The Cavs won their ninth straight, but it wasn't LeBron James who dominated, but Kevin Love, who played his best game of the season. The Wizards made a fourth-quarter comeback to defeat the Timberwolves, while one team had to win the Bulls vs. Suns matchup.
Cavaliers (14-7) defeat Heat (10-10) 108-97
Veteran teams are often vulnerable on the second night of back-to-back games, but after smoking the 76ers Monday (Nov. 27), the Cavaliers obliterated the Heat from start to finish.
While LeBron James' hot start propelled Cleveland in the Philly win, it was Kevin Love who took over the game. Love dropped 22 points in the first quarter as the Cavaliers raced out to a 35-24 lead.
Cleveland continued their thrashing of Miami in the second quarter, outscoring them 40-25. The Cavs shot 61.7 % in the first-half to take a 75-49 lead. Love had 32 and eight rebounds at the break, while James added 16 points, ten rebounds, and six assists.
The final margin was just 11 points, but the game was never close or in doubt at any point in the second-half. Love finished with 38 points and nine rebounds.
James had 21 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists in 28 minutes; he was ejected (arguing a non-foul) late in the third quarter for the first time in his career.
Wizards (11-9) vs Timberwolves (12-9) 92-89
The Wizards played their second game since it was announced that All-Star John Wall would be out two weeks with an injury. They struggled without him in a loss to the Trail Blazers on Saturday (Nov. 25) and got off to a slow start versus the Timberwolves. Minnesota went up 30-23 in the first quarter and nudged their lead to eight by halftime. Taj Gibson led the Timberwolves with 12 points and four rebounds in the first-half.
The Wizards reduced the deficit to three by the start of the fourth quarter and cut the lead to one on a Kelly Oubre jumper with 4:39 left.
However, Tyus Jones (starting for the injured Jeff Teague) responded with a three-point shot. Washington continued to battle and tied the score, but Gibson put the Timberwolves back up two with just under a minute remaining. That's when Otto Porter Jr. stepped up, knocking down back-to-back buckets to give the Wizards the lead and the game. Porter Jr. had a game-high 22 points to lead Washington, while Karl Anthony-Towns had 20 points and 17 rebounds for Minnesota.
Suns (8-14) vs Bulls (3-15) 104-99
When bad meets bad something good has to happen. The Bulls came into the matchup having lost five games in a row, while the Suns had been on the losing end of three straight. It was anybody’s guess which team would pull out of the victory, even Vegas made it a pick’em game.
Chicago was up one after the opening frame, but the Suns crept back to grab a three-point halftime edge.
The Phoenix lead remained three points going into the final quarter, but a 14-2 Suns’ run swelled that number to 15 at the 8:22 mark. Chicago fought to slash that number to three with 22 seconds left, but TJ Warren iced the game for Phoenix with two free throws. Devin Booker poured in 33 points to the lead the Suns, while Warren chipped in 25.