Nets 117, Jazz 106

Kyrie Irving scored 48 points, including 21 in the fourth quarter for a second straight night, to lead the Brooklyn Nets to a 117-106 victory over the Utah Jazz on Friday.

Brooklyn won for the first time since Kevin Durant’s knee injury behind Irving’s memorable finish. He shot 70% from the field in the fourth quarter and made four 3-pointers. Irving fell two points shy of matching Utah’s fourth-quarter point total.

He accounted for 18 of the Nets’ 43 baskets by himself – including a season-high eight 3-pointers.

“He’s just in a different world,” Nets center Nic Claxton said. “He’s locked in. He’s in a different type of zone and he makes those big shots time and time again."

Irving also had a season-high 11 rebounds and six assists, leading Brooklyn in both categories. And he also took a couple of early charges.

“I put my body on the line and lead by example,” Irving said. “When I can get it going on the defensive end and do the little things, it really makes a difference for me and I’m dialed in.”

Claxton added 20 points and four blocks. Royce O’Neale chipped in 13 points and six assists in his first game back in Utah since being traded to Brooklyn before the season.

Jordan Clarkson scored 29 points for Utah and Lauri Markkanen added 22 points and 11 rebounds. Collin Sexton had 17 points, Malik Beasley chipped in 12 and Mike Conley dished out a game-high nine assists.

The Jazz struggled with transition defense down the stretch, giving up 19 fast-break points after halftime.

“In the second half, we just weren’t very focused on getting back and protecting the basket,” Utah coach Will Hardy said. “We got a little bit wrapped up in trying to focus on the ball, and we let guys get behind us.”

After Clarkson capped a 10-3 run with a driving layup to tie it at 102, Irving and Seth Curry each knocked down a pair of 3-pointers to help the Nets take a 114-105 lead with 50 seconds left.

A night after losing in Phoenix to fall to 0-4 without Durant, Brooklyn carved out a 24-11 lead after holding the Jazz scoreless for four minutes. The Nets ran off 14 unanswered points during that stretch, highlighted by three baskets from Irving. They started 11 of 16 from the field before their offense cooled off.

“I thought you saw from him throughout the course of the night different segments of the game where he really put his imprint on what we were trying to do offensively,” Brooklyn coach Jacque Vaughn said. “It paid dividends, especially in the fourth quarter.”

Utah erased the double-digit deficit in the second quarter behind its own 14-0 run and took a 38-36 lead on a reverse layup from Sexton. The Jazz scored on seven straight possessions late in the quarter. Clarkson fueled the spurt with a pair of baskets and three free throws.

Even though Utah hung with Brooklyn until late in the fourth quarter, the Jazz never really felt comfortable on offense against the Nets’ physical defense.

“They were aggressive, switching 1 through 5,” Clarkson said. “I don’t think anybody has played us quite like that.”

O’Neale made the most of his return to Utah.

The Nets forward knocked three 3-pointers in the first quarter to give his team an early spark. He came out strong again in the third quarter, tallying four points, three rebounds, and five assists while going the full 12 minutes.

His contributions reflected a collective aggressiveness from the Nets on both ends.

“Us locking in from the beginning, it set the tone early,” O’Neale said.

Lakers 122, Grizzlies 121

Dennis Schroeder completed a three-point play with 7.6 seconds after a steal and the Lakers rallied to beat Memphis and snap the latter’s winning streak at 11.

The Lakers trailed 114-107 before outscoring the Grizzlies 15-7 the rest of the way.

Schroeder, who scored 19 points, stole the ball from Desmond Bane near halfcourt and made a layup while being fouled by Bane to tie it at 120. Schroeder then made a free throw for the lead.

After a timeout, Memphis’ Brandon Clarke was fouled with 1.9 seconds remaining. He made the first but missed the second. Bane got the offensive rebound, but lost control of it to give the Lakers possession with 0.4 seconds left.

Russell Westbrook led the Lakers with 29 points and LeBron James added 23.

