Los Angeles Lakers

76ers beat Cavs 108-97, end 11-game skid against Cleveland

Published Mar. 2, 2018 1:33 a.m. ET

CLEVELAND (AP) J.J. Redick scored 22 points, Joel Embiid had 17 points and 14 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers delivered an in-person sales pitch to LeBron James by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-97 on Thursday night to end an 11-game losing streak against the Eastern Conference champions.

Ben Simmons scored 18 and Dario Saric 16, including a critical 3-pointer in the closing minutes, for the rising Sixers, who are 8-2 since Feb. 6.

James finished with 30 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

Earlier this week, three billboards urging the three-time champion to sign as a free agent this summer with Philadelphia were unveiled on a busy highway outside Cleveland. James said he hadn't seen the signs, which were paid for by a Pennsylvania company, but he was pleased that fans want him.

LAKERS 131, HEAT 113

MIAMI (AP) - Isaiah Thomas scored a season-high 29 points, Julius Randle added 25 and Los Angeles continued its surge by topping Miami.

Brandon Ingram added 19, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 18 and Kyle Kuzma finished with 16 for the Lakers, who won in Miami for the first time since Feb. 10, 2008. The Lakers shot 59 percent and were 16 of 29 from 3-point range.

It was the most points allowed by the Heat this season.

Thomas, whose previous season best was 24, connected on 11 of 20 shots and 6 of 11 3-point tries. Randle had 21 points in the first half for the Lakers, who are 16-7 since an 11-27 start - and at 27-34, have now passed last season's win total.

Dwyane Wade scored 25 points for Miami. Goran Dragic had 19, Justise Winslow scored 17 and Josh Richardson and Bam Adebayo each added 15 for the Heat.

TRAIL BLAZERS 109, TIMBERWOLVES 99

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Damian Lillard scored 35 points after a slow start and Portland rallied to beat Minnesota for its season-high fifth straight win.

CJ McCollum had 19 points and Jusuf Nurkic added 16 for Portland, which improved to 36-26. It was the first time Portland was 10 games over .500 since the end of the 2014-15 season.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 34 points and 17 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who lost their fourth straight in the Moda Center.

Lillard was 0 for 7 in the first quarter but after struggling in the first half, Portland mounted a comeback in the second and pulled ahead 84-82 on Shabazz Napier's running jump shot with 8:07 left.

KINGS 116, NETS 111, OT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Bogdan Bogdanovic made a go-ahead short runner from the baseline with 1:06 left in overtime, then added a pair of free throws and Sacramento beat Brooklyn.

Bogdanovic finished with 23 points, De'Aaron Fox added 21 and Willie Cauley-Stein scored 17 to pace five Sacramento players in double figures.

The Kings blew a lead late in the fourth quarter but outscored the Nets 16-11 in the extra period to end a five-game losing streak.

DeMarre Carroll scored 22 points, Allen Crabbe had 20, and D'Angelo Russell and Jarrett Allen had 15 points apiece for Brooklyn.