LeBron's 3-double powers Cavs to seventh straight win
CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers'
sleeveless black jerseys already had LeBron James' stamp of approval, though a change in shoes might
have been the difference Friday
night.
James had 27 points, 16 rebounds and 13 assists, J.R. Smith made the tiebreaking free throw with 48 seconds left, and Cleveland extended its winning streak to seven straight with a 100-99 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
James had season highs in rebounds and assists in his 57th career triple-double. He switched from yellow to black shoes after scoring six points in the first half.
"I'm a little weird sometimes," he said. "I wasn't playing well, to my standards. I wanted to try and make my second half better than my first half and I was able to make a couple of plays."
For Black Friday, the Cavaliers wore black uniforms. Cleveland also wore black jerseys when it won the first championship in franchise history, but the current edition is minus the sleeves from Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals.
WARRIORS 143,
BULLS 94
Stephen Curry put on a thrilling display with 33 points to lead the Golden State Warriors over the Chicago Bulls on a night Kevin Durant and Draymond Green were out.
Curry and Klay Thompson came to play Friday night with their fellowAll-Stars out. Durant was sidelined the second time in three games with a sprained left ankle, while Green didn't play for rest.
Curry found his stroke from way back and breezed past a 7-footer in the paint with authority. The two-time MVP notched his seventh career 30-point half and 21st 20-point quarter, when he scored 26 in the second as the Warriors matched their biggest half of the season with a 74-53 lead at
intermission.
CELTICS 118, MAGIC 103
Kyrie Irving scored 17 of his 30 points in a blistering first half and Boston routed Orlando.
One game after ending their streak of 16 consecutive victories, the Celtics scored 40 points in the first quarter and 73 by halftime — both season highs — to send the Magic to their seventh straight loss. Aron Baynes finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Al Horford had 10 assists.
Still wearing a mask after breaking a bone in his face on November 10, Irving was 9 for 15 from the floor and sank all 10 of his free throw attempts, many with the sold-out crowd chanting "M-V-P!"
Rozier had a career-high 23 points for Boston, which also topped its season high for points.
Jonathon Simmons scored 14 points for Orlando.
PISTONS 99, THUNDER 98
Andre Drummond had 17 points and 14 rebounds and Detroit overcame a 15-point deficit to beat Oklahoma City. Russell Westbrook had his sixth triple-double of the season for Oklahoma City with 27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. He missed a long 3-point attempt on the final possession to finish 1 of 10 from 3-point range and 10 of 29 from the field.