Kevin Love had 23 points in Cleveland’s ninth consecutive victory, while LeBron James scored 19 in his return from a one-game absence as the Cavaliers downed the Kings 101-90.
Kyrie Irving finished with 21 points for the Cavs in his first game since he scored 55 against Portland on Wednesday.
James returned after the win against the Blazers from a layoff over a sprained wrist. He was 7 for 16 from the field in 33 minutes, but made five straight shots as Cleveland put the game away early in the fourth quarter.
Photo: USA Today
A trainer put a brace on James’ wrist in the third, which he wore for the remainder of the game.
DeMarcus Cousins, who was added to the Western Conference All-Star team on Friday, had 21 points and 13 rebounds in Sacramento’s eighth consecutive loss.
PELICANS 108, CLIPPERS 103
Eric Gordon scored a season-high 28 points in New Orleans as the Pelicans snapped the Clippers’ six-game winning streak.
With power forward Anthony Davis sitting out because of a sore left groin, the Pelicans benefited from exceptional shooting from beyond the three-point line, hitting 13 of 25, and from the foul line, where they made 23 of 26 free throws, including their last 17.
Ryan Anderson, starting for Davis, scored 24 as New Orleans won for the fifth time in six games.
JAZZ 110, WARRIORS 100
Gordon Hayward had 26 points, 15 rebounds and six assists in salt Lake City, helping the Jazz beat the Warriors for the first time this season.
Hayward was 9 for 20 from the field and 7 for 8 at the line, showing no lingering effects from sinus congestion that held him out of practice on Thursday. Trevor Booker had 17 points, while fellow reserve Trey Burke finished with 15.
Utah dropped their first two games against Golden State this season, losing 101-88 on Nov. 21 last year and 116-105 on Jan. 13.
Stephen Curry scored 32 points for the Western Conference-leading Warriors, who were coming off a 113-111 overtime loss to Chicago on Tuesday.
Klay Thompson had 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting after averaging 31.6 points over his previous seven games.
In other games on Friday, it was:
‧ Mavericks 93, Heat 72
‧ Raptors 127, Nets 122, OT
‧ Suns 99, Bulls 93
‧ Rockets 93, Celtics 87
‧ 76ers 103, Timberwolves 94
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two