Cavaliers 87, Magic 81 (OT)
CLEVELAND -- Center Anderson Varejao finished with 18 points and a career-high 25 rebounds, and the Cleveland Cavaliers earned an 87-81 overtime victory over the Orlando Magic on Thursday at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Cavaliers (11-21) snapped a six-game losing streak by outscoring the Magic 8-2 in overtime.
Two of the baskets were layups by the 6-foot-11 Varejao, who added three assists.
Cavaliers guard Dion Waiters added 17 points, including a driving layup with 0.6 seconds left in regulation.
Cleveland played without leading scorer Kyrie Irving, who has a bruised left knee. Orlando was missing center Nikola Vucevic, who sat out due to a sprained left ankle.
The Magic (10-22) opened up 79-71 lead with 50.6 seconds left in the fourth quarter, yet the Cavaliers had a chance to tie it with 8.7 seconds remaining after Magic guard E'Twaun Moore missed two free throws.
Waiters sent the game into OT with his drive to the basket.
Magic guard Jameer Nelson missed a corner jumper at the buzzer in regulation.
Orlando had five double-figure scorers, led by power forward Glen Davis, who contributed 16 points and 13 rebounds before fouling out with 23.9 seconds left in overtime.
Nelson added 14 points, six rebounds and nine assists.
Cleveland power forward Tristan Thompson had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Cavaliers' offense went stagnant in the second half as the Magic applied the defensive clamps. Cleveland wound up shooting 34.4 percent from the field, compared to the Magic's 38.1 percent.
The first two picks in the 2013 draft, Anthony Bennett and Victor Oladipo, struggled in Thursday's game. Cavalier forward Bennett, the top overall selection, missed all four of his shots and finished scoreless.
Magic guard Oladipo missed his first three attempts before he scored with eight minutes remaining. He finished with six points and four rebounds.
Nelson had eight points and five assists in the third quarter, as the Magic outscored the Cavs 23-16. Orlando had a 62-57 edge heading into the fourth quarter.
NOTES: The Cavaliers improved to 4-2 in overtime this season. The Magic fell to 0-2. ... Cavaliers G Kyrie Irving missed his first game of the season with a left knee contusion. Luckily for him, there was no structural damage. He's listed as day to day. "You'd love to have him," Cavaliers coach Mike Brown said. "He understands what he needs to do to take care of his body long term and not worry about the short term." ... Veteran Jarrett Jack made his first start since signing with the Cavaliers last summer. Irving started the Cavs' first 31 games of the season. Jack leads all Eastern Conference reserves with 3.7 assists per game. "He'll do whatever the team needs to get the job done," Brown said. ... Magic C Nikola Vucevic sprained his left ankle in a game against Golden State and was held out Thursday. The 7-footer has 16 double-doubles this season, including one 20-20 game. He's averaging 13.4 points and 11.1 rebounds. Jason Maxiell started at center in Vucevic's place.
