Kyrie Irving leads Cavs past Houston

Associated Press

cleveland

Kyrie Irving sees everything on the court — while also keeping an eye on the standings.

Cleveland’s rookie scored 16 of his 21 points in the final 4:14 of the fourth quarter Sunday night as the Cavaliers rallied for a 118-107 win over the Houston Rockets.

The Cavaliers, coming off impressive road victories over Denver and Oklahoma City, have moved back into the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference with three straight wins. And Irving, the No. 1 pick in the draft, knows exactly what’s going on there.

“You have to pay attention to the standings,” he said. “I’m aware we’re a game out of the eighth spot.”

Antawn Jamison scored 28 points and Cleveland had six players in double figures in winning its third straight game for the first time this season. The Cavaliers also recorded a season high in points.

Cleveland’s latest victory, which also ended a four-game home losing streak, moved the Cavaliers within one game of New York for the final playoff spot in the East. The teams are tied in the loss column.

“I sit and look at it all the time,” Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. “I know the teams in front of us and what they’re doing, I know the team that’s right behind us. So I know we have a golden opportunity.”

While the Cavaliers are positioning themselves to have a shot at the playoffs, the Rockets are sinking in the Western Conference. Houston has lost six of seven and slipped to eighth place.

“This is a bad part of the year for us,” said forward Luis Scola, who scored a season-high 30 points. “We’re struggling. We’re not playing the right way. We don’t have confidence and things aren’t working out our way.”