Russell, Harris lead Brooklyn Nets past winless Cleveland Cavaliers

Brooklyn Nets’ D’Angelo Russell (1) drives against Cleveland Cavaliers’ George Hill (3) in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2018, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

CLEVELAND — D’Angelo Russell scored 18 points, Joe Harris added 16 and the Brooklyn Nets beat Cleveland 102-86 on Wednesday night, keeping the Cavaliers winless this season.

Brooklyn outscored Cleveland 38-17 in the third quarter, forcing Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue to use four timeouts in the period. The Nets placed six players in double figures.

Cleveland is off to a rocky start as it tries to move on without LeBron James. The Cavaliers lost their first two games on the road to Toronto and Minnesota. Cleveland was coming off a 133-111 loss in its home opener to Atlanta on Sunday.

The Cavaliers are 0-4 for the first time since losing their first five games in 2003-04 when James was a rookie.

The first half had 11 lead changes and the teams were tied at 45 going to halftime before the Nets took over. Brooklyn hit 16 of 22 from the field in the third quarter to pull away.

Harris made a 3-pointer that put the Nets up 50-47 and Brooklyn never trailed again. Jared Dudley’s second 3-pointer of the run pushed the lead to 68-50 with 6:12 remaining in the quarter.

The Nets maintained a lead over 20 points for most of the fourth quarter, causing many in the crowd at Quicken Loans to head for the exits.

Dudley scored 12 points for Brooklyn while Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert and Ed Davis had 10 apiece.

Kevin Love, Jordan Clarkson and rookie Collin Sexton each scored 14 points for Cleveland.

Cleveland will face a difficult task Thursday with a road game against Detroit and Blake Griffin, who scored 50 points in an overtime win over Philadelphia on Tuesday.

Nets forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and guard Shabazz Napier made their season debuts. Jefferson, out with a hip injury and the birth of his first child, scored seven points in 17 minutes. Napier, sidelined with a strained right hamstring, scored eight points in 11 minutes.

The Nets broke a 10-game losing streak in Cleveland and won for the first time at Quicken Loans Arena since April 3, 2013.

TIP-INS

Nets: F Rodions Kurucs (sprained left ankle) was unavailable and will not play Friday at New Orleans. Coach Kenny Atkinson said his status will be updated this weekend. . F Treveon Graham (strained left hamstring) and F DeMarre Carroll (right ankle surgery) remain out.

Cavaliers: Veterans Kyle Korver and J.R. Smith came off the bench in the first quarter after not playing Sunday. Korver had two points in 19 minutes while Smith scored seven points in 18 minutes… Cleveland was 6 of 26 from the field in the first quarter. … Love had 10 points in the first half, the only Cleveland player to reach double figures in the first two quarters.

UP NEXT

Nets: Visit New Orleans on Friday.

Cavaliers: Visit Detroit on Thursday.