National Basketball Association Game Capsules

Cleveland, OH (SportsNetwork.com) – Ever since LeBron James called the Cleveland Cavaliers “fragile” last week they’ve been anything but. Kyrie Irving had 28 points and six assists, Kevin Love added 27 points and 10 rebounds and Cleveland defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 111-108 on Tuesday night. The Cavaliers have won four straight games since James made those comments, outscoring their opponents by a combined 73 points during the stretch. One of those was a 26-point beatdown of the Washington Wizards, who handed Cleveland a 13-point defeat during a four-game slide the Cavs endured prior to their winning stretch. James provided 26 points and 10 helpers in the triumph. Brandon Knight posted 27 points, eight assists, six boards and three steals, while Jabari Parker supplied 22 points and eight rebounds for Milwaukee, which has dropped two straight on the heels of a 6-2 stretch.

Final Score: Atlanta 109, Boston 105

Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – Kyle Korver was the linchpin to Atlanta’s comeback on both ends of the floor as the Hawks rallied from 23 points down to upend the Boston Celtics, 109-105, at Philips Arena. Korver scored 13 of his 24 points in the second half and helped slow down Rajon Rondo and the Celtics, who committed 23 turnovers and shot just 35.0 percent from the field after the break. Paul Millsap totaled 19 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Hawks, who capped their four-game homestand with three straight wins. Jeff Green netted 25 points for the Celtics, but he missed a potential tying jumper down the stretch as Boston dropped its fifth straight.

Final Score: LA Lakers 106, Detroit 96

Auburn Hills, MI (SportsNetwork.com) – Jordan Hill put up 22 points and 13 rebounds and the Los Angeles Lakers remained unbeaten against the Eastern Conference with a 106-96 win over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. Kobe Bryant finished with 12 points and 13 assists, but was responsible for 10 of the 14 Lakers turnovers. Bryant posted the unofficial triple-double two days after recording the 20th legitimate one of his career. Nick Young added 19 points off the bench as the Lakers won their fourth straight against the East to start the season. They are just 1-13 against the West. Josh Smith filled the stat sheet with 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists and Andre Drummond pulled down 13 boards, but Detroit lost its ninth game in a row. The struggling Pistons have dropped six home games in that stretch, their longest since a 10-game slide in March, 2013. Only the winless 76ers have a worse record than the Pistons, who fell to 3-15 on the season.

Final Score: Brooklyn 98, New York 93

New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) – Brook Lopez had 23 points and eight rebounds, Joe Johnson added 22 points, eight boards, six assists and three steals and the Brooklyn Nets defeated the New York Knicks 98-93 on Tuesday night. Deron Williams posted 19 points, five boards and five helpers for the Nets, who are 3-2 on the heels of a five-game losing streak. Carmelo Anthony tallied 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists for New York, which has dropped five straight to fall to 4-15 on the season.

Final Score: Dallas 132, Chicago 129 (2-OT)

Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) – Monta Ellis scored 38 points, and the Dallas Mavericks outlasted the Chicago Bulls, 132-129, in double-overtime on Tuesday. Ellis, who shot 16-of-35 from the floor, sent the game to overtime with three free throws and essentially won it with a 3-pointer in the second overtime to help the Mavs win their fourth straight. Chandler Parsons deposited 24 points and Dirk Nowitzki netted 22 on 8-of-22 shooting in the win. Devin Harris added 20 points off the bench. Pau Gasol led the Bulls with 29 points to go along with 14 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler dropped in 23 points and Mike Dunleavy chipped in with 20. Derrick Rose, who banked in a 3 to tie the game as time expired in the first overtime, had 18 points and 10 assists. Chicago had its two-game winning streak snapped in its return to the United Center following a seven-game circus road trip.

