CLEVELAND: LeBron James tied a career high with 15 assists and Shaquille O’Neal ruled underneath, collecting 13 points and 13 rebounds in 21 minutes to help the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the worn-down Memphis Grizzlies 105-89 on Tuesday night for their ninth straight victory.
James scored 22 but was more focused on setting up his teammates. It was the fifth time in six games he has had at least 10 assists, accepting the challenge of running Cleveland’s offense while the club waits for guards Mo Williams and Delonte Westto return from injuries.
Cleveland has won its past four games by an average of 19 points.
Rudy Gay scored 15 for Memphis, playing its fourth game in five nights. Zach Randolph finished with eight points-13 below his average-on 3-of-14 shooting and O.J. Mayohad 10 on a 4-of-15 night.
Pistons 97 Nets 93: In East Rutherford, N.J., Tayshaun Prince slammed down a tiebreaking dunk on an inbounds play with 45.6 seconds left and Detroit snapped a five-game losing streak.
Richard Hamilton had 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, including three free throws in the final 21.3 seconds, as the Pistons won for only the fifth time in 24 games.
Rodney Stuckey added 21 points and Prince finished with 15 as Detroit played with its full complement of players for the first time since the start of the season.
Brook Lopez led New Jersey with 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field. Devin Harrisre turned to the lineup after missing four games with a wrist injury and had 24 points and a season-high 14 assists for the Nets (4-43), who were outscored 10-2 in the final 2:22.
Magic 99 Bucks 82: In Orlando, Fla., Vince Carter had 17 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists to lead short-handed Orlando over Milwaukee.
The struggling shooting guard had by far his most efficient game in more than a month, giving Orlando its seventh win in eight games.
Charlie Bell and Luke Ridnourhad 13 points apiece for the Bucks, who had their three-game winning streak snapped. Milwaukee fell to 0-3 against Orlando this season.
Thunder 106 Hawks 99: In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant had 33 points and 11 rebounds, Jeff Green added 19 points and two key baskets down the stretch, and Oklahoma City recovered after letting a 13-point lead slip away to beat Atlanta.
Durant became the first player since Allen Iverson nine seasons ago to score at least 25 points in 22 consecutive games and came up big down the stretch.
Fans started chanting “M-V-P!” as Durant made two free throws with 9.6 seconds left to complete a perfect 14-for-14 night at the foul line. Durant, who came in averaging 29.6 points, closed in on NBA scoring leader Carmelo Anthony (29.7) but would have needed three more points to pass him. With Atlanta within two, Durant hit jumpers on back-to-back possessions to make it 97-93, then provided assists on a 3-pointer by Green and a layup by Russell Westbrookthat helped put away the game.
Rockets 119 Warriors 97: In Houston, Aaron Brooks and Carl Landry scored 24 points apiece, and Houston salvaged the last game of its longest homestand of the season by beating Golden State.
Trevor Ariza scored 18 points and Chuck Hayes grabbed 13 rebounds for the Rockets, who finished their six-game homestand with a disappointing 2-4 record.
Monta Ellis scored 34 points for the Warriors, who’ve lost six in a row overall and 12 of their last 13 road games. Corey Maggette, Golden State’s second-leading scorer, sat out with a hip pointer.
The Rockets shot 50 percent (43 of 86) and outrebounded the Warriors 57-35 to beat Golden State for the ninth straight time.
Pacers 130 Raptors 115: In Indianapolis, Danny Granger scored 23 points and Indiana snapped Toronto’s five-game winning streak.
Troy Murphyhad 20 points and 14 rebounds for Indiana, which ended a three-game skid. Roy Hibbert had 18 points and nine boards, and Earl Watson added 15 points and a season-high 11 assists.
Lester Conner coached the Pacers in place of Jim O’Brien, who attended a family funeral.
Chris Boshhad 35 points and 15 rebounds, and Andrea Bargnaniscored a career-high 34 points for the Raptors.
Clippers 90 Bulls 82: In Chicago, Chris Kaman had 21 points and 11 rebounds in his return from injury and Eric Gordon scored 24 points and Los Angeles snapped a four-game losing streak.
Back home after finishing a long road trip with five impressive victories over good Western Conference teams, the Bulls shot 38 percent and committed 20 turnovers in losing to the last club to beat them-the struggling Clippers.
Luol Dengscored 16 of his 18 points in the first quarter and Derrick Rosehad 16 for Chicago, which fell back to .500 at 23-23. The Bulls have lost eight of their last 11 to the Clippers at the United Center.
