Thunder complete season sweep of Warriors in NBA
Cleveland — Miami’s LeBron James scored 28 points in his third game back to Cleveland as a visitor, leading the Heat to a 111-87 win over the Cavaliers in the NBA on Friday.
James, booed loudly every time he touched the ball by fans who haven’t forgiven him for leaving two years ago, scored 16 in the third quarter when the Heat opened a 34-point lead. James added four dunks, three 3-pointers, five rebounds, five assists and rested the entire fourth quarter.
Dwayne Wade added 22 for Miami, which has won five in a row, all on the road and by an average of 18.8 points. The Heat moved back within half a game of Chicago for the Eastern Conference lead.
The Cavaliers got 17 points from rookie Kyrie Irving.
Thunder 110, Warriors 87
In Oklahoma City, the hosts completed a season sweep of Golden State.
Article continues after this advertisementJames Harden scored 25 points and Kevin Durant added 23 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Thunder, who lost Russell Westbrook to a sprained ankle in the third quarter.
Article continues after this advertisementStill, the Thunder improved to 23-7, the best record in the Western Conference, with their third win over the Warriors in 22 days.
David Lee led Golden State with 23 points.
Lakers 111, Suns 99
In Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant scored 18 of his 36 points in the third quarter, guiding Los Angeles past Phoenix.
Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who reached the 100-point mark for only the fourth time this season.
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping attended the game, capping a four-day visit to the U.S. He entered the arena on a red carpet during the second quarter and observed the proceedings from the second tier of luxury suites above the official scorer’s table and the players’ benches.
Marcin Gortat, the only player to start all 31 games for the Suns, led them with 21 points and 16 rebounds on his 28th birthday. Phoenix suffered a fourth straight defeat.
Grizzlies 103, Nuggets 102
In Memphis, Dante Cunningham tipped in a basket with less than a second left to lift Memphis over Denver.
Andre Miller’s inbounds pass with 0.2 seconds left for the Nuggets was batted away at the rim, allowing Memphis to win its third straight despite blowing a 23-point second-half lead.
OTHER RESULTS: Magic 94, Bucks 85; Timbewolves 111, Rockets 98; Mavs 82, 76ers 75; Hornets 89, Knicks 85; Jazz 114, Wizards 100; Pistons 114, Kings 108; Bobcats 98, Raptors 91. /AP
