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Kevin Love drops 36 and 13 on Cavs

Kevin Love’s shooting stroke returned, and Andrei Kirilenko also was back for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The timing couldn’t have been worse for the reeling Cleveland Cavaliers.

Love had 36 points and 13 rebounds and Kirilenko delivered another solid all-around performance in the Timberwolves’ 91-73 victory over the Cavaliers on Friday night.

Love missed most of the first month of the season with a broken right hand, and he’s been struggling to regain his shooting touch since returning nine games ago. The release looked much more fluid against the Cavs, and the trajectory was better as well. He made 10 of 19 shots and 14 of 18 free throws and is cautiously optimistic that it’s all coming back to him now.

”Hopefully it’s not fool’s gold,” Love said. ”It’s a step in the right direction. I’ve been putting in work, but it’s just one game.”

Kirilenko had eight points, seven rebounds, six assists, four steals and three blocks after missing four games with back spasms and Luke Ridnour added 12 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Timberwolves, who improved to 9-9 in their best start since the 2006-07 season.

— Reported by Jon Krawcznski of the Associated Press

Jazz score 131 points vs Raptors

The pregame talk was about 6-foot-11 center Enes Kanter making his first career start for the Jazz.

But it was Utah’s ”small” lineup that delivered the knockout blow in the second quarter, with the Jazz hitting five 3-pointers in a 3 1/2-minute span to set the tone in a 131-99 rout of the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.

”It’s just like anything, when you see someone else on your team make the extra pass to the open guy, then you’re going to come down and make the extra pass to the open guy,” guard Randy Foye said. ”It’s contagious.”

In the end the Jazz hit 13 of 23 shots from beyond the arc – the sixth-highest total in team history. Marvin Williams, Foye and DeMarre Carroll finished with three 3s apiece.

”It felt good to see those guys firing them up and them going in,” said Paul Millsap, who led the Jazz with 20 points but didn’t attempt any 3s…

Kanter finished with 18 points and eight rebounds in place of Al Jefferson, who did not play because of back spasms…

Hayward added 17 points off the bench as Utah (11-10) improved to 8-1 at home…

Bargnani led Toronto with 20 points and eight rebounds. DeMar DeRozan added 17 points while Amir Johnson scored 10 off the bench.

— Reported by Lynn DeBruin of the Associated Press

Warriors, coach Mark Jackson beat Nets in Brooklyn

Mark Jackson looked around Barclays Center and saw friends, family and familiar faces from a lifetime of New York basketball.

What he saw on the court was pretty special, too.

David Lee had 30 points and 15 rebounds, Stephen Curry scored 28 points, and the Golden State Warriors gave their coach a winning return to Brooklyn by beating the Nets 109-102 on Friday night.

”Good to be home,” Jackson said, ”and it’s even better to leave out of here with a victory.”

Lee scored six straight points to break open a tie game midway through the fourth quarter, and Curry had 21 in the second half for the Warriors, who won for the fifth time in six games.

Golden State improved to 2-0 on its season-high, seven-game road trip against Eastern Conference opponents, a game played not far from where Jackson became a New York City star…

Joe Johnson scored a season-high 32 points for the Nets, who dropped their season-high third straight. Deron Williams added 23 points and eight assists…

Brooklyn played without starting center Brook Lopez for a fourth straight game because of a sprained right foot. Andray Blatche had 22 points and 15 rebounds in his place…

Jackson was born in Brooklyn, played high school ball at nearby Bishop Loughlin, starred at St. John’s and began his NBA career with the Knicks, winning Rookie of the Year honors in 1988. The trip back to Brooklyn hit home, he said, when the team bus passed a McDonald’s where he used to eat after high school home games.

— Reported by Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press

Thunder rumble over Lakers, win 7th straight

Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook gorged himself with 27 points in the first half as the Thunder extended their recent dominant run with a 114-108 win over the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.

The victory was the Thunder’s seventh in a row, and their 16th win of the season, while the Lakers are struggling at 9-11.

After trailing by a point after the first quarter, the Thunder (16-4) exploded in the second with 41 to open up a 14-point lead at the half, a gap the Lakers could not reel in.

“That was a solid win, we had some very good stretches but then in the second half we had some not so good stretches. We relaxed some on defense in the second half,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said.

Westbrook had a huge first half, scoring 27 of his 33 points to help the Thunder open up the big gap.

The battle of the scoring big guns went to Thunder forward Kevin Durant with 36 points and nine rebounds, while Lakers guard Kobe Bryant finished with 35 points.

— Reported by Reuters

Kobe Bryant reaches 30,000 career points in Lakers win over Hornets

Before Kobe Bryant had even turned in his latest dominant performance, NBA Commissioner David Stern sought him out to offer a congratulatory hand shake for the extraordinary scoring milestone the Lakers star was about to surpass.

Stern assumed Bryant would score the 13 points he needed to become only the fifth player in NBA history to reach 30,000, and who wouldn’t?

Bryant had 17 points by halftime, finished with 29, and Los Angeles snapped a two-game skid with a 103-87 victory over the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night.

”He just congratulated me and told me I was one of the best competitors that he’s seen in this game and I really appreciated that,” Bryant said of his pregame exchange with Stern.

Now Bryant in is elite company. The only other players to score more than 30,000 are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.

”It’s pretty awesome,” Bryant said. ”These are players I respect tremendously and obviously grew up idolizing and watching and learned a great deal from.”

— Reported by Brett Martel of the Associated Press

DeMarcus Cousins has 25 and 13, Kings beat Raptors 107-100

Tyreke Evans has been a solid scorer throughout his four-year NBA career. Still, the one thing he’s always lacked is a consistent outside shot.

