NBA-Highlights of Saturday's NBA games

Dec 10 (The Sports Xchange) - Highlights of Saturday's National Basketball Association games. Cavaliers 116, Hornets 106 LeBron James scored a season-high 44 points and became the first frontcourt player to pass for 7,000 assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers recorded a 116-105 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday. The milestone pass was vintage James, a skip pass down the lane to a streaking Tristan Thompson that few other players could even see, let alone complete. It was his highest scoring regular-season effort since returning to Cleveland and matched the 44 points he scored in a Game 1 overtime loss against the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the Finals in 2015. Grizzlies 110, Warriors 89 Memphis stunned Golden State at FedExForum for its sixth straight win, holding the Warriors to a season low for points. The Memphis defense dominated from the start and the Grizzlies scored 30 points off 23 Golden State turnovers. It was only the second time this season that the Warriors failed to score 100 points. Their previous low was 97 in a 20-point setback to the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 4. Clippers 133, Pelicans 105 Chris Paul scored 20 points and dished out a season-high 20 assists, and Los Angeles extended the woes of New Orleans with a rout at Staples Center. Both clubs were without their main stars. Clippers forward Blake Griffin missed the contest with a sore right knee, while the Pelicans were without center-forward Anthony Davis (rest) and guard Jrue Holiday (toe injury). Davis will return Sunday when the Pelicans visit the Phoenix Suns. Rockets 109, Mavericks 87 Trevor Ariza keyed an offensive awakening with four consecutive 3-pointers and Houston shot its way to a win over Dallas at Toyota Center. The Rockets extended their winning streak to six games and added to their NBA record of games with at least 10 3-pointers. Houston finished 19 of 37 from behind the arc, with Ariza igniting a third-quarter run to clinch momentum. Bulls 105, Heat 100 Jimmy Butler scored 31 points, Dwyane Wade finished with 28 and Taj Gibson added 13 as Chicago beat Miami at the United Center. The Bulls held on for the win after leading by as many as 13 points in the third quarter. But the Heat cut the deficit to 101-100 with less than a minute to play on a Hassan Whiteside basket. But Chicago never relinquished the lead after Butler hit a pair of free throws to again extend Chicago's lead back to three points. Spurs 130, Nets 101 Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points in 27 minutes and the San Antonio Spurs posted season highs for points in a quarter and in a game and total assists while rolling past hapless Brooklyn at the AT&T Center. It was the 19th time this season and fifth straight game that Leonard led the Spurs in scoring. Pacers 118, Trail Blazers 111 Paul George scored a season-high 37 points, and Indiana Pacers overcame a 20-point deficit to defeat Portland. The Pacers outscored Portland 28-13 in the fourth quarter, including 19-6 after the Trail Blazers took a 105-99 lead with 7:14 remaining. Wizards 110, Bucks 105 John Wall had 24 points and 11 assists as Washington outscored Milwaukee 15-5 over the final 4:15 to pull out the win. Bradley Beal had 20 points for the Wizards, who matched their season high with two straight wins. Kelly Oubre scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Nuggets 121, Magic 113 Danilo Gallinari scored 21 points and Kenneth Faried had 19 points and 10 rebounds, leading Denver to a victory over Orlando. The Nuggets snapped a two-game losing streak and handed the Magic their third consecutive loss. Jazz 104, Kings 84 Gordon Hayward scored 26 points and Rudy Gobert added 17 points, 14 rebounds and a season-high six blocks to help Utah pull away for a victory over Sacramento. Trey Lyles added 14 points and five rebounds off the bench for the Jazz. Utah overcame a mountain of turnovers to win for the eighth time in its last 10 games. (Editing by Peter Rutherford)