PORTLAND — The first matchup between Kyrie Irving and Damian Lillard turned into a huge night for the reigning Rookie of the Year.
Irving scored 31 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers 93-88 on Wednesday to snap a four-game losing streak.
“When he’s aggressive, he’s pushing the ball and he’s in attack mode," Cleveland coach Byron Scott said of Irving. “I think our guys feed off of that."
Tristan Thompson added 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
Nicolas Batum had 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Blazers, who erased a 19-point second-quarter deficit and briefly took the lead. Wesley Matthews added 17 points and LaMarcus Aldridge had 15.
“I thought Cleveland, obviously, in the first half played harder," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. “But we fought."
Lillard finished with 13 points. Portland’s rookie point guard is averaging 18.1 a game, but he entered the fourth quarter with only three on zero-for-three shooting. He got going in the final period, tying the score at 75 with a 3-pointer and giving the Blazers an 86-85 lead by hitting a 20-footer with 2:07 left.
Irving took over from there, though. He made a pull-up jumper, a turnaround bank shot and a couple of free throws as Portland wilted.
“We obviously knew they were going to get back in the game eventually," Irving said. “It was bound to happen, but we just did a good job of keeping our composure."
Tyler Zeller had 11 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland, which was playing the fourth game of a five-game Western Conference road trip. The Cavs had lost eight of 10 overall, including 124-118 to Sacramento on Monday.
Portland has lost four straight by a total of 19 points. The Blazers started slow and spent long stretches trying to dig out of holes, possibly the consequence of going overtime with the Nuggets on Tuesday night in a 115-111 loss in Denver’s high altitude.
“There’s no excuses," Matthews said. “They played better than us for a half and we couldn’t get out of the hole."
Irving led the way in the first quarter, shooting six of nine while Cleveland led by as many as 11. The Cavs’ lead hit its apex at 51-32 in the second quarter after Irving fed Thompson for a dunk. Portland had 12 turnovers, shot 34 percent in the first half and trailed by 17 at halftime.
Portland came out of the break more composed and made a run, with back-to-back jumpers from Aldridge, a 3-pointer from Matthews and a ferocious dunk from J.J. Hickson to cut the lead to 55-46.
Portland managed to hang around and entered the final quarter still trailing by nine. The Blazers outscored Cleveland by four in the final quarter.
Also on Wednesday:
Hornets 90
Celtics 78
BOSTON — Austin Rivers won his first NBA game against his father as New Orleans beat coach Doc Rivers and Boston. Al-Farouq Aminu had 18 points and nine rebounds for New Orleans.
Heat 92
Warriors 75
OAKLAND, Calif. — LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 20,000 points and also surpassed 5,000 assists on a milestone night, leading Miami over undermanned Golden State. James finished with 25 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds.
Spurs 103
Grizzlies 82
SAN ANTONIO — Tony Parker had 17 points and 11 assists and Tim Duncan scored 19 to help San Antonio beat Memphis, extending its home winning streak to 13 games.
Thunder 117
Nuggets 97
OKLAHOMA CITY — Russell Westbrook scored 32 points, Kevin Martin had 20 and Oklahoma City snapped Denver’s six-game winning streak.
Hawks 109
Nets 95
ATLANTA — Jeff Teague had a career-high 28 points and 11 assists, Zaza Pachulia finished two assists shy of a triple-double (13 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high eight assists) and short-handed Atlanta ended Brooklyn’s seven-game winning streak.
Mavericks 105
Rockets 100
DALLAS — Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 points, O.J. Mayo hit two tiebreaking free throws and Dallas held off a Jeremy Lin-led surge to beat Houston.
Bulls 107
Raptors 105
TORONTO — Luol Deng hit a tiebreaking jumper with three seconds left in overtime and Chicago beat Toronto for the eighth time in nine meetings. Carlos Boozer had a season-high 36 points and 12 rebounds for the Bulls.
Magic 97
Pacers 86
ORLANDO, Fla. — Nikola Vucevic had 16 points and 15 rebounds to help Orlando snap a six-game home losing streak with a victory over Indiana.
Kings 95
Wizards 94
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — DeMarcus Cousins had 21 points and 16 rebounds while Tyreke Evans and John Salmons each scored 21 to help Sacramento beat Washington.
