers GM Rob Pelinka, his former agent, in a rare visit since the 20-year Lakers veteran retired in 2016. Bryant spoke to a group of season ticket holders before the game about his forthcoming book.

“That’s one of my favorite players,” a visibly excited Stephenson said afterward. “He was like, ‘Good game,’ after the game, so I was a little hyped.”

LANCE BOILS

Stephenson provided an enormous boost for the Lakers on both ends of the court, in his usual inimitable style. The veteran said he came off the bench with a specific plan in mind: “Aggressive defense, and attack the big man (Jokic). We felt like their big man couldn’t match our intensity, so when I got in there, I was like, ‘Man, I’m going to attack the big man.'”

UP NEXT

Nuggets: Host New Orleans on Monday.

Lakers: At San Antonio on Saturday.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Book it: Devin Booker hits 28 to win 3-point contest

Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns won the 3-point contest with a record 28 points in the final round. He beat 2016 champion Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors and Tobias Harris of the Los Angeles Clippers.

“It feels really good,” Booker said. “I wanted to go out there and make a name for myself.”

Did he ever. He was sensational in the final round on Saturday, when he missed only five of 25 shots.

Each player shot five five-ball racks with a one-minute time limit. The final ball of each one was a “money ball” worth two points, and one of the racks, usually the last one, was all money balls. Booker made the money ball shot on his first four racks, and then made four of the five balls on the money ball rack.

Harris, Booker and Thompson advanced from the eight-man field to the finals. Harris scored 17 points before Booker scorched the nets for 28 points. Thompson followed and scored 25 points.

The previous record was 27 points, set by Stephen Curry in 2015 and matched by Thompson the following year.

Booker, the 21-year-old sharpshooter in his third season with Phoenix, is averaging 24.2 points per game this season as the NBA’s 12th-leading scorer. Eleven months after the shooting guard dropped 70 points against Boston to become the youngest player in NBA history to score even 60 in a game, Booker added another accolade to his promising career with the 3-Point title.

Thompson beat the buzzer with his final shot of the first round to reach the finals with 19 points. Booker also scored 19 and Harris had 18.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Curry comes through in OT, Warriors outlast Lakers

LOS ANGELES, California—After struggling from long range all night, Stephen Curry hit two quick 3-pointers to open overtime and the Golden State Warriors outlasted the Los Angeles Lakers 127-123 on Wednesday.

The victory prevented the Warriors from losing two straight games for the first time this season.

Kevin Durant led Golden State with 29 points, while Curry added 28 and Klay Thompson 20. Curry had 13 points in overtime.

Brandon Ingram scored a career-high 32 to lead the Lakers. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jordan Clarkson had 21 each, and Julius Randle scored 20.

Curry was 1 for 7 on 3-point attempts in regulation.

Los Angeles had a chance to win at the end of regulation when Randle rebounded Durant’s miss with 5.3 seconds to play. The Lakers set up a play for Ingram, but he missed a driving 8-footer.

The Lakers trailed by 10 at the end of the first quarter, but charged back by shooting 71 percent in the second to take a 54-50 lead at halftime.

After scoring five consecutive points in the third quarter, Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball was in a scrape on the floor for a loose ball when his head slammed against the court. It opened up a small cut above his left eye. The Lakers closed it with a Steri-Strip and Ball returned to the game. He finished with 15 points and 10 assists.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Adele sweeps Grammys Awards with 5 wins, while Bowie wins 4

LOS ANGELES, United States — Even though Adele flubbed during her live performance at the Grammys, she walked away the belle of the ball: She took home five awards Sunday night, including album, record and song of the year.

She beat Beyonce in the top three categories with her comeback album “25,” and repeated her accomplishments from 2012, when the British star also won album, song and record of the year at the Grammys.

She used her speech to honor Beyonce and her groundbreaking “Lemonade” album, which was also nominated.

“The way you make my friends feel, the way you make my black friends feel is empowering,” Adele said at the Staples Center in Los Angeles when accepting album of the year.

