James scores 50 vs. Knicks
LeBron James had 50 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 119-105 victory over the New York Knicks on Wednesday night in New York.
James shot 16 of 30 from the field, including 7 of 13 from 3-point range, in his second 50-point game this season. One fan in a Cavaliers jersey ran onto the floor toward the Cleveland bench before being turned away by security.
The NBA's scoring leader scored 45 points in a victory over the Knicks in Cleveland on Nov. 2. He fell 2 points shy of Kobe Bryant, who had a 52-point game Sunday against Dallas, the highest in the league this season.
"I've dreamed about playing well in this building (Madison Square Garden) and it's overtaken of how I could ever dream about," James said. "To get a standing ovation in the greatest basketball arena in the world, it was a dream come true for me. It's one of the best things that ever happened to me."
Celtics 90, Pistons 78: Kevin Garnett scored a season-high 31 points to lead host Boston to a bruising victory over Detroit, as the Celtics became the first team in the NBA to clinch a playoff berth and earned the homecourt tiebreaker over their closest competitor.
Boston won its sixth consecutive game and took a 4-game lead over Detroit in the Eastern Conference standings.
Kendrick Perkins had a career-high 20 rebounds to go with his 10 points for the Celtics.
Rockets 117, Pacers 99: Tracy McGrady scored 25 points and host Houston got its franchise-record 16th straight win, making the Rockets 4-0 since losing Yao Ming for the season to injury.
The Rockets have won 20 of their last 21, and own the longest win streak in the NBA this season. It's Houston's seventh straight win by at least 10 points, extending a franchise record.
Nuggets 126, Suns 113: Carmelo Anthony crashed the boards as hard as he worked for open looks at the basket, grabbing 13 rebounds and scoring 30 points in host Denver's win over Phoenix.
Allen Iverson's 31 points led the Nuggets, who pulled within 1 game of Golden State for the eighth and final spot in the rousing Western Conference playoff picture.
Shaquille O'Neal grabbed 18 rebounds and scored 12 points, but the Suns fell to 3-5 with the big man in the lineup.
Hornets 116, Hawks 101: Chris Paul had 23 points and 18 assists, and host New Orleans tied a franchise record with 15 3-pointers in its victory over Atlanta. Tyson Chandler threw down several alley-oop lobs from Paul and finished with 14 points and 16 rebounds. Jannero Pargo had 22 points.
Raptors 108, Heat 83: Rasho Nesterovic had 16 points and 10 rebounds, Jamario Moon added 14 points, and visiting Toronto embarrassed Miami for the second time this season to snap a three-game skid.
Grizzlies 100, Nets 93: Hakim Warrick scored a season-high 25 points and host Memphis snapped a nine-game losing streak by pulling away in the fourth quarter against New Jersey.
Bucks 118, Sonics 106: Charlie Villanueva had 32 points and 11 rebounds as host Milwaukee scored a season-high 118 points in beating Seattle. The score was 69-54 at halftime.
Bobcats 118, Warriors 109: Jason Richardson (15 of 32) scored 42 points against his former team, and host Charlotte snapped Golden State's four-game winning streak. Richardson, who spent six seasons with the Warriors before being traded on draft night, was 2 points shy of his career high.
Monta Ellis scored 32 points, Baron Davis added 30 and Stephen Jackson had 21 for Golden State.
Magic 122, Wizards 92: Dwight Howard had 20 points and 11 rebounds, and visiting Orlando made an emphatic statement in a possible playoff preview by dominating Washington.
Jazz 105, T'wolves 76: Deron Williams had 21 points and 11 assists for host Utah.