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James outduels Wade in epic
shootout
Cleveland
Cavaliers LeBron James (right) is fouled
by the Miami Heat’s Jermaine O’Neal duringthe NBA
action in Miami, Florida, on Monday. — Reuters
LOS ANGELES —
LeBron James stole the show from
fellow-superstar Dwayne Wade when it mattered most. James made the
game-winning free throws with 4.1 seconds left after stealing the ball
from Wade, giving the league-best Cleveland Cavaliers a thrilling 92-91
road victory over the Miami Heat on Monday night.
“It was a good game by both of us,” said James who finished with 32
points and nine rebounds in the Cavs’ fifth straight win and second in a
row by one point. “It came down to one possession; whoever got the last
stop was going to win the game. Luckily it was us.”
Wade also scored 32 and 10 rebounds, but had just two points in the
second half on 1-of-8 shooting and missed the potential game-winning
jumper at the buzzer.
“We put ourselves in the right position,” Wade said. “Just mistakes
tonight that I made, that I normally don’t cost us.” Wade had 30 points
and James countered with 24 as the Heat led by four at halftime, in a
duel of superstars playing their own version of, “Anything you can do I
can do better.”
However, the game turned to defence down the stretch. With the score
knotted at 91-apiece, Wade missed two free throws with 41 seconds left,
but blocked James’ jumper at the other end. On the ensuing play, Wade
had his lazy behind the back pass intended for Udonis Haslem stolen by
James. The 6-foot-8 260-pound James drove for a lay-up, but collided
with Wade and Quentin Richardson as all three went flying into the
crowd. Wade landed awkwardly while James took a hard hit to the head.
James lay writhing in pain for several minutes before getting up to make
the eventual game-winning free throws. “I’ve got a headache,” he said.
“I just had to relax; I didn’t want to rush it. It was difficult, I was
able to get up and knock them down.” Wade had a final shot to give the
Heat the victory. However, James contested his 20-foot jumper, which
banged off the back of the rim as time expired.
“We’re in the timeout and LeBron was like, ‘I’ve got him, don’t send a
double team,’” Cavs coach Mike Brown said. “So I said, ‘OK go get him.’”
“He made D-Wade take a tough shot.” Shaquille O’Neal scored 19 points
for Cleveland, while Daniel Gibson added 15. Jermaine O’Neal netted 18
for Miami (23-20) and Michael Beasley finished with 16.
Elsewhere, Utah Jazz defeated Phoenix Suns 124-115. Carlos Boozer had 21
points with 20 rebounds, rookie Wesley Matthews scored 10 of his
career-high 21 in the final quarter and the Jazz (26-18) rallied from 17
down. Goran Dragic topped the visiting Suns (25-18) with a career-high
32 points, making six threes. Steve Nash had 15 assists to become the
eighth player in NBA history to eclipse the 8,000 career milestone.
Elsewhere, Denver Nuggets defeated Charlotte Bobcats 104-93. Chauncey
Billups had 27 points with 11 assists, Aaron Afflalo scored a
career-high-tying 24 and the Nuggets (30-14) overcame the absence of its
top scorer Carmelo Anthony (sore ankle) for its season-high seventh
straight win.
Stephen Jackson tossed in 22 points for visiting Charlotte (21-22)
losers of three in a row following a franchise-tying six-game run.
Elsewhere, New Orleans Hornets defeated Portland Trail Blazers 98-97.
Chris Paul had 24 points, 12 assists and the game-winning 15-foot jumper
with 3.8 seconds remaining, lifting the Hornets (24-20) to the dramatic
road win.
Juwan Howard and LaMarcus Aldridge led Portland (27-19) with 16 points
apiece. Meanwhile, Boston Celtics defeated LA Clippers 95-89. Paul
Pierce scored 22 points, Rajon Rondo had 16 with 12 assists, leading the
Celtics (29-13) to their second win after dropping four of five. Rasual
Butler scored 17 for the visiting Clippers (20-24) winners of the first
meeting in December. Elsewhere, Indiana Pacers defeated Philadelphia
76ers 109-98. Danny Granger scored 26 points, Dahntay Jones had 18,
giving the visiting Pacers (16-29) a split of the home-and-home series.
— DPA |
