LOS ANGELES — LeBron James scored 22 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers put an embarrassing defeat further behind them Thursday with a 115-102 NBA victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Kevin Love scored 18 points and grabbed 16 rebounds for the Cavs as all five Cleveland starters scored in double figures.
The balanced effort helped Cleveland overcome a 30-point night from Clippers guard Chris Paul, who scored 12 straight points in the first quarter to keep visiting Los Angeles close in the early going.
The Cavaliers then clamped down on defense to come up with a solid win against a top Western Conference team days after they were blown out by the Golden State Warriors — a defeat that James said “opened a lot of eyes for us.”
“In order for us to be successful we have to defend at a high level. We’ve got to share the ball and get the ball moving from side to side and get the defense moving,” said James, whose Cavs began their bounce-back with a win over Brooklyn Wednesday. “We’ve done that the last two games.”
Although James admitted that Monday’s loss to the Warriors was a wake-up call, he bridled at the suggestion it was a “red flag” for the 30-11 Cavaliers.
“We’re number one in our conference for a reason,” he said. “Monday was definitely a test for us to understand how much more room for improvement (we have), but I’d rather be in this position than a lot of other teams.”
Grizzlies 102, Nuggets 101
Marc Gasol had a go-ahead three-point play with 12.2 seconds left as Memphis held off Denver 102-101.
Gasol finished with 27 points and guard Mike Conley scored 20 for Memphis, which won its fourth straight with NBA commissioner Adam Silver in attendance.
Denver’s Kenneth Faried had 17 points and 12 rebounds but did not play in the fourth quarter. Danilo Gallinari also scored 17.
Pelicans 115, Pistons 99
Anthony Davis scored 32 points, including 15 in the Pelican’s season-best 72-point first half, to power New Orleans to a victory over Detroit.
The Pelicans won for the fourth time in five games and for the seventh consecutive time against the Pistons.
Tyreke Evans scored 22 points and had 10 assists, and Ryan Anderson added 13 points for New Orleans.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Pistons with 23 points. Guard Brandon Jennings had 20 points and center Andre Drummond had 19 points and 22 rebounds.
Kings 91, Hawks 88
Guard Rajon Rondo recorded his fifth triple-double of the season, forward DeMarcus Cousins scored 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as the Sacramento Kings defeated the Atlanta Hawks 91-88 for their season-high fourth consecutive win.
The Kings (19-23) ended their 15-game losing streak to Atlanta, beating the Hawks for the first time since Feb. 20, 2008.
Sacramento solidified its hold on the eighth spot in the Western Conference.
Spurs 117, Suns 89
San Antonio forward Kawhi Leonard celebrated his election as an All-Star starter with 21 points, and reserve center Boban Marjanovic had his first career double-double in the Spurs’ 117-89 victory over the injury-depleted Phoenix Suns.
Marjanovic had 17 points and a career-high 13 rebounds as the Spurs (37-6) won their 12th consecutive game while matching the 2010-11 team for the best 43-game start in franchise history. — Agencies
