Cavaliers turn back Blazers

December 12, 2009, 7:44pm
Portland Trailblazers’ Steve Blake, right, passes around Cleveland Cavaliers’ Shaquille O’Neal in the third quarter of their NBA game in Cleveland.
Portland Trailblazers’ Steve Blake, right, passes around Cleveland Cavaliers’ Shaquille O’Neal in the third quarter of their NBA game in Cleveland.

CLEVELAND (AP)  — The Cleveland Cavaliers bounced back from consecutive sloppy road losses to beat the hobbled Portland TrailBlazers 104-99 in the NBA on Friday.

LeBron James scored 33 points, adding seven assists and rebounds and a soaring block on a shot in the closing seconds.

Anderson Varejao had a season-high 22 plus 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were back home after losing in Memphis and Houston.

In those games, Cleveland had 20 and 21 turnovers, respectively. The Cavs were better with the ball, committing 16 miscues.

Mavericks 106, Heat 93
In Miami, Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points to lead Dallas to a win that deepened Miami’s home woes.

Erick Dampier finished with 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Mavericks, who never trailed and whose nine road wins is the most of any team in the Western Conference.

Dwyane Wade scored 28 points and matched a career high with 11 rebounds for the Heat, 2-5 at home since Nov. 10.

Hawks 111, Raptors 89
In Toronto, Atlanta cruised past Toronto for a third successive win.

Joe Johnson scored 20 points, while Jamal Crawford and Maurice Evans each had 15 for the Hawks, who led by as much as 23 en route to a fourth straight defeat of the Raptors.

Thunder 102, Grizzlies 94
In Memphis, Tennessee, Kevin Durant had 32 points and 10 rebounds to lift Oklahoma City past Memphis.

The Thunder’s Russell Westbrook scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter as the visitors snapped the Grizzlies’ three-game winning streak.

Spurs 104, Bobcats 85
In San Antonio, Manu Ginobili scored 22 points as San Antonio had a comfortable win over Charlotte.

Tim Duncan and Richard Jefferson added 17 apiece for the Spurs.

Knicks 113, Hornets 96
In New Orleans, New York scored the game’s last 18 points to overwhelm New Orleans.

Al Harrington scored 28 points for the Knicks, who won a fourth straight game for the first time since 2005-06.

The Hornets lost for the first time in seven home games.

New York trailed 96-95 with less than five minutes left, but Harrington and Chris Duhon hit a barrage of baskets. Duhon sank back-to-back 3-pointers, and Harrington followed with two more as the Knicks put the game away. Duhon scored 22 points.

Rockets 96, 76ers 91
In Philadelphia, Houston held off a late surge to hand Philadelphia its 12th straight defeat.

The 76ers are on their longest skid since also dropping 12 in a row in 2006-07. They traded Allen Iverson near the end of that losing streak, and now have him back.

Iverson, in his third game back with the Sixers after his short retirement, hit a basket with a minute remaining but Aaron Brooks’ shot sealed the win. Brooks scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half.

Bulls 96, Warriors 91, OT
In Chicago, the hosts ended a run of four straight defeats with an overtime victory against Golden State.

Luol Deng scored 21 points and Joakim Noah finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Bulls, who never trailed in overtime.

Pacers 107, Nets 91
In Indianapolis, Indiana won for the first time in seven games, downing hapless New Jersey.

Saturday's NBA Results
Atlanta 111, Toronto 89
Indiana 107, New Jersey 91
Houston 96, Philadelphia 91
Dallas 106, Miami 93
Oklahoma City 102, Memphis 94
New York 113, New Orleans 96
Chicago 96, Golden State 91 (OT)
Cleveland 104, Portland 99
San Antonio 104, Charlotte 85
LA Lakers 104, Minnesota 92
Phoenix 106, Orlando 103

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Portland Trailblazers’ Steve Blake, right, passes around Cleveland Cavaliers’ Shaquille O’Neal in the third quarter of their NBA game in Cleveland. 21.45 KB