“I adore you. You move my soul everyday … I adore you and I want you to be my mommy,” Adele said to a very pregnant Beyonce just minutes before picking up song of the year for “Hello.”

The night for Adele wasn’t all good though:  The singer, who had trouble with her live performance at last year’s Grammys, asked to restart her tribute to George Michael, telling the audience: “I can’t mess this up for him.” She stopped and used an expletive after singing some of a new arrangement of Michael’s “Fastlove,” as videos and photos of Michael played in the background. She re-sang the song and earned applause and support from the crowd, though Adele was teary eyed.

Michael died on Christmas Day. At last year’s show, the British singer had a hiccup after a microphone inside a piano fell onto the instrument’s strings.

A number of other icons were honored, including Prince: Bruno Mars — rocking a glittery, Prince-like purple blazer, worked the guitar like a pro while singing the icon’s “Let’s Go Crazy.” The Time — who worked closely with the Prince — brought the audience to its feet with funky performances of “Jungle Love” and “The Bird.”

“Make some noise for Prince y’all,” Mars yelled.

Mars was also a winner Sunday — he won for his producing work on Adele’s album. Adele’s other wins included best pop vocal album and pop solo performance.

Until Adele’s abrupt restart, Beyonce was the talk of the show. In glittery gown, gilded crown and gold choker, a pregnant Beyonce took the Grammy stage in a lengthy performance of two songs from her critically acclaimed album “Lemonade.” She was introduced by her mother and former stylist, Tina Knowles: “Ladies and gentlemen, with my mother’s pride, my daughter, Beyonce.”

Beyonce sang on top of a long table, even leaning back on a chair while singing “Love Drought.” She later sang “Sandcastles” while sitting down in a chair that tilted alarmingly backward, hitting high notes.

She earned a loud applause from the audience, including daughter Blue Ivy and husband Jay Z. Beyonce, who walked into the show with nine nominations, won two: best music video (“Formation”) and urban contemporary album (“Lemonade”).

“My intention for the film and album is to create a body of work that would give voice to our pain, our struggles, our doubts, and our history, to confront issues that make us uncomfortable. It’s important to me to show images to my children that reflect their beauty, so they can grow in a world, where they look in the mirror, first with their own families as well as in the Super Bowl, the Olympics, the White House and the Grammys and see themselves,” said Beyonce, reading from a card. “This is something that I want for every child of every race, and I feel that it’s vital that we learn from the past and recognize our tendencies to repeat our mistakes.”

Beyonce’s speech wasn’t the only political moment: A Tribe Called Quest, along with Anderson .Paak and Busta Rhymes, gave a rousing performance and shouted “resist, resist” at their end of the performance, which featured a number of people onstage, including women in hijabs.

David Bowie, who died last year from cancer, won all four awards he was nominated for. “Blackstar,” his final album released days after he died, won best alternative music album and engineered album, non-classical (Bowie is listed as one of the engineers on “Blackstar.”) In the latter category, he beat out Prince, who also died last year.

The title track won best rock song and rock performance.

Adele and Mars worked overtime onstage, performing twice. Adele kicked off the show with “Hello” and Mars and his groovy band gave a memorable performance of “That’s What I Like” — as Jennifer Lopez, Faith Hill, Rihanna and even some of the men in the audience watched closely, looking impressed.

Chance the Rapper won the first award in the live telecast for best new artist. He also won best rap album — the first streaming-only album to do so — and bested Drake and Kanye West.

“I didn’t think we were gonna get this one,” said Chance, who also won best rap performance.

Twenty one pilots won best pop duo/group performance for the hit “Stressed Out.” They removed their pants when accepting the award in homage to their earlier days when they watched the Grammys at home in their boxers.

In the pre-telecast, Beyonce’s younger sister, critical R&B darling Solange, won her first Grammy for best R&B performance (it was her first-ever nomination). Drake, who didn’t attend the live show, won best rap song and rap/sung performance for the smash hit, “Hotline Bling.”

Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” — which is nominated for an Oscar — won best song written for visual media. Best new artist nominees The Chainsmokers won best dance recording for the pop hit “Don’t Let Me Down,” while Simpson, an album of the year nominee, won best country album for “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth.”

