NBA Round-Up February 8, 2015
Kevin Love finally found his touch, sinking seven of his eight three-point bombs to notch a season-high 32 points to go along with 10 rebounds and lead the Cleveland Cavaliers in drubbing the Los Angeles Lakers 120-105 at Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland.
The struggling All-Star forward made five treys in the second quarter and two more in the third as the Cavs bounced back from a 99-103 loss against Indiana. The defeat snapped a 12-game winning streak that began against the Lakers back on mid-January.
LeBron James almost recorded a triple-double for Cleveland with 22 points, 10 boards and eight assists but had six turnovers. Kyrie Irving, too, had a good shooting game and finished with 28 points on 5 three-pointers for the Cavs.
Rookie Jordan Clarkson led the Lakers with 20 points, while Ed Davis added 16 points and nine rebounds. Wesley Johnson scored 15 for the Lakers, who had 12 points from Wayne Ellington.
In other games, Kevin Durant had 29 points, five rebounds and six assists as the Oklahoma City Thunder thrashed the Los Angeles Clippers 131-108 at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Thunder, who are locked in a tight playoff race against the New Orleans Pelicans and the Phoenix Suns, bounced back from a tough loss against the Pelicans and humiliated the sixth-seeded Clippers, who missed the injured Blake Griffin because of an elbow issue that needed immediate surgery.
Russell Westbrook and rookie Mitch McGary each scored 19 points for the Thunder, with Westbrook also having 11 dimes and McGary adding 10 boards.
Meanwhile at FedEx Forum, the Memphis Grizzlies outlasted the East-leading Atlanta Hawks 94-88 behind a late 8-0 run that helped the home side grab their ninth win in 10 games.
Mike Conley had 21 points and six assists for the Grizzlies, while the bigmen duo of Zach Randolph and Gasol each recorded double-doubles. Randolph had 11 points and 15 rebounds, while Gasol put up 16 markers and 10 boards.
Jeff Teague had 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field for Atlanta, who recently defeated the West-leading Golden State Warriors. Kent Bazemore scored 14 points, while Dennis Schroder and Mike Scott each scored 11 points off the bench for the Hawks.
At Toyota Center, the visiting Portland Trailblazers defeated the Houston Rockets 109-98 despite James Harden scoring 45 points for the hosts in Texas.
Harden had a game-high 45 points on 11-of-25 shooting to go along with nine boards and eight assists but only two other Rockets scored in double figures. Harden, who is having an MVP-caliber season, also made 19 of his 23 attempts from the stripe.
Portland, who only won their third game in five matches, were led by Damian Lillard with 23 points, five rebounds and five assists. Lillard is set to replace the injured Griffin in the All-Star Game next weekend.
LaMarcus Aldrige scored a team-high 24 points to help the Blazers, who got 14 markers from Robin Lopez and 12 each from Meyers Leonard and C.J. McCollum.
In Sacramento, Demarcus Cousins’ buzzer-beating jumper helped the Kings escape Phoenix 85-83 at Sleep Train Arena. Cousins 19-foot jump-shot bounced a few times above the rim before falling through, but all was bliss for the Kings as the victory snapped a six-game home losing streak.
Cousins ended with 28 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Kings, while Ben McLemore added 13 markers and Ramon Sessions scored 10.
Isaiah Thomas scored 26 points in a rare start for the Suns, who are now just a game ahead of New Orleans in the playoff race.
The Toronto Raptors outlasted defending champions the San Antonio Spurs 87-82, while the Indiana Pacers defeated the Charlotte Hornets 103-102.
The Minnesota Timberwolves, who are the leauge’s worst team with only 11 wins in 51 games, downed the Detroit Pistons 112-101, while the Chicago Bulls beat the Orlando Magic 98-97.
Photo courtesy of FoxSports
