CLEVELAND, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Anderson Varejao put Cleveland in front for good with 28 seconds left Wednesday and the Cavaliers held on to open their year with a 98-94 win over Brooklyn.
Varejao, who has played no more than 31 games in any of his last three NBA seasons, hit a jumper that gave Cleveland a 93-91 lead and ignite a six-point run for the Cavaliers.
Kyrie Irving hit four free throws down the stretch to boost the Cleveland cushion to six and Varejao clinched it by making two more with three seconds to play.
Tristan Thompson led six Cleveland players in double figures with 18 points while Irving had 15. Brook Lopez led the Nets with 21.
Both sides shot 40 percent and Cleveland helped its cause by winning the battle of the boards 48-37.
