TORONTO -- LeBron James scored 34 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers overcame an injury to J.R. Smith to snap their three-game losing streak with a 116-112 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.
Smith injured his left knee in the first quarter after landing on a jump shot and hobbled to the dressing room in considerable pain. He did not return, and the Cavaliers said X-rays taken at the arena were negative and that the guard would return to Cleveland on Tuesday for further examination.
DeMar DeRozan had 31 points and Kyle Lowry added 24 for Toronto, which had its six-game winning streak snapped.
The win was the Cavaliers' third straight this season against the Raptors, the team they beat in last season's Eastern Conference finals. It also prevented Toronto from leapfrogging Cleveland into first place in the conference (see full recap).
Another triple-double for Westbrook in OKC win
ATLANTA -- Russell Westbrook extended his streak of triple-doubles to six games, leading the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 102-99 victory over the skidding Atlanta Hawks on Monday night.
Westbrook scored 32 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and doled out 12 assists, carrying on the NBA's longest run of triple-doubles since Michael Jordan had seven in a row in 1989.
Westbrook has sparked a six-game winning streak by the Thunder. He's now reached double figures in all three categories in half of the Thunder's 22 games.
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By contrast, Jordan had 15 triple-doubles for the entire 1988-89 season.
Despite benching Kyle Korver and benefiting from return of Paul Millsap, the Hawks lost their seventh straight game.
They've dropped 10 of 11 overall (see full recap).
Harden, Rockets hang on to beat Celtics
HOUSTON -- James Harden scored 37 points and Al Horford missed a shot just before the buzzer to allow the Houston Rockets to hold on for a 107-106 victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday night.
The game was tied before Harden scored five straight points to make it 107-102 with less than a minute remaining. Avery Bradley made a jump shot and Harden received a flagrant 1 foul for elbowing Marcus Smart in the face. Smart made both free throws before Isaiah Thomas missed a layup.
But Houston knocked the ball out of bounds with 5.2 seconds left, giving Boston one last chance. Horford drove into the lane, but his shot rolled off the rim and Harden grabbed it to secure the victory.
Horford had 21 points and Thomas added 20 for the Celtics, who had won two straight (see full recap).
