Irving’s big third helps Cavaliers down Pistons

Kyrie Irving scored 12 of his 15 points in the third quarter (Mark Duncan/AP)

CLEVELAND — Kyrie Irving scored 12 of his 15 points in the third quarter to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 96-84 win over the Detroit Pistons in a preseason game Thursday night.

Irving made a 3-pointer at the horn to end the first half and then turned his game up in the third. His assist to Earl Clark for a dunk gave the Cavs, who were missing starting guard Dion Waiters and several others, a 66-60 lead.

Cavs rookie Sergey Karasev hit two jumpers in the fourth and fed Jermaine Taylor for a dunk to give Cleveland a 91-79 lead. Karasev started for Waiters, out with a bruised hip. Taylor scored 10 in the final period.

Greg Monroe scored 16 and Josh Smith added 12 for the Pistons.

Cavs rookie Anthony Bennett, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, had 12 points. Before the game, coach Mike Brown disclosed Bennett has asthma and sleep apnea.

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.