Darius Garland poured in 40 points and the Cavs rallied to defeat the Raptors 132-126 to stretch their winning streak to 12 games.
Darius Garland scored a season-high 40 points, Jarrett Allen had 18 points and 15 rebounds, and the NBA-leading Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 132-126 on Thursday night for their 12th straight win.
Evan Mobley finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for the Cavaliers (33-4), who are tied for the fifth-best record in league history through 37 games. Cleveland also has the top home mark in the NBA, going 20-1 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Scottie Barnes had 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for Toronto, which is a league-worst 1-17 on the road and has lost 15 of its last 16 overall. Chris Boucher added 23 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.
Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell was given the night off after playing a team-high 35 minutes Wednesday in a 129-122 win over the Thunder. West leader Oklahoma City had won a franchise-record 15 in a row.
Boucher and rookie Jamal Shead combined to make 12 of their first 13 shots, including all eight 3-pointers, as Toronto built a 93-81 lead midway through the third quarter. Shead didn’t play in the fourth and finished with 15 points.
Allen dove into the courtside seats to rebound Barnes’ missed turnaround that could have tied the score with 1:02 remaining. Garland followed with a 3-pointer that extended the Cavaliers’ lead to 129-124.
Randle, Edwards propel Wolves
Julius Randle had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Anthony Edwards added 21 points and seven assists and the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Orlando Magic 104-89 for their third straight victory.
Naz Reid came off the bench to score 16 points, and Rudy Gobert added 10 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota.
Goga Bitadze led Orlando with 15 points and eight rebounds and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 13 points.
The Magic have traded wins and losses in their last seven games overall and dropped to 13-6 at home after opening the season 10-0 there.
Edwards launched himself over the Magic's Anthony Black for a dunk, then came down with a glare at the crowd to give the Wolves a 10-point lead with 3:19 left in the third quarter. They led by double figures for the rest of the game.
Sengun has big night in Rockets’ win
Alperen Sengun had 32 points and 14 rebounds, and the Houston Rockets held on for a 119-115 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in a showdown between two of the top teams in the Western Conference.
Jalen Green finished with 27 points and Fred VanVleet scored 22 as the Rockets won their third straight and solidified their hold on second place in the Western Conference, moving 1 1/2 games ahead of Memphis.
Ja Morant scored 27 points on his return from a five-game absence with a shoulder injury, and Jaren Jackson Jr. added 21 points, eight rebounds and six blocks for Memphis.
Houston dominated inside early, scoring 20 points in the paint before the halfway point of the first quarter. Memphis initially couldn't stop anything at the rim. Houston opened a 17-point lead before taking a 68-63 advantage at the break.
With 3.8 seconds to play and Houston leading 117-114, Desmond Bane fired up a 3-pointer that rattled in. But Memphis coach Taylor Jenkins called timeout before the shot was made. Bane was fouled on the ensuing inbounds, and Memphis wouldn't get another chance for a winning shot.