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CLEVELAND -- Kyrie Irving recorded his first career triple-double with 21 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 99-79 win over the Utah Jazz on Friday night. wholesale nfl jerseys . CLEVELAND -- Kyrie Irving didnt need any reminders he was closing in on his first career triple double Friday night. He got plenty of help anyway. "I was trying to not think about it too much, but my teammates were hollering at me to get one more rebound, Coach (Mike) Brown was telling to get one more rebound, a couple of fans were yelling at me that I need one more," Irving said. "I said, I got you guys, dont worry. " The All-Star Game MVP had 21 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 99-79 win over the Utah Jazz. Two rebounds shy of the mark going into the fourth quarter, Irving grabbed his ninth rebound early in the period and pulled down his 10th with 4:12 to go to become the first Cleveland player with a triple double since LeBron James on March 16, 2010, at Detroit. Irving gave credit for his last rebound to centre Spencer Hawes, who joked he pulled back a bit on a missed shot by Marvin Williams. "Luckily, Spence alligator-armed that one, like he said, to let me get that last one," Irving said. Irving received standing ovations when he reached the milestone and when he was pulled from the game a few seconds later. That support went a step too far earlier in the quarter when a young fan wearing a stocking cap raced on the floor and patted Irving on the shoulder. The fan was wrestled to the floor by several policemen and security guards and led away in handcuffs. Irving joked that the fan was a long-time friend and suggested it might have been better if he had waited until after the game. "He told me loved me and I told him I loved him back," said Irving, who also had a fan enter the court at Quicken Loans Arena last season to congratulate him. "My teammates said I was scared. I dont think I looked scared. I flinched a little bit. I was surprised." Cleveland dominated the second half to earn the win and gain ground in the race for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Cavaliers trail Atlanta by 3 1/2 games for the eighth position. The final game of February capped quite a month for Irving and the team. An embarrassing loss to the depleted Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 6 stretched Clevelands losing streak to six games and general manager Chris Grant was fired the following day. Just when it looked like the season was a lost cause, the Cavaliers won six in a row and Irving took over the All-Star Game with 31 points and 14 assists. With 22 games remaining, Cleveland has a chance to reach the playoffs in Irvings third season in the NBA. "Kyrie has got so much talent, so much ability, I think the numbers are always going to be there for him," Utah forward Richard Jefferson said. "But no one is going to judge his career on numbers. The next thing for him is about winning. Thats what everyone expects to happen." Luol Deng scored 16 points as the Cavaliers placed five players in double figures. Gordon Hayward scored 18 points for Utah on the first stop of a six-game road trip. Irving scored 10 points in the third quarter as the Cavaliers turned a three-point deficit into a 63-51 lead. The margin reached 23 late in the fourth quarter. Clevelands long injury list grew when Anthony Bennett, the top pick in the draft last year, missed the game with a sore right knee. Center Anderson Varejao (sore back) and guards Dion Waiters (hyperextended left knee) and C.J. Miles (sprained left ankle) were also sidelined. Utah has lost nine of 11 on the road. The Jazz missed only one 3-pointer in seven attempts in the first quarter and built a nine-point lead. Utah maintained the lead until early in the third quarter when Irving took over. He hit a 3-pointer, scored on a twisting drive to the basket, knocked down two jumpers and hit two free throws. Irving also assisted on Alonzo Gees buzzer-beating jumper from the corner that gave Cleveland a 69-60 lead. Jefferson scored 13 points and Alec Burks added 11 for Utah. "Its the road," Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. "Youve got to find out how to be ready every night. Thats another thing were still learning as we try to bring this young bunch along." Rookie Trey Burke, a native of Columbus, Ohio, played his first NBA game in his home state and was held to four points on 2-of-9 shooting. Tristan Thompson had 18 points and 14 rebounds for Cleveland, and Hawes added 13 points and 16 rebounds. Hawes was given a technical foul in the third quarter, his second in five games since joining the team last week. NOTES: Bennett will be a game-time decision Saturday in Memphis. ... Jazz G John Lucas III didnt play until the final 2:46 with what the team called "gastric distress." ... Varejao missed his ninth straight game, Waiters was out for the sixth contest in a row and Miles was unavailable for the fifth consecutive game. ... All six games on Utahs trip are against Eastern Conference teams. wholesale jerseys ." The announcement from Rutgers President Robert Barchi, who said there was a "miscommunication" about the speeches, is