LeBron leads Cavs to much-needed victory over Nets
LeBron James scored 31 points and made 11 assists, Kyrie Irving scored 28 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Brooklyn Nets 124-116 for just their third win in nine games on Friday.
The outcome was closer than it should have been after the Nets tallied 43 points in the fourth quarter, continuing a trend of scoring at least 40 points in the final quarter of three losses to Cleveland this season.
The defeat was the fourth straight for the Nets and the 15th in their last 16 games.
Cleveland’s Kevin Love scored 13 points and grabbed 14 rebounds one day after he was named an All-Star and Tristan Thompson added 10 points and 10 rebounds.
It has been a volatile week for the Cavs, who needed a victory to shift some of the focus off the relationship between James and the rest of the organization.
He was terrific again on Friday, making 13-of-18 shots and adding five rebounds as Kyle Korver scored 14 points off the bench after a slow start.
Rockets 123, 76ers 118
James Harden had 51 points, 13 assists and 13 rebounds as Houston beat Philadelphia on Friday.
It was the 14th triple-double of the season for Harden and the 18th time he has accumulated over 30 points and 10 assists.
The latter is the highest single-season total since such numbers were first tracked in 1983-84, according to basketball-reference. com.
Philadelphia rookie center Joel Embiid, back after missing the three previous games with a bruised left knee, topped the Sixers with 32 points, one shy of his career high.
Pacers 115, Kings 111 (OT)
Paul George scored six of his 33 points in overtime as Indiana rallied to defeat Sacramento in Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
George’s basket with 31.8 seconds remaining broke a 111-111 tie and after Garrett Temple and Darren Collison each missed potential game-tying shots, Jeff Teague made two game-clinching free throws with 0.4 seconds to play.
Pelicans 119, Spurs 103
Jrue Holiday scored a team-high 23 points and had 11 assists, and Anthony Davis scored 16 points and grabbed 22 rebounds to power New Orleans to a victory over San Antonio.
The victory for the Pelicans snapped the Spurs’ five-game winning streak, and it also ended San Antonio’s streak of five consecutive victories over the Pelicans. The 119 points were the most allowed by the Spurs this season.
Knicks 110, Hornets 107
Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis scored 18 points apiece to lead New York to a win over Charlotte.
Courtney Lee added 16 points for the Knicks, including crucial points in the fourth quarter. Brandon Jennings scored 15 points off the New York bench.
Kemba Walker, who was named as a reserve to the Eastern Conference All-Star team on Thursday, poured in 31 points for the Hornets (23-24).
Raptors 102, Bucks 86
Kyle Lowry scored 32 points and added six assists as Toronto ended a season-high five-game losing streak with a victory over Milwaukee.
Norman Powell added 19 points for the Raptors, who were without DeMar DeRozan (sprained right ankle). Patrick Patterson added 10 points while Jonas Valanciunas scored eight points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
Celtics 128, Magic 98
Isaiah Thomas scored 21 to notch his 30th consecutive 20-point contest as Boston blew out Orlando at TD Garden.
Thomas is 10 games shy of the Celtics’ franchise mark, set by John Havlicek. Jae Crowder added 19 points and rookie Jaylen Brown scored a career-high 20 and grabbed eight rebounds.