LOS ANGELES (AFP) - LeBron James scored 22 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers put an embarrassing defeat further behind them on Thursday with a 115-102 National Basketball Association victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Kevin Love scored 18 points and grabbed 16 rebounds for the Cavs as all five Cleveland starters scored in double figures.

The balanced effort helped Cleveland overcome a 30-point night from Clippers guard Chris Paul, who scored 12 straight points in the first quarter to keep the visiting Los Angeles close in the early going.

The Cavaliers then clamped down on defence to come up with a solid win against a top Western Conference team days after they were blown out by the Golden State Warriors - a defeat that James said "opened a lot of eyes for us".

"In order for us to be successful we have to defend at a high level. We've got to share the ball and get the ball moving from side to side and get the defence moving," said James, whose Cavs began their bounce-back with a win over Brooklyn on Wednesday. "We've done that the last two games."

Spanish centre Marc Gasol converted the go-ahead three-point play with 12.2 seconds left as the Memphis Grizzlies held off the Nuggets in Denver by a score of 102-101.

Gasol scored 27 points and guard Mike Conley added 20 for the Grizzlies, who got off to a blistering start and led by as many as 18 in the second quarter before the Nuggets rallied.

It was close as well in Sacramento, where Kings guard Rajon Rondo notched his fifth triple-double of the season and forward DeMarcus Cousins scored 24 points with 15 rebounds to lead the hosts to a 91-88 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.

Rondo scored 11 points with 11 assists and 10 rebounds as the erratic Kings notched their fourth straight win.