NBA: Pistons snap Celtics' home winning streak, Cavaliers record eighth straight victory

Detroit Pistons guard Ish Smith (right) defends against Boston Celtics guard Kyrie Irving (left). PHOTO: EPA-EFE

LOS ANGELES (AFP/XINHUA) - Tobias Harris tallied 31 points as the Detroit Pistons halted the Boston Celtics' eight-game home winning streak with a 118-108 victory in a battle between the two top teams in the National Basketball Association's Eastern Conference.

Andre Drummond posted 26 points, a season-high 22 rebounds and six assists as the Pistons went on a late 13-3 surge to seal the victory and spoil the start of Boston's five-game homestand.

"Tonight was just a great night overall for all of us," he said. "We really wanted to beat these guys. We gave them our best shot and came out with a great win."

It was the first meeting of the teams since the Celtics traded Avery Bradley to Detroit along with a second-round pick in exchange for Marcus Morris during the off-season.

Bradley, who heard cheers from the Boston Garden crowd, and Morris both scored 13 points. Bradley also had five assists.

For Drummond, it was his fourth game of 22 rebounds in 10 career contests in the Garden.

Detroit guard Reggie Jackson finished with 20 points and seven assists in the win.

In Philadelphia, LeBron James tallied 30 points, 13 rebounds and six assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the 76ers 113-91.

Dwyane Wade came off the bench to score 15 points for Cleveland, who won their eighth straight contest to improve to 13-7 on the season.

Cleveland owned a 57-30 advantage in points from non-starters and held the Sixers to 37.5 per cent shooting, including three-for-28 from beyond the arc.

Cleveland shot 48.2 per cent, including 40.5 per cent from three-point range.

Joel Embiid led Philadelphia, who saw a three-game winning streak halted, with 30 points and 11 rebounds.

Rookie sensation Ben Simmons of Australia was limited to 10 points and eight rebounds before leaving the game in the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle.

In New York, Damian Lillard scored 32 points and the Portland Trail Blazers wrapped up a strong five-game journey with their third straight victory, beating the Knicks 103-91.

Pat Connaughton added 17 points for the Trail Blazers, who also won at Memphis, Brooklyn and Washington while losing only in Philadelphia.

Kristaps Porzingis returned from a one-game absence and scored 22 points for New York.

"The game was low-energy from our guys. We have to do it from the tip-off and I don't think our energy was there," Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek admitted.

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