Nikola Jokić had something to say to Lu Dort on Friday.

A skirmish broke out in the fourth quarter of the Oklahoma City Thunder’s clash with the Denver Nuggets, when the Thunder guard appeared to intentionally trip the three-time MVP. At the very least, it was a hip check with an outstretched leg.

Jokić took exception to the contact and angrily confronted Dort, who is well known for being one of the NBA’s most, ahem, physical players. Dort’s teammate, Jaylin Williams, then confronted Jokić, and the two got physical as players and coaches from both sides quickly rushed to midcourt.

It took a while, but the two were eventually pried loose from each other.

The end result of the incident was Dort being ejected for a Flagrant 2 foul, while Jokić and Williams were hit with offsetting technical fouls.

Further replay showed a side of Jokić that was frankly terrifying.

The incident was part of a thriller between two teams that could be seeing each other in the NBA playoffs. The game went to overtime after Jokić tied the game with 38 seconds left in regulation.

The extra five minutes wound up being one-sided in favor of the Thunder, who shut down the Nuggets for a 127-121 win. 

Jokić finished the game with 23 points on 9-of-25 shooting, 17 rebounds and 14 assists, while Jamal Murray led all scorers in scoring with 39 points. Only two other Nuggets scored more than seven points.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, making his return from an abdominal strain, led the Thunder with 36 points and 9 assists in 34 minutes, while Chet Holmgren had 15 points, 21 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Denver had led the game by as many as 16 points in the first quarter, but OKC came back and triumphed despite Gilgeous-Alexander missing all of overtime due to a minutes restriction. OKC’s depth ended up being the difference, with players like Williams, Alex Caruso and Jared McCain all making key plays over the course of the game.

The win keeps the 46-15 Thunder two games ahead of the San Antonio Spurs for the best record in the West, while the Nuggets are tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves for fourth place at 37-23.

The Detroit Pistons improved the best record in the NBA thanks to a botched intentional foul from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

A clash between two of the East’s top teams saw the Cavaliers up by three with less than 10 seconds left in regulation. They opted to intentionally foul rather than risk a game-tying buzzer-beater, leading to Jaylon Tyson bearing down on Daniss Jenkins as the Pistons guard brought the ball up.

Jenkins, however, anticipated the contact and began his shooting motion at midcourt, drawing a shooting foul and three free throws. He made all three, sending the game to overtime where the Pistons won 122-119.

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Despite Donovan Mitchell and James Harden being out of the lineup, Cleveland ran out to a 35-27 lead in the first quarter behind 10 points from Jarrett Allen. Detroit eventually grinded through to make it a 54-50 game at halftime. 

The Pistons ended the third quarter with an 85-84 lead, thanks to 10 points from Ausar Thompson. That was despite a 12-minute delay when the scoreboard horn malfunctioned and wouldn’t stop blaring. 

Detroit extended its lead to 89-84 early in the fourth, but Cleveland tied the score on a 3 from Evan Mobley and layup by Tyrese Proctor. Two baskets by Thomas Bryant put Cleveland on top, 93-89, and the Cavs appeared to take control of the game midway through the quarter with an 98-91 lead.

Cleveland led 105-96 with 3:31 remaining in regulation and a win seemed nearly certain when Cade Cunningham fouled out with 1:56 left. The Pistons chipped away at the Cavaliers’ lead, making it a 110-109 game on two Jalen Duran free throws with 48.4 seconds to go. Dennis Schröder followed with a layup to give Cleveland a three-point lead. 

With 27.7 seconds left, the Pistons couldn’t get the game-tying 3 they needed, but Duren dunked in an offensive rebound after Jenkins missed from long-range. Detroit then fouled Craig Porter Jr. on the inbounds pass and he missed one of his two free throws. Mobley rebounded and was fouled, but only made one free throw to give the Cavs a 114-111 lead. That set up Tyson’s fateful foul on Jenkins at half-court. 

In overtime, Detroit went up by six behind four points from Duren. Following a 3 from Tyson and layup by Schröder, Tobias Harris hit a short jumper to give the Pistons a three-point lead with 26.7 seconds remaining. Sam Merrill and Mobley each missed 3-pointers for the tie and Detroit escaped with the win. 

