Associated Press
Associated Press
CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 35 points, including 13 in the final 2:52, and the Cleveland Cavaliers stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-110 on Saturday.
One night after saying he was “disinterested” during a loss in Detroit, Irving was simply spectacular down the stretch. He single-handedly closed out one of the NBA’s best teams, making his last five shots and showing why he’s an All-Star at 20. Irving’s biggest shot was a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left to make it 113-108.
Kevin Durant scored 32 points and Russell Westbrook had 28 for the Thunder, who came in 35-11 and with the league’s best road record. Durant left briefly in the third quarter with an apparent back injury.
Marreese Speights scored 21 points, including eight straight in the fourth when Cleveland’s reserves opened a lead.
SPURS 96
WIZARDS 86
SAN ANTONIO — Tim Duncan sprained his left knee and right ankle in the first half of the Spurs’ victory.
Tony Parker scored 19 points, Danny Green added 15 and Tiago Splitter had 12 for San Antonio (38-11), which has won 18 straight at home.
John Wall scored 21 points and Martell Webster had 14 for Washington (11-35), which has lost 13 straight to San Antonio.
Webster rolled into the back of Duncan’s legs while fighting for a rebound with 3:54 left in the second quarter, and there were audible gasps in the crowd while the All-Star was on the floor holding his left knee for several minutes.
The severity of the injuries is not known, but Duncan did not return to the bench after being helped off the court by teammates Stephen Jackson and DeJuan Blair.
KNICKS 120
KINGS 81
NEW YORK — Amare Stoudemire was 10 for 10 from the field for 21 points, and the Knicks unleashed a 38-4 run on Sacramento in the first half and went on to their fourth straight victory.
The Knicks actually trailed by 10 when Stoudemire entered in the first quarter, then went on to challenge the franchise-record victory margin of 48 points.
It was an awesome display by New York in front of some special guests: 150 children, their families and teachers from Sandy Hook Elementary School. The Knicks didn’t even need much from Carmelo Anthony, who tied a season low with nine points and had his run of 20-point games snapped at 31, the longest single-season streak in franchise history.
J.R. Smith scored 25 points and Steve Novak added 15 as the Knicks made 19 3-pointers.
DeMarcus Cousins had 25 points and nine rebounds for the Kings.
ROCKETS 109
BOBCATS 95
HOUSTON — James Harden had 21 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his first career triple-double, leading the Rockets to the victory.
Bobcats rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was taken off the court on a stretcher in the fourth quarter after teammate Jeff Taylor collided with him going for a rebound. Kidd-Gilchrist was fitted with a neck brace and taken to the hospital.
Coach Mike Dunlap said after the game that Kidd-Gilchrist was moving his extremities and talking as he left the floor. He did not know if Kidd-Gilchrist would be kept in Houston overnight.
Chandler Parsons and Patrick Patterson scored 24 points apiece for the Rockets.
Kemba Walker scored 24 points and Ramon Sessions had 20 points for Charlotte.
The Rockets scored 28 fast-break points and shot 51 percent (42 of 82) from the field.
BULLS 93
HAWKS 76
ATLANTA — Luol Deng had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and the short-handed Bulls used their stifling defense to shut down the Hawks.
Playing without injured starters Kirk Hinrich, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, Chicago dominated near the basket and got a lift from the frenetic play of Nate Robinson. The Bulls used only eight players for the second straight night, but it was more than enough for an impressive road win.
Taj Gibson had 19 points and a career-high 19 rebounds. Jimmy Butler added another double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Robinson scored 20 points.
Josh Smith led Atlanta with 19 points and 13 rebounds but he scored only three points in the second half. Jeff Teague had 16 points, and Al Horford collected 14 points and 12 rebounds.
TIMBERWOLVES 115
HORNETS 86
MINNEAPOLIS — Dante Cunningham scored a season-high 18 points, Nikola Pekovic added 14 and Minnesota snapped a six-game losing streak.
Cunningham hit all nine of his shots to set a franchise record for most consecutive field goals without a miss.
Anthony Davis scored 18 points for the Hornets, who played without Eric Gordon and finished their five-game road trip with four straight losses. Team doctors still haven’t cleared Gordon to play in back-to-back games while recovering from knee surgery.
A night after committing 22 turnovers, New Orleans turned it over 23 times against the Wolves, who recorded their largest victory margin this season.
BUCKS 107, MAGIC 98
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Monta Ellis had 21 points and 11 assists as the Bucks handed the Magic their ninth straight loss.
Brandon Jennings scored 20 points and Larry Sanders had 17 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots for Milwaukee. Ersan Ilyasova added 16 points and eight rebounds.
Nikola Vucevic had 20 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Orlando, and Maurice Harkless had 19 points and 14 rebounds.
The Bucks scored more than 100 points after failing to crack 90 in their two previous games, scoring 86 against New York on Friday, and 88 versus Chicago on Wednesday.