NBA wrap: LeBron James and Cleveland Cavaliers lay into New Orleans Pelicans

LEBRON James and the rest of Cleveland’s “Big Three” finally lived up to their hype, but it was a day to forget for Dante Exum and the Utah Jazz.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James talks to his teammates in the fourth quarter of the Cavaliers' 110-101 victory over the Denver Nuggets in an NBA basketball game in Denver on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

LEBRON James and the rest of Cleveland’s “Big Three” finally lived up to their hype, but it was a day to forget for Dante Exum and the Utah Jazz.

Catch the full story on all today’s NBA games in our daily wrap below.

AUSSIES IN ACTION

Aron Baynes notched seven points and two rebounds in 12:22 minutes as San Antonio came storming home in the final quarter to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers 89-85.

Dante Exum was limited to three points, four rebounds and a steal in 19:12 minutes as the Utah Jazz slumped to an ugly 97-86 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Exum’s compatriot Joe Ingles contributed three points, an assist and a rebound in in 14:55 minutes.

Cameron Bairstow was listed as inactive by the Chicago Bulls in their 102-91 win over the Detroit Pistons.

CAVALIERS 118, PELICANS 111

LEBRON James had 32 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for his first triple-double of the season and the league’s newest “Big Three” dominated in the second half of the Cavs’ 118-111 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Kyrie Irving had 32 points and nine assists and Kevin Love had 22 points and five rebounds, marking the first time all three of the Cavs’ stars each scored at least 20 points in a game this season.

NBA JAMMED: Exum gets schooled

James and Irving combined for 30 of the Cavs’ 34 points in the third quarter and the Cavs outscored the Pelicans 16-1 to end the quarter, turning a five-point half-time deficit into an 85-79 lead entering the fourth. Kevin Love made four three-pointers in the fourth, including three within the first four minutes.

LeBron 32 points, 10 assists. Kyrie 32 points, nine assists. Figuring it out.

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) November 11, 2014

Still, the Pelicans pulled within 101-99 on a layup from Anthony Davis, but Love countered with his fourth three-pointer of the quarter and Irving completed a three-point play to extend the Cavs’ lead to 107-99 with 2:59 left.

Davis had 27 points and 14 rebounds and forward Ryan Anderson had a season-high 32 points off the bench for the Pelicans, who had their brief two-game win streak snapped.

Indiana Pacers centre Roy Hibbert was dominant in his team’s win at home against Utah.

PACERS 97, JAZZ 86

Roy Hibbert had 11 points in the first quarter to set up Indiana’s 97-86 win over Dante Exum and the Utah Jazz.

Hibbert finished with 29 points to lead the Pacers, while Utah’s Gordon Hayward played a lone hand for Utah with 30 points.

It was a disappointing outing for the Jazz’s Australian contingent, with Exum scoring just three points on one-of-five shooting, while Joe Ingles netted only three-pointer from three attempts.

The Jazz were in touch until late in the fourth quarter, trailing by five points with just under three minutes remaining, but Hibbert hit two free throws and then added a two-point jumper to put the result beyond doubt.

BULLS 102, PISTONS 91

Derrick Rose returned from missing four of five games with sprained ankles to post 24 points and seven assists as the Chicago Bulls downed the Detroit Pistons 102-91.

Joakim Noah added 13 points, 14 rebounds and six assists and Pau Gasol posted his fifth double-double with 17 points and 15 rebounds.

Turning point After the Pistons whittled a 19-point deficit to 90-88, Gasol calmly sank a baseline jumper with 2:25 left. After a missed Josh Smith three-pointer, Jimmy Butler dropped in a three-pointer at the other end.

Rose’s mere presence changed the complexion of the offense, which played at a faster pace. Rose put the exclamation point on the victory by backing down former teammate D.J. Augustin into the lane and dropping a one-handed turnaround over him with 53.8 seconds left for an eight-point lead.

The Atlanta Hawks held off the New York Knicks.

HAWKS 91, KNICKS 85

The Atlanta Hawks outplayed the New York Knicks when it mattered most to wrap up a 91-85 win at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks trailed by five at three-quarter time and narrowed the gap to one when Carmelo Anthony hit a jumper with 2:51 left. But the Hawks scored the next six points to see off the challenge.

Anthony led the Knicks with 25 points, shooting 11-for-25 with nine rebounds and seven assists. Iman Shumpert (18), Tim Hardaway Jr. (15) and J.R. Smith (12) also hit double figures for the Knicks.

Paul Millsap led Atlanta with 19 points, while Kyle Korver scored 17, Dennis Schroder 14 and Al Horford 12.

SPURS 89, CLIPPERS 85

Kawhi Leonard equaled his career high with 26 points despite playing with only one good eye, as San Antonio closed with a rush to beat Los Angeles.

Leonard’s vision has been affected by a case of conjunctivitis. Still, he pulled down 10 rebounds and gave the defending NBA champions their first lead with 1:44 left.

Tim Duncan added 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Tony Parker scored nine of his 13 in the fourth quarter for the Spurs, who snapped a two-game skid while earning their first road win.

San Antonio finished the game on a 14-0 run, giving Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Parker their 500th career victory together. They are second among trios in NBA history to Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, who won 540 games with the Boston Celtics.

Originally published as NBA wrap: LeBron James and Cleveland Cavaliers lay into New Orleans Pelicans