Orlando Magic's D.J. Augustin (14) drives past Charlotte Hornets' Cody Zeller (40) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Friday, Dec. 9, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
Orlando Magic's D.J. Augustin (14) drives past Charlotte Hornets' Cody Zeller (40) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Friday, Dec. 9, 2016. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) Credit: Chuck Burton

Boston — Kyle Lowry scored 21 of his season-high 34 points in the second half to help the Toronto Raptors hold on for a 101-94 victory over the Boston Celtics on Friday night.

The Raptors have won eight of their last nine.

Toronto erased an eight-point halftime deficit and led by as many as 11 in the fourth quarter. The Celtics pulled within four in the final minute, but Al Horford fouled Lowry on a 3-point attempt with 30 seconds to play. Lowry made all three free throws to help close out the victory.

DeMar DeRozan added 24 points, and Norman Powell had 20.

Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas sat out his second straight game with a strained right groin. Marcus Smart started in his place, but struggled to keep up with Lowry down the stretch.

Horford and Avery Bradley each had 19 points to lead Boston.

Boston had nine 3-pointers in the first half and used a 13-0 run in the second quarter to take a 14-point lead. The Raptors crawled out of that hole with 21-3 run in the third. Lowry had 14 points in the quarter.

The Celtics kept firing 3s in the second half, but cooled off and finished 17 for 42 for the game.

Notes: The Celtics shot just 12 of 42 from the field in the second half. … Were outscored 33-18 in the third quarter.

Hornets 109, Magic 88

Charlotte, n.c. — Nic Batum and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each had 16 points, and the Hornets routed Orlando for their third straight victory.

Kemba Walker had 15 points in limited action, and Ramon Sessions and Jeremy Lamb each scored 12 off the bench as the Southeast Division-leading Hornets (14-9) shot 48 percent from the field.

Batum missed out on a chance at a triple-double because Charlotte’s starters didn’t play in the fourth quarter with the game out of hand. He finished with nine rebounds and seven assists.

Cavaliers 114, Heat 84

Cleveland — LeBron James scored 27 points to move into ninth place on the NBA scoring list, and Cleveland defeated Miami.

James passed Elvin Hayes on a driving layup with 6:58 remaining and has 27,315 career points. The four-time MVP was removed about a minute later and received a loud ovation from the Cleveland crowd.

Kevin Love, a game-time decision because of back spasms, scored a team-high 28 points and had 15 rebounds for the Cavaliers.

Pistons 117, Wolves 90

Minneapolis — Andre Drummond had 22 points and 22 rebounds for his second straight 20-20 game and Detroit cruised over Minnesota.

Marcus Morris had 15 points and seven rebounds and the Pistons had their way with Minnesota’s struggling defense, hitting 14 of 29 3-pointers. Detroit came into the game second-to-last in the NBA averaging just 7.1 made 3s per game.

Rockets 102, Thunder 99

Oklahoma City — James Harden scored 21 points, and Houston overcame Russell Westbrook’s seventh consecutive triple-double to beat Oklahoma City.

Harden also had 12 assists and nine rebounds to help the Rockets win their fifth straight. Houston withstood Harden’s 6-for-23 shooting effort.

Westbrook finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. He has the longest triple-double streak since Michael Jordan had seven straight in 1989. The most in a row is nine by Philadelphia’s Wilt Chamberlain in March 1968.

Hawks 114, Bucks 110

Milwaukee — Dennis Schroder scored a career-high 33 points and Atlanta rallied from 20 down in the second half to defeat Milwaukee.

Paul Millsap had 23 points and 14 rebounds for Atlanta. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 18.

The Hawks, who ended a seven-game losing streak Wednesday with a win over Miami, trailed by 20 at halftime. A 40-point third quarter put them back in the game.