The country music rebel thanked his wife, who he said told him to quit his job on the railroad years ago and move to Nashville.

Joey + Rory won best roots gospel album for “Hymns,” and Rory Feek was emotional onstage as he remembered his wife Joey, who died last year from cancer.

Some actors won Grammys, too: Don Cheadle picked up best compilation soundtrack for visual media for “Miles Ahead,” where he is credited as a compilation producer, and Carol Burnett won the best spoken word album Grammy.

“The Color Purple” won best musical theater album, giving Jennifer Hudson her second Grammy and earning Tony winner Cynthia Erivo and “Orange Is the New Black” actress Danielle Brooks their first Grammys. CBB

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Lakers hold off Nuggets to snap latest losing streak

LOS ANGELES, California—D’Angelo Russell sometimes seems to be playing at a higher frequency than his Los Angeles Lakers teammates, who occasionally struggle to be in the right place for their point guard’s clever passes.

Everybody was playing at Russell’s speed for most of their win over Denver, even when things went a little haywire in the final minutes.

Nick Young scored 23 points, Lou Williams added 21 and the Lakers survived a frantic fourth quarter to snap their seven-game home losing streak against Denver, beating the Nuggets 120-116 on Tuesday night.

Rookie Ivica Zubac scored a career-high 17 points for the Lakers, who snapped their three-game skid despite getting outscored 40-39 in the wild final period. His pick-and-rolls with Russell in the fourth quarter were one big component of an impressive offensive finish.

“He was our leader on the court, and he was making all the right plays,” the 19-year-old Zubac said. “He needs to play like that, and I think he can do it every night.”

Russell finished with 22 points, a career-high 10 assists and seven rebounds in his return from a three-game absence with a pair of mild leg injuries.

“Guys were making shots right and left,” Russell said. “We were getting stops, and it just made it easier for me. I know how easy it is to get assists, but you have to attack, and we’re realizing that.”

Wilson Chandler scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth for the Nuggets, whose three-game winning streak ended with just their third loss in 10 games. Kenneth Faried had 14 points and 17 rebounds, but managed only two points and three boards after halftime.

“Just a poor, poor defensive performance,” Denver coach Michael Malone said. “Disappointing.”

Both teams were without key big men.

The Lakers played their second straight game without starting forward Julius Randle, who is recovering from pneumonia. Tarik Black moved into the starting lineup and had six points and eight rebounds. The Lakers hope Randle will be ready for their upcoming road trip.

The Nuggets played their second straight game without rising Serbian star Nikola Jokic, who has a strained hip flexor. Jokic did light work in practice, and Malone calls him day-to-day. Jusuf Nurkic struggled as the starting center, going 0 for 7 in 12 minutes of play.

The Nuggets hit their first six 3-point attempts and scored 11 consecutive points to open the fourth, but Williams scored 13 points in the final period and Zubac added eight. Williams put the Lakers ahead to stay on a layup with 2:17 left. Zubac and Russell added jumpers on the Lakers’ next two possessions. Los Angeles went 14 for 21 in the final period.

“They were able to score on us on every possession in the last few minutes of the game,” said Danilo Gallinari, who scored 17 points.

The Nuggets beat the Lakers at Staples Center two weeks ago, and they hadn’t lost a road game in this rivalry since November 2012. That was during the Lakers’ most recent playoff season, when Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant had hoped to team up with Steve Nash in a superteam.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Butler scores 40 to push Bulls past Lakers

LOS ANGELES — Jimmy Butler scored a season-high 40 points and Isaiah Canaan added a season-high 17 in the Chicago Bulls’ fifth victory in six games, 118-110 over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.

Nikola Mirotic had 15 points and 15 rebounds and the Bulls held off Los Angeles’ late rally for their third win in four stops on their annual circus road trip.

Rajon Rondo had four points, nine rebounds and 12 assists despite a sore left ankle. He hit a floater in the lane with 28.6 seconds left to secure the Bulls’ win after Los Angeles trimmed a 15-point lead to five.

