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Cleveland Cavaliers’ forward LeBron James does a pull-up on the rim before the start of the game against Charlotte Hornets in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday. — AP
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CHARLOTTE, North Carolina — LeBron James and Kevin Love picked up much of the slack with Kyrie Irving sidelined by a hamstring injury. They got some help, too.
James scored 17 of his 32 points in the first quarter, and the Cavaliers beat the Charlotte Hornets 121-109 Saturday night.
Love added 28 points and 10 rebounds for Cleveland, which played without Irving after the point guard got hurt during Thursday’s 124-118 victory over Boston. Jordan McRae, who got the start with Irving out of the lineup, had 20 points, and Kay Felder finished with 13.
James was 6 for 7 from the field in the first quarter, including a perfect 3 for 3 from beyond the arc.
“I was just locked in from the beginning,” James said. “I had to get off to a good start. Then finding out Kyrie was scratched late ... I just took it upon myself and the team, and we just got off to a great first quarter and it helped us a lot.”
James was 12 for 25 from the field in 35 minutes. He also had nine assists and six rebounds.
Love scored 15 points in the second, helping Cleveland to a 71-59 lead at the break. The Cavs went 12 for 18 from 3-point range in the first half.
“It was great shooting, good ball movement, taking open shots,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “Guys were open, and we found open guys. Kevin did a great job of setting the tone with that 3-point shooting early, and we just continued from there.”
Kemba Walker scored 37 points for the Hornets, who had won five of six. Frank Kaminsky added 15 points and Nicolas Batum finished with 13 points and eight assists.
Walker had 20 points on 8-for-12 shooting in the second half, but the Hornets couldn’t catch the Cavaliers.
Rockets 129, NY Knicks 122: James Harden recorded a 50-point triple-double while Ryan Anderson played a capable second fiddle as the Houston Rockets outlasted the New York Knicks.
Harden finished with a career-high 53 points, 16 rebounds and a career-high-tying 17 assists to carry the Rockets through another lackadaisical defensive effort.
Anderson added 25 points and six rebounds for the Rockets, who led by as many as 19 points yet were in a battle down the stretch when the Knicks cut the deficit to three points multiple times in the fourth quarter.
Houston, however, reeled off a 7-0 spurt to seize control for good, capped by a Trevor Ariza layup.
Grizzlies 112, Kings 98: Mike Conley returned to the lineup and scored 22 points while JaMychal Green knocked down four three-pointers to pace the Memphis Grizzlies’ long-distance attack in a 112-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings.
Conley, who missed two games with a toe injury, played 29 minutes in his return and made 8 of 11 shots from the field.
Green scored 18 points, while Zach Randolph scored 14 points off the bench, as did Vince Carter.
DeMarcus Cousins finished with 26 points, eight assists, five steals and four rebounds for the Kings.
Bucks 119, Bulls 96: Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 points and Jabari Parker added 27 as the Milwaukee Bucks took charge in the second half to pull away from the Chicago Bulls.
Antetokounmpo had nine rebounds, seven assists and blocked seven shots and was dominant as Milwaukee took charge late in what had been a tight, physical game.
Greg Monroe scored 15 points and pulled down 12 rebounds and rookie Malcolm Brogdon had 15 points and 11 boards as the Bucks outscored Chicago 36-20 in the fourth quarter.
Jimmy Butler scored 26 points for Chicago.
Jazz 91, Suns 86: Rudy Gobert recorded 18 points and 13 rebounds for his 23rd double-double of the season and helped the Utah Jazz escape with a 91-86 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
Gordon Hayward added 18 points and nine rebounds and Rodney Hood chipped in 13 points for the Jazz.
Devin Booker scored 20 points and Eric Bledsoe added 19 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to lead the Suns. — Agencies
