basketball
Cavs triumph
LeBron James scored 24 points to move into 12th place on the NBA’s career scoring list as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Brooklyn Nets 107-87 on Thursday night.
James passed Dominique Wilkins with a three-point play in the first quarter. The four-time MVP, who didn’t play in the fourth quarter, has 26,689 career points.
Kevin Love added 19 points for Cleve-
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land (53-22), which leads Toronto by 2 1/2 games for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
Thaddeus Young led Brooklyn with 18 points.
James, who also had 11 assists, sparked a 25-6 run to end the second quarter. After returning with 7:27 remaining, he scored eight points as Cleveland built a five-point margin into a 63-39 lead at halftime.
Bulls 103, Rockets 100
In Houston, Nikola Mirotic scored 28 points and Jimmy Butler added 21 to lead the Chicago Bulls past the Houston Rockets.
In a pivotal game for two teams fighting for the final playoff spots in their conferences, the Bulls were fueled by a strong fourth quarter in which they outscored the Rockets 32-20. Chicago entered the fourth facing a nine-point deficit but was able to overcome thanks to hot shooting from Mirotic.
Trevor Ariza attempted a tying 3 at the buzzer, but it rimmed out and Chicago held on.
The Bulls won their second consecutive game following a four-game skid and trail Indiana by one game for the final playoff spot in the East.
James Harden had 24 points and eight assists for Houston, which dropped a halfgame behind Utah and Dallas, who are tied for the seventh and eighth seeds in the West.
Magic 114, Pacers 94
In Indianapolis, Evan Fournier scored 25 points and Nikola Vucevic added 24 to lead the Orlando Magic past the Indiana Pacers.
The Magic have won three straight since snapping a six-game losing streak, including their first win at Indiana since Feb 4, 2012.
Paul George scored 27 points and had eight rebounds while Lavoy Allen finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds, but it wasn’t nearly enough for the Pacers.
Indiana tied the score at 62 early in the third, but Orlando answered with a 14-5 run and steadily pulled away.
Thunder 119, Clippers 117
In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 31 points, Steven Adams hit a go-ahead tip- in with 26.9 seconds left as the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to avoid a potentially embarrassing loss, edging the depleted Los Angeles Clippers.
Russell Westbrook added 26 points and 11 assists for the Thunder, who lead the Clippers by 5-1/2 games in the race for the No 3 seed in the NBA’s Western Conference playoffs. The Clippers played without usual starters Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan and JJ Redick, as coach Doc Rivers chose to rest them. Blake Griffin also was out, serving the last game of a four-game team-imposed suspension.
Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers carried the load offensively, each scoring 32 points and going a combined 12-of-17 from 3-point range. Los Angeles led by as many as nine in the second half but couldn’t hold on as the Thunder outrebounded the Clippers 46-26.
Pelicans 101, Nuggets 95 In New Orleans, Luke Babbitt scored 22 points and Tim Frazier had 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, leading the injury-riddled New Orleans Pelicans past the Denver Nuggets.
Babbitt had 10 of the Pelicans’ first 12 points and scored on a driving layup with 2:08 left to give them a 94-89 lead. After Denver cut the deficit to 94-91, Babbitt hit two free throws and Frazier sank a 3-pointer to seal the game.
New Orleans took the lead for good, 8180, on Frazier’s high-arching shot early in the fourth quarter. He then scored six points on a three-point play and 3-pointer to give the Pelicans a 92-84 advantage.
Toney Douglas added 20 points and a season-high 10 assists for New Orleans.
Darrell Arthur tied a career high with 24 points for Denver, which is on the verge of following the Pelicans and being eliminated from the Western Conference playoff picture. Gary Harris added 16 points for the Nuggets, and Kenneth Faried had 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Trail Blazers 116, Celtics 109 In Portland, Oregon, Al-Farouq Aminu scored a career-high 28 points, including a career-best six 3-pointers, as the Portland Trail Blazers extended their winning streak at home to a season-high six games with a victory over the Boston Celtics.
With only six regular-season games remaining, Portland (40-31) holds the sixth seed in the West. Boston (39-37) entered as the East’s fourth seed, but fell to sixth with the loss.