NBA: Cavaliers, Thunder stay perfect

Darius Garland capped a 39-point night by hitting a go-ahead 3-pointer with 45 seconds left that enabled the scorching Cleveland Cavaliers to stay unbeaten with Monday's 116-114 win over the reeling Milwaukee Bucks.

After converting a layup that brought the Cavaliers within 111-110 with 1:07 remaining, Garland knocked down a 25-footer on Cleveland's next possession after the Bucks' Damian Lillard was called for a backcourt violation.

Lillard then misfired on a 3-point try on Milwaukee's next trip down the court before Jarrett Allen sealed the Cavs' eighth straight win to begin the season with a layup off a Garland feed with 12.2 seconds to go.

Cleveland matched the best start in a season in franchise history, having previously gone 8-0 to open the 1976-77 campaign.

With tonight’s 116-114 win, the @cavs have tied their best start in franchise history at 8-0. Cleveland also started 8-0 in 1976-77.#LetEmKnow

— Cavs Notes (@CavsNotes) November 5, 2024

Garland finished 7 of 11 from 3-point range and 15 of 22 overall from the field while adding eight assists. The Cavaliers also received 14 points, 15 rebounds and six assists from Allen and 17 points from Evan Mobley.

Milwaukee, meanwhile, has lost six in a row since a season-opening win at Philadelphia for its longest skid in a season since also dropping six straight in March 2015. The Bucks also played without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a strained adductor muscle he sustained in a 114-113 loss to Cleveland on Saturday.

Lillard paced the Bucks with 36 points on 11-of-22 shooting to go along with seven assists. Bobby Portis and AJ Green each had 21 points for Milwaukee, with Portis adding 18 rebounds.

Thunder cruise past Magic to move to 7-0

The Oklahoma City Thunder also stayed perfect for the young season by coasting to a 102-86 victory over the Orlando Magic behind Jalen Williams' 23 points and 21 from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Western Conference's lone remaining unbeaten team led from start to finish and built a margin as large as 26 points in the second half to extend its best start since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. The Seattle Supersonics began a season 7-0 or better three times, most recently a 10-game run to open the 1993-94 campaign.

Orlando shot just 35.4 per cent from the field to lose its fourth straight game following a 3-1 start. The last three defeats have come with leading scorer Paolo Banchero sidelined with a torn oblique.

Franz Wagner led the Magic with 22 points, while Jalen Suggs recorded 19 points, six rebounds and six assists.

Williams put up 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting as the Thunder shot a torrid 71.4 per cent in the first quarter to take a 39-26 lead into the second. The forward ended the first half with 19 points to lead Oklahoma City into the break owning a comfortable 58-43 advantage.

After defeating the Magic 102-86, the Thunder is 7-0 and has held 5 of its 7 opponents to 95 points or less.

— Nick Gallo (@NickAGallo) November 5, 2024

The Thunder continued to add to their lead in the third quarter, as three consecutive 3-pointers from reserve Isaiah Joe highlighted a 13-1 run that extended the margin to 84-58 late in the period.

Durant's late basket lifts Suns, foils 76ers in George's debut

Kevin Durant's driving layup with 24 seconds remaining broke a tie game and put a damper on Paul George's delayed debut with the Philadelphia 76ers as the Phoenix Suns came through with a 118-116 win.

Durant's key basket capped a 10-1 run over the final 3 1/2 minutes that lifted Phoenix to its fifth straight victory following a 1-1 start. The star forward finished with 35 points and six assists to help offset an off night from team-mate Devin Booker, who went 3 of 18 from the field while scoring 13 points.

George had 15 points in 32 minutes in his first appearance since signing with the 76ers as a free agent in the offseason. The nine-time All-Star missed the team's first five games due to a bone bruise in his left knee and was rusty during his return, missing 10 of his 14 shot attempts.

Philadelphia, which remains without franchise centre Joel Embiid due to a knee issue, dropped to 1-5 despite Tyrese Maxey's 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting.

The 76ers appeared on the way to a win after owning a 115-108 advantage following Guerschon Yabusele's dunk with 3:39 to go, which turned out to be their final basket of the night.

Phoenix answered with eight straight points, capped by Durant's jumper with one minute to play, to take a 116-115 edge.

35 for 35. 35 PTS 14-20 FG 5-5 FT 6 AST 4 REB 1 BLK pic.twitter.com/fYWjkZfFaS

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) November 5, 2024

After Maxey made one of two free throws to tie the game with 49.6 seconds left, Durant drove past a defender and scored before George misfired on a 23-footer just before the final buzzer.