Lou Williams scored a season-high 25 points and Larry Nance Jr. had a career-high 18 for the Lakers (7-7), but their other young stars mostly struggled in their second straight loss.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Lakers stun Warriors, end Curry’s 3-point streak

LOS ANGELES — Lou Williams scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, and the Los Angeles Lakers snapped Stephen Curry’s NBA-record streak of 157 games with a 3-pointer in a 117-97 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday night.

Julius Randle had 20 points and 14 rebounds for the rebuilding Lakers, who pulled off their second straight shocking home upset of the mighty Warriors with an impressive effort from their exciting young roster.

Lakers coach Luke Walton also won his first meeting with his former team and his coaching mentor, Steve Kerr.

Curry scored 13 points while going 0 for 10 from 3-point range, ending several incredible long-distance streaks. He had hit a 3-pointer in every regular-season game since Nov. 11, 2014.

Including the postseason, Curry had at least one 3 in 196 straight games, and he had also hit in 116 straight regular-season road games – both NBA records.

Walton was Kerr’s assistant during the Warriors’ 2014-15 championship season and again last year, when he led Golden State to a 39-4 start while Kerr was recovering from a back injury.

Golden State didn’t lose its second game under Walton that year until Dec. 30, but these reconfigured Warriors are off to a 4-2 start with this shocker coming one night after an important victory over Oklahoma City.

The young, exciting Lakers jumped to a 21-point lead in the third quarter with ball movement resembling the Warriors’ style. They fought off star-studded Golden State’s challenge in the fourth quarter with huge games from Williams and Randle, their versatile forward. D’Angelo Russell added 17 points, and rookie Brandon Ingram had 12.

Golden State lost 112-95 to the Lakers at Staples Center in March, one of the biggest regular-season upsets in NBA history and one of the Warriors’ mere nine losses last season.

One night after Kevin Durant scored 39 points against his former Thunder teammates, the Warriors got off to an awfully slow start in LA.

The Warriors scored a season-low 15 points in the first quarter. That’s also the fewest points allowed by the Lakers in any quarter this season.

Golden State missed its first seven 3-pointers, only getting its first on Andre Iguodala’s buzzer-beater. Durant, Curry and Klay Thompson were a combined 5 for 18.

source: sports.inquirer.net

In LeBron’s final duel with Kobe, Cavs top Lakers 120-108

LOS ANGELES  — LeBron James savored every bump from Kobe Bryant in the low post. He relished every down-court sprint, every big shot – and even the fake that left him sailing helplessly through the air while Kobe pivoted around him for a layup.

The farewell duel between two of the greatest players in NBA history was quality entertainment, even for the two men involved.

“I wish I could play against him every single night,” James said. “Just that competitive juice, that feeling of just going against one of the greatest, you can never take that for granted.”

James scored 24 points while sharing a court with Bryant for the final time, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 120-108 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.

Bryant, who will retire after the season, had 26 points on 11-of-16 shooting. He ignored his constantly sore right shoulder to make sure he didn’t miss his 22nd meeting with James on an NBA court, albeit never in the playoffs.

“It was just fun,” Bryant said. “I enjoy the physicality of it. Playing against him is fun because of his size. It’s always fun to bump with him and to have that physicality, backing him down and driving and bumping. That’s fun.”

After a pregame chat and hug with the crowd on its collective feet just to watch pregame warmups, Bryant and James both had vintage individual moments in the final edition of this friendly rivalry.

Bryant got a raucous standing ovation in the first quarter after that graceful post move, faking James out of his shoes and stepping around him.

“It was everything for a competitor like myself,” James said. “I know he was not taking this game off for sure, and I definitely wasn’t taking it off. It was great to be out there.”

Kyrie Irving scored 26 points and Channing Frye had 21 for the Cavaliers, who have won on the first two stops of their four-game West Coast road trip. Irving needled Bryant after a short free throw, and Kobe responded by guarding the youngster.

