Kevin Love tallied 29 points and LeBron James reached 26,000 career points as the Cleveland Cavaliers dumped the Detroit Pistons 114-106 in a NBA Central Division contest Friday night. Love, who was passed over by the Eastern Conference coaches for the upcoming All-Star Game, enjoyed his second-highest scoring game this season. The power forward scored 34 against Orlando on Nov. 23. James became the youngest player ever to reach 26,000-point mark when he made two free throws during the third quarter in front of a crowd of 21,000 at The Palace arena. The four-time league MVP became the 17th player in league history to hit that milestone. He finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and a team-high eight assists. "Anytime I accomplish something like that, I give thanks to my teammates and all my former teammates," James said. Point guard Kyrie Irving finished with 28 points for the Cavaliers, who are 3-1 since Tyronn Lue replaced David Blatt as head coach. Center Tristan Thompson posted a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds. New coach Lue is trying to get the Cavaliers to play at a faster tempo. Center Andre Drummond's 20 points and eight rebounds led the Pistons. Shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 19 points and seven rebounds and rookie forward Stanley Johnson added 15 points and five assists for Detroit. Mavericks 91, Nets 79: Dallas jumped out to an 18-point lead in the second quarter and was never really challenged by Brooklyn. The Nets tried to make a game of it with a brief run in the second quarter to get to halftime down 51-39 and then came out hustling in the third quarter to get to 58-51 with 5:04 to go. But they headed into the fourth quarter trailing by 16 points. Chandler Parsons led Dallas with 19 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Zaza Pachulia posted his 22nd double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds in his return from missing three games with a sore Achilles. Thunder 116, Rockets 108: Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 59 points to lead Oklahoma City over Houston. Durant scored 33 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field and had 12 rebounds and three assists. Westbrook picked up his sixth triple-double of the season with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. Enes Kanter came off the bench to contribute 22 points and 10 rebounds. James Harden led the Rockets with 33 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Heat 107, Bucks 103: Dwyane Wade scored 21 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 45 seconds left, as Miami wrapped up a five-game road trip. Chris Bosh finished with 20 points, Luol Deng had 16 and Amar'e Stoudemire and Goran Dragic each added 12. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 28 points, four rebounds and six assists. Milwaukee also got 24 points from Greg Monroe. Knicks 102, Suns 84: New York ended a four-game losing run and extended Phoenix's road losing streak to 13. The Suns' road drought is the franchise's longest in 32 years. Carmelo Anthony returned after missing two games with a sore knee to contribute 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for his 12th double-double of the season. Arron Afflalo chipped in with 17 points for the Knicks. Celtics 113, Magic 94: Sizzling Boston used balanced scoring to cruise to its fifth straight win. The Celtics had seven players score in double figures and sent the Magic to their eighth straight loss and 12th in their last 13 games in the opener of a home-and-home series that moves to Orlando Sunday. Boston blew open a semi-close game by going on a 22-4 tear that ended with a 15-0 run in the first 5:32 of the fourth quarter. Marcus Smart and Kelly Olynyk led the Celtics with 16 points apiece. Other results: Jazz 103, Timberwolves 90; Trail Blazers 109, Hornets 91; Clippers 105, Lakers 93. — Agencies
