Love, Cavs hold off Celtics; Irving leaves with injury

CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 32 points and made two critical layups before leaving with a leg injury and Kevin Love scored 30, helping the Cleveland Cavaliers hold off a late rally for a 124-118 victory over the Boston Celtics on Thursday night.

The Cavs led by 20 points in the third and 17 early in the fourth but couldn’t close out the Celtics, who pulled within one point three times in the final two minutes.

• Grizzlies 114, Thunder 80 — At Memphis, Tenn.: Marc Gasol scored 25 points and Memphis took advantage of Russell Westbrook’s ejection, dominating Oklahoma City.

Westbrook, the NBA’s leading scorer at 31.7 points per game, scored 21 before he was tossed midway through the third quarter when he was whistled for two quick technicals. At that point, Memphis already held a double-digit lead that reached 37 points in the fourth quarter.

• Suns 99, Raptors 91 — At Phoenix: Eric Bledsoe scored 22 points and Devin Booker had nine of his 19 in the fourth quarter, helping Phoenix beat Toronto.

The Raptors, in second place in the Eastern Conference, lost consecutive games for the first time since Nov. 20 and 21. Both teams played the second of back-to-back games, with the first being on the road.

• Hornets 91, Heat 82 — At Charlotte, N.C.: Nicolas Batum had 16 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists, providing a spark during a big third quarter that carried Charlotte over Miami.

The Hornets outscored the Heat 31-17 in the quarter to take command, with Batum contributing nine points, five rebounds and four assists in the period.

• Jazz 100, 76ers 83 — At Salt Lake City: George Hill had 21 points in his return to the lineup after missing 13 games with a sprained toe, and Utah blitzed Philadelphia in the fourth quarter.

Gordon Hayward and Rodney Hood each added 20 points for the Jazz (20-13), who outscored Philadelphia 30-9 in the final period. They shot 58 percent from 3-point range overall to win their second consecutive game after dropping three in a row.

• Mavericks 101, Lakers 89 — Los Angeles: Wesley Matthews scored 20 points to lead Dallas to its 12th consecutive victory over Los Angeles.

The Mavericks outscored the Lakers 31-13 in the third quarter to take command.