“It’s just great to have that mentorship out on the floor, but our relationship goes (further) off the court than it does on the floor,” said Irving, who recalled challenging Bryant to a 1-on-1 game at U.S. national team camp. “But to play against him one last time here in the Staples, it means a lot. I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.”

Bryant and James have been parallel superstars for the past 13 seasons. The U.S. national team teammates are the No. 3 and No. 13 scorers in NBA history, with 30 combined All-Star selections and seven championship rings.

The superstars are clearly friends, but their lack of a playoff showdown means they never developed enough history to suit Bryant. Either Bryant or James has played in the past nine NBA Finals, but never at the same time.

“It’s not a rivalry, but I wouldn’t say it’s because we like each other too much,” Bryant said. “I don’t like anybody that much.”

Bryant hit back-to-back jumpers in the second quarter while James threw down a pair of thunderous dunks. Bryant scored seven quick points in the third quarter, but the Cavaliers stretched their lead with James leading the way.

James and Bryant returned to the game midway through the fourth quarter with Cleveland well in front. Bryant hit a 3-pointer with 3:17 to play to trim Cleveland’s lead to 12 points, but went to the bench moments later with fans chanting his name.

Rookie Love

D’Angelo Russell scored 24 points, Julius Randle added 15 and Marcelo Huertas had a career-high 13 for the Lakers, whose two-game winning streak ended. Russell scored at least 20 points for the seventh time in eight games. “He’s been playing some good ball,” James said of the No. 2 pick. “Obviously, as a rookie you have some ups and downs, but they have a good player.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Taylor Swift wins top Grammy Award, Kendrick Lamar wins 5

LOS ANGELES—Taylor Swift’s official switch from country to pop with her multi-hit, best-selling “1989” album brought the singer her second Grammy Award win for album of the year.

Swift was shocked when she won the night’s top prize, beating out Kendrick Lamar, Chris Stapleton, Alabama Shakes and the Weeknd. Swift used her speech to encourage young women who feel defeated at times or discouraged by others.

“There are going to people out there that try to undercut your success or take credit for your fame … you don’t let those people sidetrack (you),” she said.

Swift won Grammy album of the year for “Fearless” in 2009. She won three awards Monday, including best pop vocal album and best music video for “Bad Blood,” at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Alabama Shakes also won three awards, though Lamar was the night’s big winner with five.

He won best rap album for “To Pimp a Butterfly” as well as rap performance, rap song, rap/sung performance and music video. Along with his wins, Lamar also had a show-stopping moment when he took the stage.

He started as he appeared beaten, in handcuffs, with chains around his hands and a bruise on his eyes. He went on to fuse rap, jazz, reggae and African sounds for a commanding performance as he rapped “The Blacker the Berry” and the Grammy-nominated “Alright” passionately. He ended with a map of Africa, and the city of Compton imprinted in it.

“Hip-hop, Ice Cube, this for hip-hop, this for Snoop Dogg …this for Nas. We will live forever, believe that,” said Lamar onstage when he won best rap album.

Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars won two awards for “Uptown Funk,” including record of the year. Ronson gave a shout-out to Prince, James Brown and George Clinton for being leaders in funk.

“This is dedicated to the fans right here,” Mars added.

Mars introduced Adele, who sang “All I Ask,” which they wrote together for her new album “25.” She was accompanied with a piano behind her, but the audio sounded off and appeared to throw off her performance.

“There was a brief 5-8 second technical issue that was out of our control,” a CBS spokesperson said.

Justin Bieber started “Love Yourself” on guitar in good form, but ended with a vocal struggle. Little Big Town and Demi Lovato, however, had shining moments during their performances, hitting impressive and smooth high notes.

But Bieber also had a shining moment: He won his first Grammy on Monday night for best dance recording for “Where Are U Now” with Skrillex and Diplo.

The Grammys also marked first-time wins for Alabama Shakes, the Weeknd, Stapleton, Pitbull and Ed Sheeran, who won song of the year for “Thinking out Loud.”

“We wrote it on a couch in my house,” he said of his hit song he wrote with Amy Wadge, which also won him best pop solo performance.

