basketball
Irving’s bid 2nd half leads Celtics past Thunder
WASHINGTON, Nov 4, (AP): LeBron James scored 57 points — the second-highest total of his career and an NBA-best this season — and the Cleveland Cavaliers stopped a four-game slide with a 130122 victory over the Washington Wizards on Friday night.
James hadn’t scored this much since getting a career-high 61 for the Miami Heat on March 3, 2014, against the Charlotte Hornets.
And the four-time league MVP did it efficiently Friday, making 23 of 34 field-goal tries and all nine free throws, while adding 11 rebounds and seven assists. James did it with style, too. He hurdled over a seated Bradley Beal while dribbling, swatted a shot by John Wall off the backboard, and looked for a camera to wag both index fingers in the midst of a three-point play.
Celtics 101, Thunder 94
In Oklahoma, Kyrie Irving scored 22 of his 25 points in the second half, and the Celtics rallied from 18 down for their seventh straight victory.
Al Horford scored 17 of his 20 points after halftime and Jaylen Brown added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Celtics. Boston has allowed 94 or fewer points in every game during its winning streak.
Paul George had 25 points and 10 rebounds, and Russell Westbrook added 19 points and 11 assists for the Thunder. Carmelo Anthony had 10 points and 14 rebounds but shot just 3 of 17.
76ers 121, Pacers 110
In Philadelphia, J. J. Redick scored 31 points, Ben Simmons had a tripledouble and Philadelphia moved above .500 for the first time in nearly four years.
Redick was 8 of 12 from 3-point range, including the go-ahead shot with 2:06 left, another 3 to barely beat the shot clock with 1:08 remaining and a third from the left corner to make it 119-110 with 46 seconds left.
Simmons had 14 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his second triple-double in a rookie season delayed a year because of injury.
Spurs 108, Hornets 101
In San Antonio, Bryn Forbes had 22 points, helping San Antonio stop a four-game skid.
The Spurs played without Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker, who are out with quadriceps injuries. Charlotte was without Nicholas Batum and Michael Carter-Williams, who also have not played this season, along with Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
Rudy Gay scored 20 points and Dejounte Murray had 10, joining Forbes to help San Antonio’s reserves outscore Charlotte’s 64-16.
Knicks 120, Suns 107
In New York, Kristaps Porzingis scored 37 points, and Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek got his first victory over his former team.
Porzingis fell just shy of the careerbest 38 points he scored Monday against Denver, getting his final points with a highlight-reel, end-to-end possession with just under 5 minutes remaining. He raced back in transition for an emphatic block on rookie Josh Jackson, and then got the ball back in transition for a powerful dunk while being fouled.
Rockets 119, Hawks 104
In Atlanta, James Harden scored 21 of his 29 points in Houston’s high-scoring first half, and the Rockets handed the Hawks their eighth straight loss.
Eric Gordon and Luc Mbah a Moute each scored 20 points for Houston, which improved to 6-1 on the road.
Kent Bazemore scored 18 points for the Hawks (1-8), who have not won since their season-opening victory at Dallas.
Pelicans 99, Mavericks 94
In Dallas, Anthony Davis had 30 points and 13 rebounds, DeMarcus Cousins added his second 20-20 game of the season and the Pelicans started a four-game trip with a victory over the last-place Mavericks.
Harrison Barnes scored a seasonhigh 26 points for the Mavericks, who are 1-9 for the first time since 1993-94.
Nuggets 95, Heat 94
In Denver, Paul Millsap had 27 points for Denver, including three straight free throws with 11.9 seconds remaining.
Nikola Jokic added 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Nuggets shook off some late struggles at the line to win their second straight on a six-game homestand.
Millsap delivered at a key moment. After missing three of his previous four foul shots, the Nuggets’ big offseason acquisition was fouled at the 3-point line by James Johnson and sunk each of his free throws.
Lakers 124, Nets 112
In Los Angeles, Brook Lopez hit six 3-pointers and scored a season-high 34 points against his former Brooklyn teammates, and rookie Kyle Kuzma had 21 points and 13 rebounds during his first career start in the Lakers’ victory.
D’Angelo Russell had 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in his first game against the Lakers since they traded him to Brooklyn last summer in the four-player deal that brought Lopez and Kuzma to Los Angeles.
Pistons 105, Bucks 96
In Detroit, Andre Drummond scored 14 of his 24 points in the third quarter, powering Detroit to the win.
Drummond, who has shot under 40 percent from the free-throw line in his career, went 10 of 12 in the third, drawing a roar of approval from fans. He went 14 for 16 on the night, the most he’s ever made in his career, and is shooting 78 percent from the line this season.
Raptors 109, Jazz 100
In Salt Lake City, DeMar DeRozan scored a season-high 37 points, and Toronto finished its longest road trip of the season with a victory.
DeRozan made all 14 of his free throws and added a trio of 3-pointers to complement his mid-range offensive game. His 17 third-quarter points helped stake the Raptors to a lead they never relinquished in handing the Jazz their first loss in six home games.
Bulls 105, Magic 83
In Orlando, Florida, Justin Holiday scored 19 points, Robin Lopez had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and the Bulls earned their first road win of the season.
Chicago had seven players score in double figures. David Nwaba had 16 points, and rookie Lauri Markkanen made three 3-pointers on his way to 13 points.