the latest development in a strange saga surrounding the May 18 ceremony. The New Jersey university initially announced that former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would give the keynote address, and school officials maintained that she would not be "disinvited" as some students and faculty protested her selection, including holding a sit-in last week. cheap jerseys from china . The Raptors said it was a "minor surgical procedure" to address the ulnar nerve release in his hand. Fields underwent ulnar nerve transposition surgery in November of 2012 to alleviate nerve compression in his right elbow. DALLAS -- Valeri Nichushkin was in the right place at the right time -- twice -- on Thursday night. Nichushkin scored two goals and Jamie Benn notched his 100th career goal and added three assists to lead the Dallas Stars to a 7-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nichushkin, a rookie, had his first two-goal game to bring his season total to 11 goals in 48 games. He deflected Benns shot into the net for a 3-1 lead in the second period against Bernier, and put in a rebound in the third against Reimer. "Its funny how that works," Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. "He got one off his skate when he was in the right spot, and he got a rebound when he was right in front. He has had some nice opportunities for him that havent gone in." Cody Eakin added a goal and an assist, and Alex Goligowski, Sergei Gonchar and Tyler Seguin each had two assists for the Stars, who broke open a 2-1 lead with four second-period goals and ended Torontos six-game winning streak. Dallas won its second game in a row since ending a 1-8-1 slide. On Tuesday, the Stars shut out the Minnesota Wild, who had won seven of their nine previous games. "Something we wanted to do in this game was build off last game," Benn said. "Its two pretty good games in a row, pretty good in all three zones and we eliminated our turnovers." Kari Lehtonen made 24 saves against the Maple Leafs to record his 200th career victory. Nikolai Kulemin had the lone goal for Toronto. After Nichushkins first goal, Toronto coach Randy Carlyle replaced Jonathan Bernier with James Reimer, who allowed the final four goals, including one on a power play by Shawn Horcoff and one short-handed by Rich Peverley. "I think (the goalies) fit in with the rest of our team," Carlyle said. "Im not going to throw those guys in any more than the rest of the group. We just didnt have anything going." Added Reimer: "Its tough coming in cold, but thats my job as a professional. Tonight, I was the backup goalie and I had to be ready for anything. Im pretty disappointed in myself that I couldnt make some saves early to kind of keep it close." Nichushkin had been moved off the line with Benn and Seguin, and had complained of being fatigued. He had been a healthy scratch for the first time this season for gammes Saturday and Monday. cheap nfl jerseys. "His energy is back up," Ruff said. Trevor Daley also scored in the second period while each team had only four skaters on the ice. "(Special teams have) been real important," Ruff said. "The power play has been really good, and we had a big kill when they could have gotten back in the game." Benn had given the Stars a short-lived 1-0 lead at 7:09 of the first period. His drive from the top of the slot went over Bernier and under the crossbar. Thirty seconds later, Kulemin tied the game by deflecting a similar shot by teammate Carl Gunnarsson past Lehtonen. The Stars regained the lead at 15:47 when Eakin fired a shot from the top of the right faceoff circle for his 12th goal, just 12 seconds after Dallas killed a penalty. Nichushkin extended the Stars advantage to 3-1 at 6:36 of the second period when he deflected in Benns shot from the blue line. Less than two minutes after Nichushkins goal, Horcoff took a pass at the blue line, outskated two defenders and beat Reimer with a low shot. At 11:37, Peverley scored when he and Benn skated in 2-on-2. Defenceman Daley sent a slap shot from the top of the right faceoff circle into the net at 15:33 for his third goal this season and a 6-1 lead. "We worked hard and created a turnover," Daley said. "I just closed my eyes and shot." Peverley added: "We kept trying to score. Thats what you have to do. You dont want to let up." NOTES: Benn, 24, became the first Dallas player to reach 100 career goals before his 25th birthday. ... Eakin left in the third period because of an upper-body injury. "I think hes going to be OK," Ruff said. "Well see tomorrow." ... The Stars Alex Cole played in his 800th NHL game. ... An assist on Kulemins goal gave Nazem Kadri five in the last five games. ... The last time Toronto won seven consecutive games was in 2003-04. ... Dallas had lost its previous seven games against Eastern Conference opponents. ... The Stars power play has scored in six games in a row, with a total of seven goals. Dallas killed all three minor penalties, and has been successful 11 consecutive times. The Maple Leafs have allowed 11 power-play goals in their last 14 games. ... In 58 career games against Toronto, Gonchar has 56 points (16 goals, 40 assists). cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
