Lakers edge Hornets 111-106 for 3rd straight win

THE Los Angeles Lakers hung on to beat the New Orleans Hornets 111-106 yesterday for their first three-game winning streak in five weeks.

Dwight Howard scored 24 points, and Kobe Bryant had 14 points and 11 assists in another pass-first performance for Los Angeles.

Earl Clark had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, whose 18-point lead with 5? minutes to play dwindled to 102-101 with 2 minutes left before Clark and Steve Nash hit big shots to clinch Los Angeles' ninth straight win over New Orleans.

Eric Gordon scored 18 of his 25 points in the first half for the Hornets.

Portland's LaMarcus Aldridge hit a turnaround jump shot at the final buzzer as the Trail Blazers came back from a 21-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-104.

Aldridge finished with 29 points and 13 rebounds for the Trail, while J.J. Hickson had a season-high 26 points and 15 rebounds.

Dirk Nowitzki finished with 26 points for Dallas, which had won six of its last eight games.

At Auburn Hills, Michigan, Brandon Jennings scored 20 of his 30 points in the third quarter to lead the Milwaukee Bucks past the Detroit Bulls 117-90.

Rookie Andre Drummond had 18 points and 18 rebounds for Detroit, while Greg Monroe scored 14 points. Drummond became just the second teenager to have an 18-18 game since 1985-86, joining Dwight Howard.

Klay Thompson scored a career-high 32 points to lead short-handed Golden State Warriors past the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-95.

The Warriors were missing three starters - guard Stephen Curry (ankle), center Andrew Bogut (ankle) and forward Harrison Barnes (knee). Also, Carl Landry, one of the first players off Golden State's bench, didn't play because of a shoulder injury.

Tristan Thompson had 18 points and 11 rebounds for Cleveland.

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