James scores 33 in Cavaliers victory
LeBron James played with his aching back and the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for a much-needed win that kept them two games ahead of Washington for homecourt advantage.
James, who didn't practice Monday and Tuesday because of back spasms, scored 33 points as the host Cavaliers overcame a 14-point deficit to defeat the New Jersey Nets 104-83 Wednesday night.
The Cavaliers used a 9-0 run early in the fourth quarter to take an 85-77 lead. As the Cavaliers took control, New Jersey went scoreless on 10 straight possessions and didn't score again until Vince Carter's 2 free throws with 4:36 left.
The Nets scored 9 points in the fourth quarter.
Suns 96, Spurs 79: Amare Stoudemire scored 21 points and five other Phoenix players hit double digits in a victory over host San Antonio.
The Suns won their second game in a row on the second night of a back-to-back and remained in sixth place in the Western Conference.
Shaquille O'Neal had 8 of his 16 points in the decisive fourth quarter and grabbed 9 rebounds for Phoenix.
Wizards 109, Celtics 95:: Antawn Jamison returned from a shoulder injury to score 27 points and help host Washington beat Boston to win the season series over the league's top team.
Gilbert Arenas, in his third game back from knee surgery, added 13 points on 5-for-14 shooting in a relatively low-key 24 minutes.
Sixers 101, Pistons 94: Andre Iguodala scored 25 points, hitting a season-high four 3-pointers to help host Philadelphia defeat Detroit.
Samuel Dalembert added 20 points and 13 rebounds for Philadelphia, and Iguodala had 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 5 steals in a win that kept the Sixers in the sixth playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Rockets 103, Sonics 80: Rafer Alston scored 18 points and Luis Scola added 13 points and 12 rebounds to help host Houston top Seattle.
Tracy McGrady sat out with a sore left shoulder that's bothered him for more than a week, but the Rockets didn't miss him against the Sonics, who have lost 11 straight road games and 18 of their last 20 games overall.
In other games: Chris Paul had 19 points and 16 assists to help visiting New Orleans bounce back from an ugly loss by beating Minnesota 122-90. … Chris Bosh had 32 points and 11 rebounds, and Toronto ended a three-game losing skid with a 111-93 win over visiting Milwaukee. Former Raptor Charlie Villanueva had a season-high 38 points for the Bucks. … Fred Jones made the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:47 left and New Yorktied a season high with its third straight win, a 109-107 victory over visiting Charlotte. Jamal Crawford scored 18 points for the Knicks.