Final Score: New Orleans 112, Oklahoma City 104

New Orleans, LA (SportsNetwork.com) – The Thunder welcomed back Kevin Durant on Tuesday, but Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans gave the reigning MVP a glimpse of the uphill climb Oklahoma City faces the rest of the season. Davis totaled 25 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and four blocks, and the Pelicans never trailed in the second half en route to a 112-104 victory over the finally-healthy Thunder. Durant was aggressive in his first game of the season following right foot surgery in October and showed flashes of being in midseason form. He finished with 27 points on 9-of-18 shooting and played nearly 30 minutes. The Thunder went 5-12 with Durant sidelined, and while hopes are high with their projected starting lineup back on the court, they still sit near the bottom of the competitive Western Conference. Davis received plenty of help from his teammates as New Orleans convincingly snapped a three-game slide. Tyreke Evans led all scorers with 30 points, while Jrue Holiday and Ryan Anderson both recorded double-doubles.

Final Score: Portland 105, Denver 103

Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) – Robin Lopez’s layup with 1.3 seconds left lifted the Portland Trail Blazers to a 105-103 win over the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday. LaMarcus Aldridge gave the visitors the lead late in the fourth before Arron Afflalo tied the game with 1:31 to play. Following a couple of empty possessions from each team, Damian Lillard’s point-blank layup rimmed out, but the rebound went out of bounds off Denver. Out of a timeout, Aldridge took the inbounds pass at the foul line and fed Lopez, who shielded J.J. Hickson and easily converted the basket. Danilo Gallinari’s 3-pointer as time expired was all air as the Blazers held on. Aldridge posted a season- high 39 points to go along with 11 rebounds to lead Portland, while Lillard registered 17 points with six assists and Wesley Matthews added 15 points in the win. Ty Lawson deposited 24 points and 13 assists for the Nuggets, who had their two-game winning streak halted.

Final Score: Phoenix 116, Indiana 99

Phoenix, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) – Goran Dragic had 34 points, five rebounds and four steals as the Phoenix Suns defeated the Indiana Pacers 116-99 on Tuesday night. Eric Bledsoe posted 27 points, seven assists and four swipes, Markieff Morris provided 15 points and six boards and Gerald Green netted 15 points off the bench for the Suns, who had dropped three of their last four games coming in. Roy Hibbert tallied 15 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, which has lost four of its last six contests.

Final Score: Toronto 117, Sacramento 109

Sacramento, CA (SportsNetwork.com) – Kyle Lowry scored 27 points, handed out 13 assists and made a critical 20-footer down the stretch to lead the Toronto Raptors past the Kings, 117-109, in a rare road win at Sacramento. The Raptors had dropped 14 of their previous 15 trips to Sacramento but used six double-digit scorers to rebound from a head-scratching overtime loss to the Lakers on Sunday. Terrence Ross netted 20 points, James Johnson added 19, and Jonas Valanciunas went for 15 for Toronto, which saw former teammate Rudy Gay hand out a career-best 10 assists to go with 20 points and six rebounds. Ben McLemore donated 21 points and Derrick Williams had 18 for the Kings, who have dropped four in a row — the last three with star forward DeMarcus Cousins sidelined because of a virus.

Final Score: Golden State 98, Orlando 97

Oakland, CA (SportsNetwork.com) – Stephen Curry’s 3-pointer with 4.2 seconds left lifted the Golden State Warriors to a 98-97 win over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday. With Golden State trailing by two, Elfrid Payton missed a wild layup attempt and Draymond Green pulled the rebound down with 6.9 seconds on the clock. Green then quickly found Curry, who calmly dribbled up court, gave a shake of the shoulders as he gained separation from Tobias Harris and canned the winning 3. Orlando called a pick for Harris on the final play out of a timeout, but Green batted the inbounds pass down court and time expired. Golden State has now won 10 straight games, which is the longest streak in franchise history since an 11-game run from Dec. 29-Jan. 22, 1971-72. Curry scored 22 points and fellow sharpshooter, Klay Thompson, netted 20 in the win. Harrison Barnes posted 14 points and 12 rebounds. Victor Oladipo poured in a season-high 27 points on 10-of-14 shooting for the Magic, who have lost four straight to the Warriors. Kyle O’Quinn chipped in with 21 points and 11 rebounds starting in place of Nikola Vucevic, who was a late scratch due to back spasms.

Categorized in: NBA