Indy hands Cavs fourth loss in row
Thaddeus Young scored 26 points, Darren Collison had 25 and the Indiana Pacers sent the host Cleveland Cavaliers to their fourth straight loss, 124107 on Wednesday night.
LeBron James had 33 points and 11 assists, but it wa sn’t enough to keep Cleveland from losing for the fifth time in six games and falling to 3-5.
The Cavaliers held a lengthy meeting before Tuesday’s practice to discuss their struggles, but the defending Eastern Conference champions have lost by a combined margin of 58 points in their losing streak.
James was upbeat about the meeting, but the Cavaliers still have issues to work out, especially on the defensive end.
Indiana was 16 of 26 from 3-point range. Victor Oladipo scored 23 points for the Pacers.
NADAL NO. 1
Rafael Nadal will finish the year as the top-ranked player for the fourth time, surprising even the fiercest of competitors after a wrist injury and a lack of form dented his steely confidence.
The 31-year-old Spaniard assured himself the No. 1 ranking by beating Hyeon Chung 7-5, 6-3 in the second round of the Paris Masters.
The 16-time Grand Slam winner had not finished the year at the top since 2013, with Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray doing so after that.
Nadal is also the oldest yearending No. 1
TOT’S ALL, FOLKS
Tottenham stunned Champions League holder Real Madrid with a 3- 1 victory to qualify for the knockout phase for only the second time and increase the pressure on coach Zinedine Zidane.
European champions in three of the last four seasons, Madrid hadn’t been beaten in the group stage for five years, and the humbling in London came straight after Madrid’s Spanish league defense was hit by a surprise loss at Girona.
Madrid’s fragile defense was torn apart too easily by Tottenham, a club that hasn’t won the English league since 1961. Dele Alli, suspended for the opening three games in Group H, made an explosive return to the Champions League with two goals.
Christian Eriksen also netted for Tottenham in the 65th minute to build a commanding lead that ensured Cristiano Ronaldo’s strike in the 80th was a mere consolation.
l Manchester City made it four wins from four with victory in Naples as it qualified for the knockout stages for the fifth year in a row. Lorenzo Insigne put Napoli ahead in the 21st — the first time since August that City had conceded the opening goal of any game. Nicolas Otamendi and John Stones scored for City to turn the match around, before Jorginho equalized for the hosts from the penalty spot. But Aguero’s goal on a counterattack gave him the City scoring record and Raheem Sterling added the visitors’ fourth in stoppage time.
l Sevilla beat Spartak Moscow 2- 1 to avenge its demoralizing loss to the Russian team two weeks ago and move to second place in Group E of the Champions League.