Mitchell powers short-handed Cavs

LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 34 points to lead the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers to a 126-106 National Basketball Association (NBA) victory over Miami on Wednesday, maintaining their Eastern Conference lead over reigning champions Boston.

Darius Garland, averaging 21.7 points per game for the Cavs, was held out to rest while Caris LeVert and Isaac Okoro remained sidelined by injuries.

But the Cavaliers led all the way, connecting on 54 percent of their shots from the field with just seven turnovers as they avenged a 8 December loss to the Heat.

Evan Mobley scored 22 points and pulled down 15 rebounds and Ty Jerome added 20 points off the bench for Cleveland, who improved to 38-9 and remained 5.5 games ahead of the Celtics, who thumped the Chicago Bulls 122-100 in Boston.

The New York Knicks are a further game back after a 122-112 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

Kristaps Porzingis was the driving force in Boston, drilling eight three-pointers on the way to 34 points with 11 rebounds and three steals for the Celtics.

Jaylen Brown added 28 points, six rebounds and six assists, Derrick White added 22 points and Jayson Tatum — questionable to start with a sore knee — scored 16.

Porzingis set the tone, scoring 13 points in less than four minutes as the Celtics bolted to a 15-6 lead.

The Knicks, fueled by 30 points and 15 assists from Jalen Brunson, notched a fifth straight win.

Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 33 points. NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic was in foul trouble early and finished with 17 points six rebounds and six assists for Denver, who slumped to a third straight defeat.

With Jokic on the bench after two fouls in the opening minutes, the Knicks took charge and after Denver clawed back to take the lead in the third quarter New York had the answer.

OG Anunoby scored 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Knicks, who had just six turnovers.

Things got heated in Indianapolis, where Pascal Siakam scored 37 points and Tyrese Haliburton added 30 points and eight assists for the Indiana Pacers in a 133-119 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

The Pacers got off to a scorching start, connecting on 16 of 20 shots in the first quarter to seize a 40-33 lead.

Two weeks after tempers flared when the teams met in Detroit, the Pistons’ frustration was obvious.

Detroit picked up a pair of technical fouls in the first 17 minutes and Isaiah Stewart was ejected after shoving Indiana’s Thomas Bryant early in the second quarter.

There were tense moments in San Antonio, where Kawhi Leonard and Norman Powell scored 27 points apiece to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 128-116 victory over the Spurs.

Ivica Zubac scored 21 points and grabbed 22 rebounds for the Clippers, and sparked the ire of Spurs star Victor Wembanyama when he gave the Frenchman a shove in the third quarter.

Wembanyama rose from the court and tried to chase down Zubac before he was held back by teammates and coaches.

Zubac said he thought he had been fouled by Wemby on a prior play and “reacted a little.”

“I let emotions take over a little bit, but I apologized to him,” Zubac said.

Wembanyama finished with 23 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals and three blocked shots for the Spurs, who took a 107-106 lead with 5:02 remaining in a back-and-forth battle.

But Zubac drove for a basket to launch a 13-0 Clippers run and Los Angeles cruised home.