The Cleveland Cavaliers remain undefeated thanks to Darius Garland‘s 25 points and Ty Jerome’s 24 points in their victory over the visiting Charlotte Hornets 128-114 on Sunday night.
Four Cleveland players had over twenty points in Cavalier’s 15 successive wins, a franchise record. That is the 4th best start in NBA history, the Cavaliers have not lost a match yet. The Golden State Warriors still hold the record for the best season start with 24-0 (2015-16).
Evan Mobley at 23 points, 11 rebounds while Jarrett Allen scored 21 points, 15 rebounds supported the effectively clicking offense that shot 57.1 percent from the field. The Cavaliers performed greatly without starting guard Donovan Mitchell who averaged 24.6 points per game who was rested and replaced by Jerome for a starting spot.
LaMelo Ball scored 31 points and assisted 12 times, Miles Bridges had 19 points as the Hornets lost their last five away matches after winning the opening match against Houston. Josh Green, Brandon Miller, and Grant Williams scored 15 points each for the Charlotte side
Timberwolves 120, Suns 117
In a thrilling finish, Julius Randle’s three-point shot at the buzzer ensured Minnesota’s supremacy over Phoenix in Minneapolis.
44 points were scored by Devin Booker who recorded an impressive 15 of 29 field goals and 6 from 13 three point range before the Suns lost. Grayson Allen had 18 points off the bench, Tyus Jones had 13 points, and 11 assists.
Julius Randle scored 35 points from perfect shooting having the last touch of the first half go in. He scored 11 balls from 20 attempts and 5 of 11 from 3 points range. Anthony Edwards bagged 24 points shooting 9 of 14.
Clippers 116, Jazz 105
James Harden scored 20 points, provided 11 assists and moved into the second position on the all-time 3-pointers made list as Los Angeles put an end to a three-game sliding streak with victory over Utah in Inglewood, California.
Ivica Zubac poured in 22 points alongside 11 rebounds while Norman Powell chipped in 19 points as the Clippers improved on their home winning record to four matches. The Angelenos outscored their rivals by 23 points in the second quarter and eased their way through the win.
Jordan Clarkson recorded 21 points while Lauri Markkanen had 18 points and 10 rebounds as the Jazz had ball control 19 turnovers against nine from Los Angeles. Kyle Filipowski along with John Collins scored 13 points each for Utah who have lost for the fifth time in seven away games this campaign.
Pistons 124, Wizards 104
Jaden Ivey led his team with a season-high 28 points while Malik Beasley scored a season-best 26 points which was enough to gift Detroit a win against Washington who were struggling to keep afloat.
Cade Cunningham was dazzling once again for Detroit as he recorded 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to secure his fourth triple-double of this season while also getting five steals. He had good support from Tobias Harris who added 12 points and nine rebounds for the pistons. Detroit controlled the game against Washington during the third quarter, winning it 37-26.
Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma both ended the game with 22 points while Bilal Coulibaly chipped in 15 points for Washington who last won a game way back on the 28-30th of October when they defeated the Atlanta Hawks.
Pacers 119, Heat 110
Myles Turner ended the match with an impressive 34 points and scored five out of five 3-pointers as Indiana held the lead over Miami in the fourth quarter.
The Pacers’ bench players also contributed tremendously with Pascal Siakam scoring 23 points and Benedict Mathurin 21 points and 12 rebounds, the team did drop to a 16-point lead in the 3rd quarter. Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton gathered 16 points while assisting 13 throughout the game.
Miami’s Tyler Herro scored 28 points and seven three-pointers while Bam Adebayo netted 24 points. Miami continued to be without All-Star Jimmy Butler, who was unable to play for the fourth consecutive game owing to a right ankle sprain.
Knicks 114, Nets 104
Karl-Anthony Towns threw in 26 points and brought down 15 rebounds for the host New York who managed to pull away in the second half for a win against Brooklyn.
Towns netted 14 points as the Knicks put together a decisive push in the third quarter to complete a two-game home set sweep against the Nets. New York 124, 122, NBA Cup, Friday.
Knicks’ Jalen Brunson, who scored the game winning goal on Friday, recorded a double-double for the Knicks on Sunday with 12 points and 10 assists. Cameron Johnson scored 22 points for the New Jersey Nets, their third in the last three games and fifth in the last six games.
Mavericks 121, Thunder 119
P.J. Washington went off on a 27 point eruption which also saw him register a season career high 17 rebounds which helped secure the win against Oklahoma city for the visiting Dallas team.
Kyrie Irving’s 23 points contribution to the Mavericks proved to be vital as they led most parts of the match without their king Luka Doncic due to his bruised right knee. This was the first time that Doncic had been ruled out in a match of this season.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander came up huge for the thunder but late in the match, he scored a key three pointer helping Oklahoma City within three after 25 seconds. He attempted to force a jump ball with Irving and actually managed to win the jump ball – Gilgeous-Alexander finished the game scoring 36 points shooting 13 of 19.
Grizzlies 105, Nuggets 90
Jaren Jackson Jr. scored 20 points, and Jaylen Wells had 15 points to guide Memphis in beating the visiting Denver team missing three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic.
Nikola Jokic missed his second straight game for personal reasons. Without Jokic, the Nuggets have lost the last two after winning the last five games. Julian Strawther had 19 points while coming off the bench for the Nuggets. Other notable points came from Jamal Murray and Christian Braun who ended with 13 points each and Russell Westbrook who had 12 points.
Memphis, which has won four out of six, has recently had to cope with the absence of Ja Morant, who is still on the recovery process from a hip injury sustained on November 6 when playing the Los Angeles Lakers. One more starter, Marcus Smart was ruled out due to a cold. Desmond Bane scored his fifth career double-double with 11 points and 11 boards while posing for seven assists as well.
Blazers 114, Hawks 110
Shaedon Sharpe made crucial contributions on both ends of the court in the last minute to help the host Portland secure the victory against Atlanta.
Sharpe scored 32 points after scoring a career-high 33 in the game against Minnesota while managing to score the last nine points for Portland as they won their third straight game.
Though the hawks began trailing by 13 in the last quarter, they had made it close towards the end. Trae Young had a solid scoring of 29 while Johnson proved equally effective with 25 points.
Rockets 143, Bulls 107
Scoring a game high 28 points was Fred VanVleet while Alperen Sengun accomplished his second consecutive triple double with 20 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds and the visiting Houston team completely demolished Chicago despite being ‘da bulls’.
Every starting player had an enjoyable evening alongside 7 others who scored in double figures, notably Jalen Green with 18 points. Ameen Thompson (16 points), Dillon Brooks (15), Reed Sheppard (12) and Jabari Smith Jr (10) soon followed. 11 of those rebounds were contributed by Thompson for his double double figure performance.
Towards the end of the 3rd quarter, the Bulls started to utilize the majority of their bench. LaVine and Horton-Tucker scored 15 points and 12 respectively for Chicago who shot 33.6%. Houston on the other hand, shot 52.4% and set a new season best for points.