CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 33 points and made a key steal in the closing seconds Wednesday night, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers – without the resting LeBron James – to a 99-98 victory against the Dallas Mavericks.

James was given the night off by Coach Tyronn Lue as part of his plans to keep Cleveland’s starters fresh for the playoffs. The Cavs hardly missed James until the Mavericks stormed back from an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Dallas had several chances to take the lead but missed two open 3-pointers.

HORNETS 107, MAGIC 99: Marvin Williams and Nicolas Batum each scored 26 points, and Charlotte finished its homestand with a 6-1 record.

WIZARDS 117, BULLS 96: Washington picked up its second straight lopsided win over a team just ahead of it in the standings, beating Derrick Rose and visiting Chicago behind John Wall’s triple-double of 29 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds.

HAWKS 118, PISTONS 114: Jeff Teague scored 22 points, including two crucial free throws with 17.9 seconds left, and Atlanta held on at Auburn Hills, Michigan, for its sixth win in seven games.

TIMBERWOLVES 114, GRIZZLIES 108: Zach LaVine scored 28 points, Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Minnesota won at Memphis, Tennessee.

NOTES

CLIPPERS: The team signed forward Jeff Ayres for the rest of the season.

BUCKS: Milwaukee used the NBA’s hardship exception to sign guard Jared Cunningham to a 10-day contract, an addition that replenishes the team’s injury-ravaged backcourt.