SAN ANTONIO -- Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points in his return from a concussion and the San Antonio Spurs tied Golden State for the NBA's best record with a 107-99 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night.
San Antonio made a season-high 16 3-pointers in its 19th straight home victory over Atlanta. The Spurs and Warriors are 52-14 with 16 games remaining, including the final regular-season matchup between them on March 29.
Atlanta point guard Dennis Schroder had 22 points and 10 assists, shooting 10 for 22 from the field. Tim Hardaway Jr. added 17 points, but the Hawks had their three-game winning streak snapped.
San Antonio's Patty Mills had 15 points and Danny Green added 14. The starting guards combined to shoot 7 for 12 on 3-pointers and the team finished 16 for 34 on 3s (see full recap).
Towns, Rubio sparks Timberwolves' win
MINNEAPOLIS -- Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and 13 rebounds, Ricky Rubio scored 22 points and broke his own franchise record with 19 assists, and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Washington Wizards 119-104 on Monday night.
Nemanja Bjelica added 16 points and 10 boards off the bench for the Timberwolves, who entered the game 3 games behind Denver for the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Minnesota shot 52 percent and Rubio topped 20 points in back-to-back games for the second time in his six-year career.
John Wall scored 27 points for the Wizards, who fell 2 games back of Cleveland for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Bradley Beal added 20 points, but Washington lost for the first time in six games (see full recap).
NBA
Rondo sparks Bulls in return to starting lineup
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Nikola Mirotic scored 24 points, Rajon Rondo had a season-high 20 in his return to the starting lineup and the Chicago Bulls beat the Charlotte Hornets 115-109 on Monday night to snap a season-high, five-game losing streak.
Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler each had 23 points for the Bulls (32-35), who got a needed win to boost their hopes of earning the eighth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Rondo provided the spark for the Bulls in his first start since Dec. 30. Along with hitting a season-high three 3-pointers, he had six assists and seven rebounds.
Jeremy Lamb scored 26 points filling in for Nic Batum (migraine), while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 22 and Kemba Walker 21 for the struggling Hornets. Marvin Williams had 13 points and tied a career high with 18 rebounds (see full recap).