Miles Bridges scored a team-high 26 points, Kon Knueppel made six 3-pointers to finish with 23 points and the Charlotte Hornets beat the Atlanta Hawks 126-119 on Saturday night for their ninth straight win.

Charlotte pulled to within one victory of its franchise-record winning streak of 10 games in 1998.

Saturday’s win also lifted the Hornets (25-28) into the No. 10 slot in the Eastern Conference and on course for a play-in tournament appearance.

LaMelo Ball finished with 19 points and nine assists. Brandon Miller added 16 points, and Moussa Diabate finished with 11 points and 15 rebounds.

Jalen Johnson had 31 points, nine rebounds and eight assists for the Hawks, who entered Saturday having won six of eight. Zaccharie Risacher scored 18 points, and Onyeka Okongwu had 16.

Atlanta trailed 120-115 with 1:42 remaining, but Dyson Daniels’ dunk and a pair of free throws by Johnson cut Charlotte's lead to one with 26.3 seconds remaining.

Ball, Miller and Bridges each made free throws in the clutch to seal Charlotte’s win as the Hornets finished 16 for 16 on foul shots.

Rockets beat short-handed Thunder

Tari Eason scored a season-high 26 points, Alperen Şengün had a triple-double and the Houston Rockets beat the short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder 112-106.

Şengün finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his second triple-double of the season, while Jabari Smith Jr. had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Kevin Durant added 20 points.

Cason Wallace led Oklahoma City with 23 points, and Isaiah Joe added 21.

The Thunder were again without reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who will be out through the All-Star break due to an abdominal strain, as Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell remained in street clothes.

Trade deadline acquisition Jared McCain made his Thunder debut, finishing with five points and two rebounds in 14 minutes.

Jokić passes Robertson in win

Nikola Jokić finished with 22 points, 17 assists and 14 rebounds to pass Oscar Robertson for second place on the NBA’s all-time triple-doubles leaderboard, and the Denver Nuggets ended a three-game skid with a 136-120 win over the slumping Chicago Bulls.

Jokić's 19th triple-double of this season marked the 182nd of his career as he overtook “The Big O.” Russell Westbrook holds the NBA record with 207 career triple-doubles.

Jamal Murray had 28 points and 11 assists, while Tim Hardaway Jr. added 23 points off the bench for the Nuggets.

Matas Buzelis scored 21 points and Collin Sexton added 17 for the Bulls, who have lost their fourth straight game amid a massive roster overhaul at the trade deadline.

Chicago closed the third quarter on a 16-2 run for a seven-point advantage entering the final frame, but Denver answered with a 20-2 sequence to start the fourth and put the game out of reach.