CLEVELAND — LeBron James scored 27 points to move into ninth place on the NBA scoring list, and the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Miami Heat 114-84 on Friday night.

James passed Elvin Hayes on a driving layup with 6:58 remaining and has 27,315 career points. The four-time MVP was removed about a minute later and received a loud ovation from the Cleveland crowd.

Kevin Love, who was questionable because of back spasms, scored 28 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Cavaliers. He missed the morning shootaround but was in the lineup after warming up on the court about an hour before tip-off.

Kyrie Irving added 23 points for the Cavs, who have won three straight after losing three in a row.

Derrick Williams scored 17 points for the Heat, who have lost four straight.

ROCKETS 102, THUNDER 99: James Harden scored 21 points, and visiting Houston overcame Russell Westbrook’s seventh consecutive triple-double to beat Oklahoma City.

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Harden also had 12 assists and nine rebounds to help the Rockets win their fifth straight.

Westbrook finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. It was Westbrook’s 12th triple-double this season and the 49th of his career. He is the NBA’s active leader in the category and ranks sixth overall.

The Thunder had won the previous six games during Westbrook’s triple-double binge.

PISTONS 117, TIMBERWOLVES 90: Andre Drummond had 22 points and 22 rebounds for his second straight 20-20 game and Detroit cruised in Minneapolis.

Marcus Morris added 15 points and seven rebounds and the Pistons had their way with Minnesota’s struggling defense, hitting 14 of 29 3-pointers.

Andrew Wiggins scored 16 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Wolves, who have lost seven of their last eight games.

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MAVERICKS 111, PACERS 103: Wesley Matthews matched a season high with 26 points, Harrison Barnes scored 25 and Dallas won at Indianapolis for just its third victory in 15 games.

Matthews outscored the Pacers during a 32-11 spurt that turned a 50-42 deficit into a 74-61 lead, scoring 16 points.

Paul George had 22 points for the Pacers.

HAWKS 114, BUCKS 110: Dennis Schroder scored a career-high 33 points and Atlanta rallied from 20 down in the second half at Milwaukee.

Paul Millsap added 23 points and 14 rebounds, and Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 18 points.

Jabari Parker scored 27 points for Milwaukee.

HORNETS 109, MAGIC 88: Nic Batum and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each had 16 points, and Charlotte routed visiting Orlando for its third straight victory.

Kemba Walker contributed 15 points in limited action.

Evan Fournier had 14 points for Orlando.


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