Deron Williams came ready to play as the veteran point guard led his New Jersey Nets to a 99-96 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers and rookie point guard Kyrie Irving. But not before Irving made things interesting.
The Nets jumped out to a strong start in the first quarter and from there both teams played back and forth but the Cavs could never put together a strong run challenge for the win until it was too late. Irving sparked a last-ditch rally with a three pointer to start a 7-1 run to cut the lead to four points with 16 seconds left in the game.
Anthony Morrow then made two free throws and another Irving three-pointer at the buzzer helped make the final score appear closer than the game was before the wild finish.
Williams finished with 27 points and 10 assists, making five of seven three-pointers which help make up for his six turnovers. Morrow added 22 points for New Jersey while Kris Humphries tacked on 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Irving ended up with a strong showing against Williams, scoring 32 points with six rebounds and two assists. Antawn Jamison finished with 20 points and six rebounds.
Cleveland moves on from this loss to take on the Boston Celtics in a home-and-home series starting on Sunday at Boston.
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