CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Cavaliers were handed a surprise Tuesday night.
Dennis Schroder scored a career-high 28 points and the Atlanta Hawks gave the reigning NBA champions their first loss of the season, 110-106.
Cleveland (6-1) cut into two large second-half deficits, but Atlanta converted clutch shots down the stretch.
“It was a weird game,” said LeBron James, who scored 23 points after having only two in the first half.
Atlanta led by 18 points in the third quarter before Cleveland cut the margin to two. The Hawks rebuilt the lead to 15 early in the fourth, but the Cavaliers got within two with 25 seconds remaining.
Kent Bazemore, who scored 25 points, hit a jumper from the corner with seconds left and put the game away.
“They’ve dominated the Eastern Conference for a long time now,” Bazemore said. “They’re definitely the measuring stick, and we passed our first test tonight.”
Atlanta had lost 11 straight to Cleveland, including playoff sweeps the last two seasons.
“For my two years here, they’ve kicked our butts,” Bazemore said. “This is one of the biggest wins I’ve had since I’ve been here.”
In Los Angeles, Harrison Barnes scored 31 points, Seth Curry added 23 and the Dallas Mavericks won their second straight game after a 0-5 start, beating the Lakers, 109-97.
JJ Barea had 18 points, seven rebounds and eight assists for the Mavericks, who beat the Lakers for the 11th consecutive time since April 2, 2013. Dallas forced 17 turnovers and held the Lakers off down the stretch, scoring 10 straight points midway through the fourth quarter to take control.
Jordan Clarkson scored 22 points and Nick Young had 20 as the Lakers’ three-game winning streak ended.
Lou Williams scored 15 points for Los Angeles, which rallied from an 11-point deficit in the second half before failing to execute in the final minutes.
After getting their first win of the season Sunday against Milwaukee, the Mavs surprisingly won again without injured Dirk Nowitzki and Deron Williams. Nowitzki missed his second straight game with a sore Achilles tendon, while Williams missed his second straight game with a strained calf muscle.
Barnes hit 11 of 18 shots while carrying the Mavs, who used only eight players. Dallas has beaten the Lakers six straight times at Staples Center.
Young scored 13 points in the first 3:15, staking the Lakers to an early lead. Dallas scored the final 11 points of the half to move ahead 58-54.
In other results, Brooklyn downed Minnesota, 119-110; Memphis nipped Denver, 108-107; and Portland outlasted Phoenix, 124-121.
Back in Cleveland, Paul Millsap scored 21 points for Atlanta. Dwight Howard, who received four stitches for a bloody lip in the first half, had 17 rebounds.
“Give them a lot of credit,” James said. “They played a heck of a game. You know toward the end of the season they’ll be right there.”