The Cleveland Cavaliers regained the best record in the NBA's Eastern Conference with their first victory in three games against the Milwaukee Bucks last night.

Last year's beaten finalists had suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time this season, including a double-overtime loss to the Bucks on Sunday, to drop to 8-3, but LeBron James ensured that it would not be three in a row as he led his side to victory.

James finished with 27 points on 9-13 shooting as the Cavs held off a second-half rally from the Bucks to win 115-110 at Quicken Loans Arena.

Cleveland led by 15 at the half, but the Bucks more than halved the deficit going into the final frame before Cleveland again pulled away in the fourth quarter.

Giannis Antetokounmpo stood out for the Bucks, who are now 5-7 and had a franchise-low 22 rebounds in the contest. The Greek forward scored a game-high 33, going 12-15 from the field and hitting all eight of his free throws, without committing a single turnover.