The Cleveland Cavaliers set a franchise record by building a 41-point half-time lead en route to their latest victory, a 136-117 drubbing of the Golden State Warriors on Friday. (More Sports News)
Cleveland also held Stephen Curry to just 12 points while putting an end to the Warriors' five-game winning streak
The Cleveland Cavaliers set a franchise record by building a 41-point half-time lead en route to their latest victory, a 136-117 drubbing of the Golden State Warriors on Friday. (More Sports News)
Cleveland moved to 10-0 to extend the best-ever start in team history despite All-Star Donovan Mitchell managing just 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting. Plenty of other Cavaliers stepped up with the playmaking guard struggling, however, as Darius Garland went 6 of 11 from 3-point range while totalling 27 points and Evan Mobley put up 23 points in 26 minutes.
The Cavaliers, the first team in NBA history to open a season with 10 straight wins while scoring at least 110 points in each, also received 13 points and 12 rebounds from Jarrett Allen and 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting off the bench from Ty Jerome.
Cleveland also held Stephen Curry to just 12 points while putting an end to the Warriors' five-game winning streak.
Jonathan Kuminga led Golden State with 21 points, while fellow reserve Brandin Podziemski finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
The Cavaliers began the game on a 20-2 run and never looked back, as they sped out to a 39-22 lead after one quarter before completely dominating the second.
Cleveland outscored the Warriors by a 44-20 margin in the next period to own an insurmountable 83-42 advantage at the intermission, which tied a franchise record for points in a half.
The Cavs shot 63.6 per cent (14 of 22) from 3-point range over the first two quarters, with Jerome and Isaac Okoro each tallying 13 first-half points and Garland and Mobley recording 11 apiece.
Nurkic's late surge lifts hot Suns over Mavericks
The Phoenix Suns are now on a seven-game winning streak after rallying in the fourth quarter for a 114-113 road victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
Jusuf Nurkic scored the Suns' final five points and snapped a 113-113 tie by making one of two free throws with 0.8 seconds left. The veteran centre was fouled after grabbing the rebound of team-mate Royce O'Neale's missed shot to set up the go-ahead point.
Nurkic finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Kevin Durant scored 26 points to help Phoenix improve to 8-1, which matches the 2009-10 team for the best start in franchise history.
Luka Dončić had 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for Dallas, but misfired on a long 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
Kyrie Irving compiled 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists for the reigning Western Conference champion Mavericks, who have alternated losses and wins over a five-game stretch since starting 3-1.
Dallas fought back from a 63-50 half-time deficit to take a 97-91 lead on Naji Marshall's layup with 7:47 remaining, but Bradley Beal had seven points during a 9-3 run that brought the Suns even at 100-100 with five minutes to go.
Nurkic scored on back-to-back possessions to give Phoenix a 113-111 edge with 31.4 seconds left. The Mavericks answered on their next trip down the court, however, as Doncic fed Daniel Gafford for a game-tying alley-oop dunk with 23.5 seconds left to play.
Thunder keep rolling with dominant win over Rockets
The Oklahoma City Thunder kept pace with the Suns atop the Western Conference by cruising to a 126-107 win over the Houston Rockets.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren each scored 29 points to help Oklahoma City (8-1) bounce back from its lone loss of the season, a 124-122 setback at Denver on Wednesday.
The Thunder also kept Houston's top two scorers in check, as Jalen Green was held to 14 points on 5-of-14 shooting and Alperen Sengun missed nine of 12 shots while finishing with 11 points.
Dillon Brooks led the Rockets, who had a two-game winning streak stopped, with 17 points.
After the teams played to a 31-31 tie through one quarter, the Thunder took control in the second by outscoring Houston by a 44-20 margin for the period.
Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren each had 10 points during the second quarter, and Oklahoma City shot 70 per cent from the field for the frame to go into half-time with a comfortable 75-51 lead.
The Thunder extended the margin to as many as 29 points in the third quarter, and Houston never got its deficit under 19 points the entire second half.