Clarkson steps up to save CAVS

Lowry, Ibaka, Raptors rap Warriors

CLEVELAND – Jordan Clarkson scored 28 points and a basket by Rodney Hood in the fourth quarter gave Cleveland a late lead as the Cavaliers dealt New York its fifth straight loss 113-106.

Hood added 23 points, rookie Collin Sexton scored 19 and Matthew Dellavedova, playing his first game for Cleveland since being re-acquired from Milwaukee, had 15 points.

Enes Kanter and Tim Hardaway each scored 20 points for New York.

Hood hit the go-ahead jumper with 23.7 seconds remaining as Cleveland lost a 22-point lead before escaping with the victory.

The Cavaliers led by 22 with 6:54 left in the second quarter but gradually let the Knicks rally. New York trailed 106-105 after rookie Kevin Knox finished off a transition play with a left-handed dunk off a bounce pass from Emmanuel Mudiay with 32.5 seconds to go.

On the next possession, Hood released an 11-foot turnaround shot from inside the paint while using a 2-inch size advantage over 6-foot-6 Frank Ntilikina. The Knicks had a chance to regain the lead, but Mudiay missed a contested 14-footer in the paint, and the Cavaliers’ Cedi Osman grabbed the rebound. Osman made two free throws to put Cleveland up 109-106.

In Oakland, Kyle Lowry had 23 points and 12 assists to lead a balanced Toronto offense while leading scorer Kawhi Leonard sat out, Serge Ibaka added 20 points and the Raptors dominated Golden State from the start, beating the Warriors 113-93 on Wednesday night to complete a season sweep.

Danny Green scored 15 points, Pascal Siakam had 13 and Fred VanVleet added 10 to help the Raptors improve to an NBA-best 23-7, matching the best start in franchise history.

They did it despite not having Leonard for a second consecutive night. Toronto’s star forward has a sore right hip and was ruled out less than 30 minutes before tip-off.

It was Toronto’s first win in Oakland since Feb. 8, 2004.

Kevin Durant had 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Golden State. The Warriors had won four straight heading into a much-anticipated showdown between two teams many expect to reach the NBA Finals.

In Washington, Kyrie Irving scored Boston’s last 12 points, including back-to-back 3-pointers in the final 40 seconds of overtime to outduel John Wall in a point-guard showdown, and the Celtics extended their winning streak to seven games with a 130-125 victory.

Irving finished with 38 points and seven assists. Marcus Morris added 27 points and nine rebounds for Boston, which played without Al Horford, Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown – its Nos. 4-6 leading scorers.