Alabama Shakes’ three wins included best alternative music album for “Sound & Color,” as well as rock song and rock performance for “Don’t Wanna Fight,” which they performed.

“My heart is beating a mile a minute,” said frontwoman Brittany Howard. “I promise we’re going to keep going.”

The Weeknd, who won two awards, performed in a cube that was brightly lit for “Can’t Feel My Face” until he switched to piano-tinged version of his upbeat hit “In the Night.” Stapleton, who has written for dozens of country acts, won best country album for “Traveller.”

“This is something you never ever dream of so I’m super grateful for it,” he said.

Stapleton walked in with four nominations, including album of the year, but lost best country song to “Girl Crush.”

The night featured touching tributes: Lady Gaga was in David Bowie-inspired makeup and gear as she ran through 10 of the icon’s hits, including “Space Oddity,” ”Changes,” ”Fame,” ”Let’s Dance” and “Heroes.”



B.B. King was remembered with a rousing performance by Chris Stapleton, Gary Clark. Jr and Bonnie Raitt — all on guitar and vocals — with “The Thrill Is Gone.”

The Hollywood Vampires, a supergroup of Johnny Deep, Alice Cooper and Joe Perry, performed in their first televised performance and honored Motorhead’s Lemmy Kilmister. Stevie Wonder, joined with Grammy-winning a capella group Pentatonix, sang “That’s the Way of the World” in honor of Earth, Wind & Fire’s Maurice White, while members of the Eagles and Jackson Browne sang “Take It Easy” for Glenn Frey at the Staples Center.

Collaborative performances were one of the themes of the Grammys: Carrie Underwood sang with Sam Hunt; Ellie Goulding and Andra Day performed; and while Lovato, Legend, Luke Bryan and Tyrese sang with Lionel Richie to honor the icon.

Rihanna, who was supposed to perform near the top of the show, couldn’t due to doctor’s orders.

“Rihanna’s doctor put her on vocal rest for 48 hours because she was at risk of hemorrhaging her vocal chords,” a statement from her representative read.

Swift kicked off the Grammys with performance of her latest hit single, “Out of the Woods,”

Meghan Trainor, who was nominated for two Grammys last year for “All About That Bass,” won best new artist.

“Thank you to the Grammys, I love you so much,” said a teary-eyed Trainor, who also thanked her parents and Epic Records CEO L.A. Reid.

Other winners include D’Angelo, Kirk Franklin and Jason Isbell.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Kings halt Clippers' 10-game win streak

LOS ANGELES — DeMarcus Cousins had 19 points, 13 rebounds and six assists as the Sacramento Kings ended the Los Angeles Clippers' 10-game winning streak with a 110-103 victory on Saturday night at Staples Center.

"To come in their house and get a win like this is good for us," said Cousins, who had 15 points in the first half.

Rudy Gay had 18 points and seven rebounds while Omri Casspi and Darren Collison came off the bench to add 17 points apiece for the Kings (17-23), who snapped a five-game skid against Los Angeles.

Ben McLemore and Rajon Rondo had 15 and 13 points, respectively. Rondo also had 10 assists and seven rebounds.

The Clippers, who were again without center DeAndre Jordan (pneumonia) and forward Blake Griffin (partially torn left quad tendon), hadn't lost since falling 100-99 to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Dec. 21.

"We felt we had an advantage going into the game, especially with their bigs out, so we wanted to take advantage of it and get the ball into the paint," Rondo said.

"(Cousins) was able to find guys on the perimeter. He did a great job of passing the ball. We passed the ball great as a team, and we got the win."

J.J. Redick scored 22 points, hitting five three-pointers, to lead the Clippers (26-14). Center Cole Aldrich finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds and guard Jamal Crawford had 20 points.

Chris Paul, who was in foul trouble throughout the night, chipped in 15 points and seven assists.

"We don't want to take anything away from them, they played great," said Paul, who managed just four-of-11 shooting from the floor but hit three of five three-pointers in 27 minutes.

"They made shots, they moved the ball well. We knew coming in to this game that they were a high-scoring team and we never slowed them down."