Evans made two consecutive 3-pointers late in the game and teammate DeMarcus Cousins had 25 points and 13 rebounds to help the Sacramento Kings beat the struggling Toronto Raptors 107-100 on Wednesday night.

The Kings used strong fourth-quarter play from Cousins and Evans to earn a rare victory. Sacramento had dropped nine of its previous 11 games, including an embarrassing 35-point loss Sunday against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Evans, back in the starting lineup after missing the past two games with a bruised left knee, scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter. The point total wasn’t a surprise, but hitting back-to-back 3s was unexpected. Evans entered the season as a 25 percent career shooter from 3-point territory and had made six of 22 attempts this season…

Jason Thompson added 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Kings, while John Salmons scored 12 and Aaron Brooks 11.

Lowry had a season-high 34 points, two below his career best. He also added 11 assists and five rebounds for the Raptors, who have lost two straight and eight of nine.

Mickael Pietrus scored 21 points, DeMar DeRozan added 14 and Ed Davis chipped in 13 points and 11 rebounds.

— Reported by the Associated Press

JR Smith jumper lifts Knicks over Bobcats

J.R. Smith is normally the guy watching Carmelo Anthony hit the game-winning shot, not the one knocking it down.

But with Anthony nursing a lacerated finger, the New York Knicks turned to Smith for the last shot and the eight-year NBA veteran delivered.

Smith hit a fallaway jumper from the left wing as time expired to give the Knicks a 100-98 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.

”I was hurt, but J.R. made it feel better,” Anthony said.

Anthony scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half, but went cold in the second half and wasn’t on the floor for the final 2:10 after injuring his left hand diving into the Knicks’ bench for a loose ball…

Tyson Chandler had 18 points and 17 rebounds for the Knicks. Smith finished with 13 points.

Kemba Walker had 25 points and 11 rebounds for the Bobcats (7-10), who have lost five straight games since equaling last season’s win total. Gerald Henderson scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter in his second game back after a 13-game layoff.

The Bobcats appeared in position to win late in the game after a miss by Raymond Felton with 14 seconds left, but rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist made an ill-advised pass toward the top of the key and Smith stepped in front of it to intercept it.

After a timeout, Smith drove to the left side and hit an 18-footer over Kidd-Gilchrist.

— Reported by Steve Reed of the Associated Press

Clippers beat Mavs for 4th straight win

The starters got off to a strong start, then had a front-row seat for the show near the end of the Clippers’ fourth consecutive victory.

Blake Griffin had 19 points and 13 rebounds, and Chris Paul added 14 points and 13 assists in Los Angeles’ 112-90 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.

Jamal Crawford had 20 points, Caron Butler scored 16 and DeAndre Jordan 12 for the Clippers, who shot 50 percent and dominated the entire game, keeping excitable Dallas owner Mark Cuban glued to his seat with his chin cupped in his left hand…

Vince Carter scored 16 points off the bench. Derek Fisher added 15 points, and Shawn Marion and Chris Kaman had 14 points apiece for the Mavericks, who fell to 2-7 on the road…

The Clippers’ former front line of Elton Brand and Chris Kaman, who helped them get within a game of the 2006 Western Conference finals, combined for 28 points for the Mavs.

Los Angeles’ second unit came on in the fourth, with Crawford and Matt Barnes combining to score 21 of their 28 points in the period…

F Dirk Nowitzki is on the Mavs’ trip to LA, Phoenix and Houston, but still not close to playing games.

— Reported by Beth Harris of the Associated Press

Douglas leads Rockets over Lakers 107-105

Interim Houston coach Kelvin Sampson is always reminding his reserves that there will be some nights when the team’s stars will struggle and the Rockets will need them to pick up the slack.

Tuesday was one of those nights.

Toney Douglas had a season-high 22 points and Greg Smith added a career-best 21 to help the Rockets overcome a tough outing by James Harden and rally for a 107-105 win over the Los Angeles Lakers…

The Lakers had a 13-point lead with less than 10 minutes to go. But Houston used two big runs, including a 9-2 spurt capped by a 3-pointer from Douglas to take its first lead of the game – 100-99 – with about 2 1/2 minutes left…

Harden finished with 15 points and a career-high 10 rebounds, but entered the fourth quarter with just eight points after shooting 2 of 18 through the first three quarters. Jeremy Lin also struggled offensively, going 2 of 8 for four points…

Bryant led the Lakers with 39 points and Howard had 16 points and 12 rebounds. The Rockets fouled Howard repeatedly in the last 3 1/2 minutes, gambling that sending him to the line would be better than allowing the Lakers to get the ball in Bryant’s hands.

Howard went 5 for 10 from the line in that stretch and was eight of 16 overall.

— Reported by Kristie Rieken of the Associated Press

Zach Randolph drops 38 and 22 on Suns

The Memphis crowd was on its feet, the chants resonating through FedExForum in the final two minutes of overtime.

”Z-Bo! Z-Bo! Z-Bo!” the faithful hollered, acknowledging the dominance of forward Zach Randolph in a Grizzlies comeback.

Randolph set season highs with 38 points and 22 rebounds to carry the Grizzlies down the stretch for a 108-98 overtime victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.

Randolph was 15 of 22 from the field and dominated in the latter stages of the fourth quarter and most of overtime. He also had three blocks, two in overtime, as Memphis outscored the Suns 14-4 in the extra period, with all the Suns’ points coming at the foul line…

Randolph acknowledged the performance was his best since the 2011 playoff run. Last year, he was stymied physically after a knee injury early on caused him to miss a good portion of the season…

Goran Dragic led the Suns with 19 points and seven assists. Luis Scola scored 16 and grabbed eight rebounds. Jared Dudley finished with 13 points and Jermaine O’Neal scored 12 for Phoenix, which lost its fourth straight.

— Reported by Clay Bailey of the Associated Press