LeBron becomes NBA’s No 10 career scorer, Cavs edge 76ers
PHILADELPHIA: LeBron James scored 25 points, moving into 10th place on the NBA’s career list, and added 14 assists and eight rebounds as the unbeaten Cleveland Cavaliers held off the winless Philadelphia 76ers 102-101 on Saturday night. Kevin Love added 20 points and 11 rebounds for the reigning champion Cavaliers, who improved to 6-0. Joel Embiid scored 22 points, making all four of his 3-point attempts, but the 76ers dropped to 0-5. James passed Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon by converting a fast-break layup midway through the first quarter. Olajuwon finished his career with 26,946 points. James finished the game on 26,970. James’ first attempt at passing the record was an emphatic, highlight-reel block by Embiid about 3 1/2 minutes into the contest. After two more misses, James quickly raced up the court for an easy layup. He is No. 12 in scoring on the combined ABA/NBA list.
CLIPPERS 116, SPURS 92
Blake Griffin scored a season-high 28 points as the Clippers handed San Antonio a second straight home loss. The Spurs have dropped two straight at the AT&T Center after losing just two regular-season home games in the previous 600 days, including a 40-1 mark last season. The Clippers shot 50 percent from the field while dominating this battle between one-loss teams. Jamal Crawford finished with 16 points, J.J. Redick had 14 and Chris Paul had nine points and 10 assists. LaMarcus Aldridge had 19 points and Kawhi Leonard added 14 for the Spurs, but the duo shot a combined 10 for 26 on the second night of a back-to-back.
HAWKS 112, ROCKETS 97
Dwight Howard had 20 points and 14 rebounds in his first game against his former teammates while Paul Millsap scored 23 as Atlanta beat Houston. The Hawks’ scoring was unusually top-heavy. Kent Bazemore shook out of his early season scoring slump with 20 points. James Harden scored 30 points and continued his hot start to the season by making 10 of 19 shots. He had 12 assists and nine rebounds. Most of Harden’s scoring came in the first half, when he had 24 points and all of his four 3-pointers in the game. Harden has recorded at least 30 points and 10 assists in four of Houston’s first six games. Atlanta led most of the game as it snapped a streak of two straight losses.
PACERS 111, BULLS 94
C.J. Miles scored 20 points and Myles Turner added 16 as Indiana shut down weary Chicago. All-Star Paul George was ejected late in the third quarter after he inadvertently kicked the ball into the stands. He appeared to be upset following a no-call on a shot, then was called for a foul on the Bulls’ ensuing possession. He made his first five shots and finished with 13 points the first time this season he’s been held to less than 20. Jimmy Butler scored 16 points but at halftime had nearly as many turnovers (four) as the Pacers had committed as a team (five). Rajon Rondo wasn’t much better, and even Dwyane Wade struggled - finishing with four points as the Bulls lost their third in a row.
THUNDER 112, TIMBERWOLVES 92
Russell Westbrook scored 28 points to help Oklahoma City beat Minnesota. Westbrook also had eight assists and six rebounds. The Thunder improved to 5-1 on the season, matching their best six-game start since moving to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season. Enes Kanter had 20 points and 10 rebounds, Steven Adams scored 14 points and Victor Oladipo added 12 for the Thunder in their first game since being blown out by Golden State and former teammate Kevin Durant on Thursday. The Thunder shot 52 percent from the field and held the Timberwolves to 39 percent shooting. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 33 points for the Timberwolves after scoring 32 Thursday night against Denver. No one else on the team reached double figures until the fourth quarter.
MAGIC 88, WIZARDS 86
Jeff Green came off the bench to score 18 points and Evan Fournier added 13 to help Orlando beat Washington. On a night when the Magic starters struggled offensively, Frank Vogel elected to go with his bench for extended minutes in the fourth quarter and it paid off big. Green scored 10 points in the fourth and Mario Hezonja added eight of his nine points in the final period, while Bismack Biyombo came up with a couple of blocked shots to lift the Magic out of a 12-point, third-quarter deficit. Biyombo was big all night in the interior blocking shots and changing others when the Wizards came into the lane. He finished with nine points, three blocks and 12 rebounds. The Wizards, who were playing without point guard John Wall, couldn’t convert down the stretch. After hitting several clutch shots down the stretch during Friday night’s win over Atlanta, Bradley Beal missed his final three shots and Markieff Morris missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
PISTONS 103, NUGGETS 86
Andre Drummond had 19 points and 20 rebounds as Detroit breezed to another easy win at home. The Pistons have won all four of their home games this season by double digits, and they haven’t trailed by more than three points in any of them. They were never behind Saturday after scoring the game’s first 10 points. Marcus Morris and Jon Leuer scored 15 points each for Detroit, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 13. Wilson Chandler led Denver with 21 points.
BUCKS 117, KINGS 91
Mirza Teletovic scored 22 points and matched his career high with seven 3-pointers, Giannis Antetokounmpo added 17 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, and Milwaukee beat short-handed Sacramento. Jabari Parker had 19 points for the Bucks, who pulled their starters after three quarters. Garrett Temple scored 19 and DeMarcus Cousins had 15 in the first half for the Kings, who slipped to 0-4 on their fivegame road trip and gave up 100 points or more for the sixth consecutive game. Leading 61-48 at the half, the Bucks opened the third quarter with a 21-3 run. —AP