The Kings used a 13-0 surge to rally from a six-point deficit for a 54-47 advantage after a three-point play by Collison with 3:13 left in the second quarter. Sacramento led 64-60 at the break.

"It's a quality win for us," Rondo said. "It's a roller-coaster season for us, but for us to put two games together in a row, get some rest the next couple of days and hopefully do the same thing (Wednesday) against the Lakers." — Reuters

Nowitzki leads Mavericks to win over Lakers

Forward Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers for the eighth consecutive time, rolling to a 103-93 victory Sunday night at Staples Center.



Center Zaza Pachulia added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Mavericks (2-1), who had six players score in double figures.



The Mavericks had three of their starters return. Forward Chandler Parsons (right knee surgery) made his season debut, while guard Deron Williams (left knee sprain) and Wesley Matthews (rest) returned from one-game absences.



Parsons was ineffective, compiling two points, three rebounds and three assists in 11 minutes. Williams finished with 11 points and eight assists, while Matthews had 10 points.



Guard Raymond Felton also scored 11 for Dallas, and guard J.J Barea came off the bench to chip in with 10 points and seven assists.



Forward Julius Randle finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Lakers (0-3). Forward Kobe Bryant had 15 points on 3-of-15 shooting, while reserve guard Lou Williams scored 13.



Dallas hit 46 percent of its shots from the floor, while Los Angeles made just 36.5 percent.



Despite their struggles in the first half, the Lakers, who began the game in a 15-0 hole, were only down 54-45 at intermission.



They managed just 30.2 percent shooting compared to 43.8 percent for the Mavericks. Dallas also connected on nine of 17 (52.9 percent) three-pointers to four of 16 (25 percent) for Los Angeles before the break.



However, the Lakers enjoyed a considerable edge on free throws, hitting 15 of 19 (78.9 percent) to three of four for the Mavericks.



In the third, the Lakers cut the deficit to 64-57 after a three-point basket by rookie point guard D'Angelo Russell with 5:18 to go, but the Mavericks subsequently pulled away.



They closed on a 17-7 run for a 81-64 advantage heading into the fourth.



Two free throws by Williams pulled Los Angeles within 97-91 with 2:27 remaining, but that was the closest the Lakers would get. — Reuters

Forward Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers for the eighth consecutive time, rolling to a 103-93 victory Sunday night at Staples Center.

Center Zaza Pachulia added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Mavericks (2-1), who had six players score in double figures.

The Mavericks had three of their starters return. Forward Chandler Parsons (right knee surgery) made his season debut, while guard Deron Williams (left knee sprain) and Wesley Matthews (rest) returned from one-game absences.

Parsons was ineffective, compiling two points, three rebounds and three assists in 11 minutes. Williams finished with 11 points and eight assists, while Matthews had 10 points.

Guard Raymond Felton also scored 11 for Dallas, and guard J.J Barea came off the bench to chip in with 10 points and seven assists.

Forward Julius Randle finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Lakers (0-3). Forward Kobe Bryant had 15 points on 3-of-15 shooting, while reserve guard Lou Williams scored 13.

Dallas hit 46 percent of its shots from the floor, while Los Angeles made just 36.5 percent.

Despite their struggles in the first half, the Lakers, who began the game in a 15-0 hole, were only down 54-45 at intermission.

They managed just 30.2 percent shooting compared to 43.8 percent for the Mavericks. Dallas also connected on nine of 17 (52.9 percent) three-pointers to four of 16 (25 percent) for Los Angeles before the break.

However, the Lakers enjoyed a considerable edge on free throws, hitting 15 of 19 (78.9 percent) to three of four for the Mavericks.

In the third, the Lakers cut the deficit to 64-57 after a three-point basket by rookie point guard D'Angelo Russell with 5:18 to go, but the Mavericks subsequently pulled away.

They closed on a 17-7 run for a 81-64 advantage heading into the fourth.

Two free throws by Williams pulled Los Angeles within 97-91 with 2:27 remaining, but that was the closest the Lakers would get. — Reuters
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