Cavs win 4th straight after win in Memphis
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Kyrie Irving scored 24 points, Kevin Love added 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Cleveland Cavaliers rolled to a 111-89 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.
LeBron James finished with 20 points and Timofey Mozgov added 14 for Cleveland, which won its fourth straight and eighth in its last nine. J.R. Smith had 13 points for Cleveland, which shot 51 percent and was 14 of 34 from 3-point range.
Marc Gasol led Memphis with 18 points, while Beno Udrih scored 15. Jeff Green had 11 points for Memphis, which had its three-game losing streak snapped.
The game was not in doubt after a big third quarter from the Cavaliers, extending the lead to as many as 29. The 22-point loss was the biggest of the season at home for Memphis.
Hawks 95, Magic 83
ORLANDO, Fla. — Paul Millsap had 25 points and 11 rebounds and the Atlanta Hawks snapped a three-game losing streak with a victory over the Orlando Magic.
Jeff Teague added 16 points, despite spraining his left ankle in the first quarter.
The Hawks trailed by 13 in the first half, but outscored the Magic 27-12 in the fourth quarter.
Elfrid Payton led the Magic with 19 points and nine rebounds. Victor Oladipo and Nik Vucevic added 16 points apiece.
Bulls 116, Raptors 103
TORONTO — Jimmy Butler scored 23 points, Pau Gasol had 18 and Chicago beat Toronto.
Tony Snell scored 17 points to help the Bulls move 1 1/2 games ahead of the Raptors for third place in the Eastern Conference. Aaron Brooks had 16 points, and Nikola Mirotic finished with 15.
Toronto has dropped three of four. It has lost five in a row to Chicago.
Greivis Vasquez had 22 points for the Raptors, and DeMar DeRozan added 20. Vasquez also matched a career high with six 3-pointers.
Clippers 111, Knicks 80
NEW YORK — DeAndre Jordan raised the NBA’s best shooting percentage above 71 percent by making all seven shots and scoring 14 points, and Los Angeles pounded New York.
Shooting all night from either right at or above the rim — and once right on top of Jason Smith — Jordan hiked his season average to .713, which would be second only to Wilt Chamberlain’s .727 in 1972-73.
Chris Paul added 11 points and 16 assists for the Clippers. They won their fifth straight and improved the fourth-best record in the Western Conference to 47-25. Austin Rivers scored 21 points in 19 minutes.
Nets 91, Hornets 88
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brook Lopez had 34 points and 10 rebounds and Brooklyn handed slumping Charlotte its fifth loss in six games.
The 7-foot center came into the game on a tear, having scored at least 26 points in each of his last three games, including 31 on Monday night against Boston.
Deron Williams had 10 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds for the Nets.
Nets forward Thaddeus Young left the game late in the third quarter with a hyperextended knee and did not return. Team officials said X-rays were negative and he will be re-evaluated Thursday.
Pacers 103 Wizards 101
WASHINGTON — George Hill’s driving layup with 2.7 seconds left lifted the Indiana Pacers over the Washington Wizards, snapping the Pacers’ six-game losing streak.
Hill scored 29 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter as Indiana rallied from a 10-point deficit.
Heat 93, Celtics 86
BOSTON — Goran Dragic had 22 points and seven assists, and the banged-up Miami Heat beat the Boston Celtics .
Luol Deng scored 15 points for Miami, and Udonis Haslem had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Henry Walker and Tyler Johnson also scored 12 points apiece.
Miami played without Dwyane Wade, Hassan Whiteside and Chris Andersen due to injuries, but bounced back quite nicely from Tuesday night’s disappointing 89-88 loss at Milwaukee. The Heat blew a 14-point lead in the final 6 1/2 minutes against the Bucks.
