CLEVELAND — Kevin Love scored 32 of his 38 points in the first half, LeBron James was ejected for the first time in his career and the Cleveland Cavaliers extended their longest winning streak since 2015 to nine games by downing the Miami Heat 108-97 on Tuesday night.
Love had his way with every defender Miami put on him, finishing 10 of 16 from the field and 14 of 17 on free throws. He scored 22 in the first quarter and the Cavs opened a 27-point lead before halftime.
James added 21 points before he was slapped with two technical fouls by referee Ken Fitzgerald and tossed with 1:59 left in the third quarter and the Cavs leading by 23. It was the first time James was thrown out in 1,082 career games.
Dwyane Wade added 17 points for Cleveland, which has shaken off a slow start and is again playing like the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
WIZARDS 92, TIMBERWOLVES 89: Otto Porter Jr. hit a 22-foot jumper with 25 seconds remaining to lift Washington at Minneapolis.
Washington trailed for nearly the entire fourth quarter. After Porter’s jumper, Minnesota had two shots at the other end but couldn’t convert.
SUNS 104, BULLS 99: Devin Booker had 33 points as Phoenix held on at Chicago.
Booker looked just fine after sitting out a game because of inflammation in his right big toe, nailing five 3-pointers and grabbing nine rebounds.
NOTES
CLIPPERS: Blake Griffin has a sprained left knee and could miss up to eight weeks.
An MRI revealed a medial collateral ligament sprain but there’s no other structural damage to the knee.
BULLS: Forward Nikola Mirotic attended a game for the first time since a preseason altercation with teammate Bobby Portis left him with several broken bones in his face and a concussion.
Mirotic remains sidelined with the injuries from the altercation at practice Oct. 17. Portis served an eight-game suspension.
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