Duren scored 33 for the Pistons, tying a career-high, with 16 rebounds and 3 blocks. Cunningham added 25 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, helping Detroit improve to 44-14. The Cavaliers dropped to 37-24 despite 25 points from Allen, Mobley scoring 23 and Merrill adding 20. Cleveland is 8.5 games behind Detroit and holds the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Detroit faces the Orlando Magic on Sunday, while the Cavaliers visit the Brooklyn Nets. The two teams then match up again Tuesday in Cleveland. 

A game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons needed a buzzer-beater in the third quarter Friday.

A clash of two of the top teams in the East, which the Pistons won 122-119, was put on hold when the horn at Little Caesars Arena sounded continuously for more than 12 minutes. The fun began when play was stopped with 7:24 left in the quarter, during an ESPN on-air interview with Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell.

Mitchell soon asked, “Y’all hear the horn?” The answer was yes, everyone could hear the horn.

The next several minutes saw arena workers desperately trying to cut the noise, while some fans in the stands simply tried to stay sane. The break in play was long enough the two teams returned to the court and began shooting to stay warm, all while dealing with the noise.

The effort to silence the horn was eventually successful, triggering a roar of approval from the crowd.

It wasn’t all fixed, though. With the horn not operational, the scorer’s table resorted to temporarily using a manual air horn to signal time.

The interruption preceded a wild ending, as the Pistons found themselves down by three with less than 10 seconds left in regulation. The Cavaliers opted to intentionally foul rather than risk a game-tying buzzer beater, but botched it and gave Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins three free throws.

Jenkins made all three, and the Pistons went on to win in overtime despite star Cade Cunningham fouling out in the fourth quarter.

Yahoo Sports’ (total score: 9/30) | 2025 rank: 29

Young MLB hitters (4/10): C Hunter Goodman, SS Ezequiel Tovar, OF Jordan Beck, 2B Adael Amador, INF Ryan Ritter
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29. (total score: 12/30) | 2025 rank: 23

Young MLB hitters (5/10): SS Zach Neto, 1B Nolan Schanuel, C Logan O’Hoppe, INF Vaughn Grissom, OF Wade Meckler, INF Christian Moore, INF Oswald Peraza, INF Matthew Lugo, INF/OF Kyren Paris
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Prospect pitchers (3/5): RHP Tyler Bremner, LHP Sam Aldegheri, RHP George Klassen, RHP Ryan Johnson, RHP Chris Cortez, RHP Chase Shores, RHP Walbert Urena

24. (total score: 14/30) | 2025 rank: 7

Young MLB hitters (6/10): C Drake Baldwin, OF Michael Harris II
Young MLB pitchers (5/10): RHP Spencer Schwellenbach, RHP Hurston Waldrep, RHP AJ Smith-Shawver
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19. (total score: 16/30) | 2025 rank: 16

Young MLB hitters (5/10): DH Iván Herrera, SS Masyn Winn, OF Jordan Walker, CF Victor Scott II, 3B Nolan Gorman, INF Thomas Saggese
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14. (total score: 16/30) | 2025 rank: 14

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9. (total score: 18/30) | 2025 rank: 4

Young MLB hitters (7/10): SS Elly De La Cruz, 1B Sal Stewart, 2B Matt McLain, OF Noelvi Marte, 1B Christian Encarnacion-Strand
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4. Athletics (total score: 18/30) | 2025 rank: 18

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3. Pittsburgh Pirates (total score: 18/30) | 2025 rank: 8

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2. Seattle Mariners (total score: 21/30) | 2025 rank: 3

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1. Milwaukee Brewers (total score: 22/30) | 2025 rank: 6

Young MLB hitters (7/10): OF Jackson Chourio, 2B Brice Turang, OF Sal Frelick
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Prospect pitchers (3/5): RHP Brandon Sproat, RHP Craig Yoho, RHP Coleman Crow, RHP Carlos Rodriguez, RHP Tyson Hardin, RHP Bishop Letson