RAPTORS CLIP CELTS BEHIND KAWHI IN EARLY CLASH OF FANCIED EAST SQUADS
TORONTO— Kawhi Leonard had 31 points and 10 rebounds, Serge Ibaka added 21 points and the Toronto Raptors beat the Boston Celtics, 113-101, on Friday night in an early matchup between Eastern Conference contenders.
Kyle Lowry scored 15 points, Danny Green had 14, and Fred VanVleet 11 to help the Raptors win for the 10th time in 11 home meetings with the Celtics.
Kyrie Irving scored 21 points for Boston, and Al Horford had 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.
Gordon Hayward scored 14 points in 24 minutes, connecting on six of 13 field goal attempts.
Leonard made 10 of 25 attempts, including 2-of-5 from 3point range, and went 9-for-9 at line.
Brown made a 3-pointer to give the Celtics an 87-86 lead with 9:03 remaining. VanVleet answered with a reverse layup, the first basket in a 6-0 spurt that gave Toronto the lead for good.
Butler jeered
In Minneapolis, Jimmy Butler brushed off some early jeers from the home crowd, scoring 33 points in 36 minutes to lead Minnesota past Cleveland.
Andrew Wiggins added 22 points to bolster a vintage allaround effort by the four-time All-Star Butler, who requested a trade last month. Butler made 10of-12 field goals and 12-of-12 free throws, and had seven rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Kevin Love had25 points, 19 rebounds and seven assists for Cleveland against his former team.
Giannis double-double
In New York, Caris LeVert’s driving layup with a second left gave him a career-high 28 points and lifted Brooklyn past New York for its first victory of the season.
In Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 26 points and 15 rebounds and Khris Middleton added 25 points to help Milwaukee beat Indiana.
Milwaukee, which ranked 25th in the NBA last season with 24.7 3-point attempts per game, continued to fire away under new coach Mike Budenholzer. The Bucks were 17-of-47, with Antetokounmpo going 0 for 7.
In New Orleans, Nikola Mirotic scored 36 points, Anthony Davis had 25 points and 10 rebounds, and New Orleans routed Sacramento.
Jrue Holiday had 15 points and 10 assists for the Pelicans. They shot 58.9 percent and reached 110 points in the third quarte. Willie Cauley-Stein scored 20 points for Sacramento.
Temple’s big game
In Memphis, newcomer Garrett Temple scored 30 points, rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. added 24 and Memphis coasted past Atlanta.
Temple, picked up in a July trade from the Sacramento Kings, missed only one of his 11 shots, making 5-of-6 from 3point range. Jackson, the fourth overall pick last summer, was 8of-12 from the floor.
In Orlando, Kemba Walker scored 26 points and Nicolas Batum had 15 to lead Charlotte.
Miles Bridges added 15 points to help the Hornets beat Orlando for the 12th straight time. Charlotte limited the Magic to 33.3 percent shooting and 54 points in the first three periods.
Clippers break through
In Los Angeles, Danilo Gallinari and Tobias Harris scored 26 points each and the Clippers rallied in the fourth quarter for their first win of the season.
The Thunder played without Russell Westbrook for the second straight game because of a right knee issue.
Lou Williams added 17 points off the bench. He hit a clutch 3-pointer to snap a 90-all tie and give the Clippers the lead for good midway through the fourth.
In Salt Lake City, Jonas Jerebko crashed the basket and tipped in a shot against his former team with 0.3 seconds remaining to lift Golden State past Utah.
Kevin Durant scored 38 points, Stephen Curry scored 31 and Draymond Green had 14 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Jerebko, who was allowed to leave the Jazz as a free agent after last season, finished with 10 points.