LeBron, Irving and Love finally click as Cavs clip Pelicans: ‘This is special’

Each of Cleveland's Big Three - LeBron James with a triple double, Kyrie Irving with 32 points and Kevin Love with six three-pointers - contributed to a 118-111 win over New Orleans on Monday.

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers are off to a 3-3 start in the NBA this season. David Zalubowski / AP

LeBron James wanted so badly to give back to Cleveland fans after he played poorly in his emotion-laced home opener.

They deserved something.

On Monday night, he delivered a belated gift.

James recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, Kyrie Irving scored 27 of his 32 in the second half and Cleveland’s “Big Three” dominated in a 118-111 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night.

Kevin Love made six three-pointers and added 22 points for the Cavs, who were back at Quicken Loans Arena for the first time since October 30, when Cleveland welcomed James home after four years in Miami. He failed to play up to the monumental event, going 5-of-15 and committing eight turnovers in a stunning loss to the New York Knicks.

James wouldn’t allow a repeat performance. After the Cavs (3-3) returned from a four-game road trip, James went on his Twitter account and told Cleveland fans, “I owe y’all one”.

Not anymore.

“It worked out. It’s good when you put something out there and it comes true,” he said. “I owed them one, and many more as well. Tonight we took care of business.”

James and Irving dominated in the second half, combining for 49 points – 30 in the third quarter when the Cavs overcame 9-point deficit. Love, too, was huge after half-time, making four three-pointers.

“This is special,” said Irving, who added nine assists and had just one turnover in 40 minutes. “We played well as a group.”

Anthony Davis scored 27 with 14 rebounds for the Pelicans (3-3), who beat defending NBA champions San Antonio on Saturday night and gave the Cavaliers all they could handle. Ryan Anderson added 32 points – 23 in the first half for New Orleans.

“In order for you to become one of the best you have to play the best and learn from them,” Davis said. “I love playing against LeBron and the Cavs. They’re a tough team. They have three players who can score the ball at will. We broke down defensively. They scored 118 points. We can’t allow teams to do that.”

Irving’s three-pointer gave the Cavs a 101-95 lead, but the Pelicans didn’t go away and were within three when Love drained one of his six threes. Irving scored on a conventional three-point play and then hit another long-range shot to give Cleveland a 110-98 lead with 2:26 left.

James was taken out to a rousing ovation, but coach David Blatt had to re-insert the superstar in the closing seconds after Anderson’s three brought the Pelicans to 117-111 with 13.9 seconds left.

Following the game, Blatt answered several questions before reminding everyone what James did.

“Hey, that guy No 23 was pretty good tonight,” Blatt said. “It’s easy to overlook that guy. He grabbed the game. He understood the moment.”

Cleveland were just back from a four-game road trip, which had its share of drama as James challenged his young teammates following a loss in Portland.

But in their first game back, the Cavs’ trio of James, Irving and Love showed why they’ve been pegged as title favourites. After a slower start than many imagined, the Cavs – and James – are beginning to figure things out.

“I’m not there yet,” James said. “I have a couple more kinks I need to work out, but I feel I’m in the right place right now and I’ve made some progress.”

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Bulls 102 (6-2), Piston 91 (2-5)

Derrick Rose had 24 points and seven assists in his return to the line-up as the balanced Chicago Bulls beat Detroit.

Rose was 9-for-20 from the field in 32 minutes after being sidelined by sprained ankles. The 2011 NBA MVP had missed four of the previous five games after he was injured in an overtime loss to Cleveland on October 31.

Pau Gasol had 17 points and 15 rebounds for Chicago, and Joakim Noah finished with 13 points, 14 boards and six assists. The Bulls outrebounded the Pistons 49-46 after they had lost the battle on the glass in the previous six games, rankling hard-nosed coach Tom Thibodeau.

Josh Smith had 19 points and 11 rebounds for Detroit, who were coming off a 97-96 home loss to Utah on Sunday. Greg Monroe had 16 points and 10 boards, and reserve DJ Augustin scored 16.

Pistons centre Andre Drummond, who began the game in a jersey that had his name misspelled on the back, grabbed 12 rebounds, but was 0-for-5 from the field and finished with two points.

Hawks 91 (3-3), Knicks 85 (2-6)

Paul Millsap scored 19 points, Dennis Schroder extended his best stretch in the NBA with two big baskets in the final 2 minutes as Atlanta sent the New York Knicks to their fifth straight loss.

Kyle Korver added 17 points as the Hawks finished a home-and-home sweep, including a 103-96 win Saturday in Atlanta over New York.

Schroder, a second-year guard from Germany, scored a career-high 14 points, two nights after setting his previous best with 11. With the Hawks clinging to a three-point lead, he knocked down a jumper with 1:55 to play, then scored on a drive to the basket that gave Atlanta an 81-74 advantage with 59 seconds remaining.

Carmelo Anthony had 25 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Knicks, who came in averaging 92 points, tied for worst in the NBA, and barely surpassed their previous low of 80 in their season-opening loss to Chicago.

Pacers 97 (2-6), Jazz 86 (3-5)

Roy Hibbert scored a season-high 29 points to help Indiana beat Utah, ending the Pacers’ six-game losing streak.

AJ Price had 22 points and Lavoy Allen added 12 – also season highs for both players – as the Pacers won for the first time since the season opener. Allen also had 15 rebounds and Hibbert grabbed five.

Price scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, including two three-pointers during a 13-2 run that gave Indiana an 87-79 lead midway through the period.

Gordon Hayward scored 30 points to lead Utah. Enes Kanter had 18 points and Derrick Favors added 13 points and eight rebounds.

Spurs 89 (3-3), Clippers 85 (4-3)

Kawhi Leonard tied his career high with 26 points despite playing with only one good eye, and the San Antonio Spurs closed with a rush to beat the Los Angeles Clippers.

Leonard’s vision has been affected by a case of conjunctivitis. Still, he pulled down 10 rebounds and gave the defending NBA champions their first lead with 1:44 left.

Tim Duncan added 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Tony Parker scored nine of his 13 in the fourth quarter for the Spurs, who snapped a two-game skid while earning their first road win.

San Antonio finished the game on a 14-0 run, giving Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Parker their 500th career victory together. They are second among trios in NBA history to Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, who won 540 games with the Boston Celtics.

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