James fights off Wizards

CLEVELAND – Flanked by security personnel, one of his own bodyguards and several close friends, LeBron James was escorted from the arena.

He was untouchable.

He could have used the protection earlier.

Bumped and banged by the Wizards on every drive, James scored 32 points, making two tough shots in traffic down the stretch as the Cleveland Cavaliers opened the NBA playoffs with a 93-86 win over Washington on Saturday.

Determined to shut up trash-talking Washington guard DeShawn Stevenson, who had called him “overrated” last month, James took a physical pounding. But he led the Cavaliers to their seventh straight postseason win over the Wizards, who had their chances in the fourth but missed 10 straight shots and scored two points in the final 4:39.

Afterward, James felt no need to rub it in Stevenson’s face.

“93-86,” he said, “is the only words I need to say.”

James scored 20 points – most of them on layups – in the second half to lead the defending Eastern Conference champions, who took a 1-0 lead in a best-of-7 series that got off to a physical start and appears to have a long way to go.

Game 2, or Round 2, if you will, is Monday night.

“It’s one game,” Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said. “They drew first blood.”

Resting a bothersome back, James sat out the early part of the fourth quarter. But once he returned to the floor, Cleveland’s star forward came through as usual. With the game on the line, he twice got to the basket and scored over Wizards defenders, who had spent much of the game knocking him to the floor.

James expected a physical game, and he got one. Not that he minded.

“I was built for this,” he said. “I’m not 6-9, 260 pounds to shoot jumpers all night. I go to the hole and I create contact. Don’t ever think I’m the only person feeling that.”

Gilbert Arenas scored 24 points for Washington.