James, Nowitzki hit for 37 points in wins
LeBron James scored 37 points, Damon Jones hit three consecutive 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, and the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Chicago Bulls 108-100 Thursday night.
James, the NBA’s third-leading scorer, was 12 for 25 from the floor – including 4 of 6 on 3-pointers – as Cleveland (15-9) won its fourth straight. Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 25 points and 11 rebounds for the Cavs.
Jones capped the decisive 15-0 run in the fourth quarter with three 3s, and finished with 15 points.
Larry Hughes started and scored nine points for Cleveland after missing Wednesday’s practice to tend to his ailing brother in St. Louis – who had a heart transplant 10 years ago.
“Every family has something that they deal with,” Hughes said before the game. “This is our challenge. … We have to get through it and just try to stay positive.”
After two free throws by Eric Snow, a steal and layup by James and a basket by Ilgauskas cut the Bulls’ lead to 81-80, Jones went to work.
His 3 with 8:17 left put the Cavaliers ahead, and he hit another to make it a five-point game. Chicago’s Chris Duhon then threw a bad pass, which led to another 3 by Jones that made it 89-81 with 7:05 left in the game.
Ben Gordon scored 22 points to lead the Bulls, and Andres Nocioni had a season-high 21 – including 11 in the third quarter.
However, the Bulls couldn’t stop the Cavaliers from penetrating.
Cleveland was 33 of 41 on free throws, while the Bulls were 8 for 10.
Second to Detroit in 3-point shooting, the Bulls hit just 8 of 21 against a Cleveland team that had allowed opponents to shoot a league-high 40.2 percent from beyond the arc.
After sitting out Tuesday’s 105-92 loss at home to Charlotte with a right knee contusion, Luol Deng found himself matched against James. The thinking was the lanky, 6-foot-9 Deng could distract James on the perimeter and play a step closer to the rim, making it tougher for James to penetrate.
James blew by Deng for a two-handed dunk and hit a 3 over Tyson Chandler during a 14-point first quarter. James had 23 points by halftime.
Mavericks 105, Kings 95: Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 37 points and had 10 rebounds to lift Dallas to a win at Sacramento, Calif.
The Mavericks rebounded from its embarrassing 122-90 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers two nights earlier.
Nowitzki scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, including 11 straight that broke an 85-all tie. His final two points came on a baseline jumper that put Dallas ahead 96-85 with 2:35 left.
Mike Bibby scored 22 points for the Kings, who lost their fourth straight game. Shareef Abdur-Rahim added 13 points and eight rebounds. Brad Miller had 12 points.