Ja Morant led Memphis with 22 points. Clarke and Tyus Jones added 20 apiece, and Steven Adams had 16 points and 17 rebounds.

Warriors 120, Cavaliers 114

Jordan Poole scored 32 points and the Golden State Warriors put on a shooting display by making 23 3-pointers while star Stephen Curry sat on the bench for a victory over Cleveland.

Ty Jerome added a season-high 22 points as the defending NBA champs ended a five-game trip with an improbable win.

Following a stinging three-point overtime loss Thursday night in Boston, Warriors coach Steve Kerr rested Curry along with fellow starters Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins.

It hardly mattered. Even with their top players on the bench in street clothes, the short-handed Warriors came out firing and barely slowed down.

Darius Garland scored 31 points to lead the Cavs, who were without star Donovan Mitchell because of a strained groin and suffered their most embarrassing loss this season. Caris LeVert added 22 points and Evan Mobley 17 for Cleveland.

Golden State made a season-high 14 3-pointers in the first half — tying the most ever by a Cavs opponent for a half — to take a 64-59 halftime lead.

Nuggets 134, Pacers 111

Jamal Murray got his first career triple-double and Denver extended its winning streak to nine games by routing Indiana without Nikola Jokic.

The two-time reigning NBA MVP sat out due to hamstring tightness.

Murray finished with 17 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds to turn in his best Jokic imitation. Jokic, who leads the league in triple-doubles, was a late scratch. He had a courtside seat for the Jamal Murray Show and congratulated his point-guard teammate after the feat.

Aaron Gordon scored 28 points and Michael Porter Jr. added 19 as the Western Conference-leading Nuggets ran their home win streak to 16 games in a row. They haven't lost at Ball Arena since Dec. 6 against Dallas.

Nuggets acting head coach David Adelman improved to 3-0. Michael Malone remains out after entering the league’s health and safety protocols. A stat line Malone will certainly appreciate — a season-high 38 assists.

Bennedict Mathurin had 19 points and Chris Duarte added 18 for the Pacers, who dropped their sixth straight game. Indiana went 8 of 32 from 3-point range.

Mavericks 115, Heat 90

Luka Doncic had 34 points and 12 rebounds and Dallas turned up the defensive intensity in a victory over Miami.

The Mavericks were without No. 2 scorer Christian Wood, who missed the first of what will be multiple games with a broken left thumb. They responded two nights after blistering criticism of their defense from coach Jason Kidd by holding the Heat to 33% shooting in the first and third quarters combined while outscoring Miami 63-35.

Victor Oladipo scored 20 points for Miami. Bam Adebayo had 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Clippers 131, Spurs 126

Kawhi Leonard scored a season-high 36 points against his former team, helping Los Angeles beat San Antonio to snap a two-game skid.

Leonard put on a show on the court where he won NBA Finals MVP in 2014 with the Spurs. The 6-foot-7 forward was 13 for 18 from the field and 4 for 5 on 3-pointers while adding seven assists, four rebounds and two steals.

Norman Powell added 26 points for the Clippers. Keldon Johnson had 23 points for San Antonio. The Spurs have lost nine of 11.

Magic 123, Pelicans 110

Franz Wagner had 30 points and nine assists, Cole Anthony scored 22 points and Orlando beat New Orleans.

CJ McCollum led New Orleans with 23 points. Jonas Valanciunas had 20 points and 10 rebounds, and Trey Murphy III added 18 points for the injury-riddled Pelicans. They've lost eight of 11.

The Magic shot 52% overall and made 15 of 30 attempts from 3-point range.

Kings 118, Thunder 113

Rookie Keegan Murray had season highs of 29 points and 14 rebounds, Domantas Sabonis added his fifth triple-double of the season and Sacramento beat Oklahoma City for its sixth consecutive victory.

Sabonis had 18 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox scored 23 points and Kevin Huerter chipped in 14.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 37 points for the Thunder.