Suns dampen LeBron James’ return with 107-110 win

(The Sports Xchange) — Phoenix forward Markieff Morris had a career-high 35 points as the Suns spoiled Cleveland forward LeBron James’ return to action with a 107-100 victory over the Cavaliers.

James had 33 points, seven rebounds and five assists in his first contest of the year after missing eight games with knee and back injuries.

James gave the Cavs a 97-96 lead with 3:50 remaining before the Suns finished the game on an 11-3 run.

Suns forward P.J. Tucker made four free throws in the final 27 seconds after James’ three-point play made it 103-100 with 51.1 seconds remaining.

 

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Warriors 116, Jazz 105

Stephen Curry scored 27 points and Golden State used a huge third quarter to defeat Utah at EnergySolutions Arena.

Curry hit 10-of-16 shots and dished out a game-high 11 assists to help the Warriors become the third NBA team to hit the 30-win mark.

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Wizards 101, Spurs 93

Guard John Wall scored 25 points and reserve center Kevin Seraphin dominated the fourth quarter as Washington snapped a 17-game losing streak to San Antonio with a 101-93 win.

Seraphin scored 11 of his 17 points in the final quarter, including nine straight for the Wizards. The lead changed hands seven times in the fourth quarter before Seraphin’s putback put Washington ahead for good at 88-87 with 5:44 remaining.

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Hawks 105, 76ers 87

Red-hot Atlanta rested three starters against Philadelphia, but one of those who remained, Al Horford, more than made up for their absence.

Horford had the first triple-double of his eight-year career, logging 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in Atlanta’s ninth straight win and its 23rd in the last 25 games.

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Timberwolves 110,

Pacers 101

Guard Mo Williams scored 52 points, which is a Bankers Life Fieldhouse record for a visiting player, and Minnesota snapped a 15-game losing streak against struggling Indiana.

Williams scored 37 second-half points, and the Timberwolves scored 41 fourth-quarter points to win for the first time since beating Portland on Dec. 10 in Minneapolis.