By the Associated Press
CLEVELAND — Gordon Hayward tied a career-high with 39 points, making all 16 of his 2-point attempts, and the Boston Celtics won their fifth straight game by holding off the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-113 on Tuesday night.
Boston Celtics’ Gordon Hayward (20) drives past Cleveland Cavaliers’ Larry Nance Jr. (22) in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019, in Cleveland. (AP Photo / Tony Dejak)
Hayward put in Kemba Walker’s miss with 22 seconds left to give Boston a 118-113 lead. Walker stole the inbounds pass and hit a free throw to put the game away.
Hayward made 17 of 20 shots, including a 3-pointer. The 6-foot-7 forward scored 16 points in the opening quarter and 22 in the first half, hitting all nine attempts from the field.
Walker had 25 points for Boston, which hasn’t lost since the season opener against Philadelphia.
Collin Sexton, who scored 21 points, hit a 3 with 1:33 to play that cut Boston’s lead to 116-113. The score remained that way until Hayward’s crucial basket after his offensive rebound.
Boston was 48 of 85 from the field. Jayson Tatum scored 18 points and Carson Edwards had 13.
Tristan Thompson had 19 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, which has lost three straight. Kevin Love scored 17 and Larry Nance Jr. 15.
Boston was 24 of 44 from the field in the first half, when it built an 11-point lead. Cleveland cut the margin to 50-48, but Hayward hit a basket and two free throws and Marcus Smart made a 3-pointer that put the Celtics ahead 61-52 at halftime.
Cleveland stayed with the hot-shooting Celtics until the final seconds. Love missed a 3 that would have tied the game with just under a minute to play.
Hayward suffered a horrific leg injury in Cleveland during the opening minutes of the 2017-18 season opener. He averaged 16.5 points in two games at Cleveland last season.
Jamal Murray scores 21 points as Nuggets beat Heat
Jamal Murray scored 21 points, Will Barton and Jerami Grant had 15 each, and the Denver Nuggets pulled away in the second half to beat the Miami Heat 109-89 Tuesday night.
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, right, drives past Miami Heat forwards Justise Winslow, left, and Chris Silva in the second half. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Jimmy Butler had 16 points and Kelly Olynyk 13 for Miami, which ended a three-game winning streak. It was the first time this season the Heat had failed to score at least 100 points. The Nuggets held Miami to 36.4 percent shooting from the floor while converting 52.3 percent of their shots.
Up by 10 at haftime, the Nuggets doubled their lead with a strong third quarter in which they outscored the Heat 31-20 despite losing Paul Millsap to a facial laceration early in the period after Gary Harris left near the end of the second quarter with an ankle injury.
Monte Morris converted a three-point play in the final moments of the third, helping the Nuggets take an 89-68 lead into the fourth. Morris finished with 11 points.
Denver scored eight of the next nine points starting the final quarter capped by Torrey Craig’s dunk off a lob pass from Nikola Jokic to move in front 97-70 with 8:58 left to play.
Bam Adebayo’s driving layup broke the Nuggets’ surge but not enough to alter the outcome for the Heat, who had trailed by a point after the first quarter. Denver substituted freely in the final minutes.
The Nuggets closed the last 5:04 of the second quarter on a 16-5 run to take a 58-48 lead at halftime. Barton, back from a toe injury, began the flurry by converting a go-ahead three-point play and also connected on a 3-pointer during the surge.
Source: Manila Bulletin
Xtra Sports ph 