Irving leads Cavs past Warriors in thriller

CLEVELAND >> With another clutch shot, Kyrie Irving took the Warriors on a trip down memory lane.

Irving dropped a short, turnaround jumper over Klay Thompson with 3.4 seconds left as the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied just the way they did in June’s NBA Finals to defeat Golden State 109-108 on Sunday in a marquee Christmas matchup that more than lived up to the hype.

Down by 14 early in the fourth quarter, the Cavs chipped away and then put the ball in the hands of Irving, whose step-back 3-pointer over Stephen Curry on June 19 helped seal Game 7 and gave Cleveland its first major pro sports championship since 1964.

This time, Irving went deep in the lane before spinning and making his shot over Thompson, one of the league’s best defenders.

“The kid is special,” LeBron James said of his teammate. “It was never in doubt.”

Golden State had one last chance but Kevin Durant, who led all scorers with 36 points in his first game in the league’s hottest rivalry, lost his balance coming off a screen and couldn’t get off a shot as time expired.

Durant felt he was fouled by Richard Jefferson.

“I was trying to make a move,” he said. “I didn’t fall on my own.”

James scored 31 points with a season-high 13 rebounds, Irving added 25 points and Kevin Love 20 for the Cavs, who were down 3-1 in the Finals before storming back to stun a Warriors team that won 73 games during the regular season, but came up one victory short of winning their second straight title.

Thompson added 24, Draymond Green 16 and Curry 15 — on 4 of 11 shooting — for the Warriors, who had their winning streak stopped at seven and fell to 9-1 against Eastern Conference teams. THUNDER 112, TIMBERWOLVES 100 >> Russell Westbrook had 31 points and 15 assists to help Oklahoma City beat Minnesota.

Westbrook had 10 assists in the second half to help Oklahoma City take control, although he fell short of becoming the first Thunder player to score at least 40 points in four straight games.

Steven Adams scored 22 points and Enes Kanter added 20 points for the Thunder, who shot 51.2 percent while winning their third straight.

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 26 points and Andrew Wiggins had 23 points for the Timberwolves. Minnesota had won three of five, including wins at Chicago and Atlanta. CELTICS 119, KNICKS 114 >> Isaiah Thomas scored 27 points, Marcus Smart made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 47 seconds left after Boston blew a late lead, and the Celtics beat New York.

The Knicks wiped out a late nine-point deficit with an out-of-nowhere 11-2 run in a little more than a minute, but Smart answered with his shot and Avery Bradley and Al Horford also made big defensive plays.

Jae Crowder and Kelly Olynyk each had 16 points to help the Celtics win for the fifth time in six games. Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points and Derrick Rose had 25 for the Knicks. They fell to 22-29 in their NBA-record 51 Christmas appearances. SPURS 119, BULLS 100 >> LaMarcus Aldridge had a season-high 33 points and San Antonio beat Chicago.

Kawhi Leonard added 25 points and 10 rebounds, and Tony Parker had 13 points and eight assists.

Chicago rallied from a 20-point deficit to lead by three points midway through the third quarter but could not sustain the push, taking its third straight loss. Dwyane Wade led the Bulls with 24 points, including 10 in the final quarter. Jimmy Butler added 19 points.

TONY DEJAK — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The Cavaliers’ LeBron James, right, drives to the basket against Golden State’s Klay Thompson Sunday in Cleveland. The Cavaliers won 109-108.

DARREN ABATE — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Bulls center Robin Lopez (8) shoots against Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge during the first half Sunday in San Antonio.