LeBron James continues to make difficult feats look easy.
Cleveland's star forward scored 37 points as part of his third triple-double this season in the Cavaliers' 111-108 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday.
``If he continues with this scoring and stats, I would hate to see the numbers at the end,'' Cleveland teammate Damon Jones said. ``They will be off the charts.''
In addition to scoring six points in the final minute to seal the win, James had 12 rebounds and 12 assists for the 13th triple-double of his career in the regular season.
``He's phenomenal,'' Cleveland coach Mike Brown said. ``He makes the triple-double seem effortless. I have to tell myself not to take it for granted.''
James' performance was nearly offset by Chris Bosh, who led Toronto with 41 points to tie his career high. The six-foot-10 forward was unstoppable near the basket, going 13-of-25 from the field and making 15 of 17 free throws.
``There is nothing I don't like about his game,'' Brown said. ``He was incredible.''
In the end, the decision went to the Cavaliers and James, who took his usual low-key approach to his performance.
``It's not really as easy as it may look,'' he said. ``I have to do what is best for the team to win. No matter what plays I have to make, I need to do them.''
The Cavaliers hit nine three-pointers in the second half, including six in the third quarter, which ended with the score tied 81-81.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas' layup midway through the fourth quarter put the Cavaliers ahead for good at 88-86.
The Cavaliers led 104-100, but Jason Kapono's three-pointer with 57.1 seconds left made it a one-point game. James responded by driving past two defenders to score in the lane for a 106-103 lead with 44 seconds left.
Kapono's layup cut the lead to one again before James' fadeaway jumper at the top of the key over Carlos Delfino put Cleveland ahead by three with 16.7 seconds left.
``I practise that every day,'' James said of the key shot. ``I just took what was there.''
After Anthony Parker missed a three-pointer from the corner, Devin Brown's free throw pushed the lead to four. Another three-pointer by Kapono made it a one-point game again, but James sealed the win with two foul shots. Jose Calderon's shot from just inside midcourt hit off the backboard.
Bosh left the game briefly after being accidentally hit above the left eye by James, when he was going for a steal late in the third quarter. Bosh, who was bleeding, went to the locker-room for stitches, but returned early in the fourth.
``I'm trying to be aggressive every game,'' Bosh said. ``I just have to keep it rolling.''
Daniel Gibson and Jones, who hit five of nine three-pointers, scored 17 apiece, and Ilgauskas added 16 for Cleveland. The Cavaliers made 13 of 30 three-pointers.
``The Cavs and LeBron command so much attention,'' Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said. ``You have to force that team to shoot jump shots and try to contest them.''
Kapono scored 17 for Toronto. The Raptors made eight of their first 11 shots and scored 30 points in the first quarter. James scored 12 of the Cavaliers' 21 points in the period.
Toronto built a 12-point lead in the second quarter, which Cleveland cut to 56-52 at halftime.
Eight points by James, including two three-pointers, and three-pointers by Jones and Sasha Pavlovic, tied the game 71-71 with 3:45 left in the third quarter. Two free throws by James at 3:10 gave Cleveland its first lead, 73-72.
Notes: The win evened Cleveland's home record at 3-3. The Cavaliers were 30-11 at Quicken Loans Arena last season. ... Jones' points and three-pointers made were season highs. ... T.J. Ford (left arm) was inactive for the Raptors. He was injured after falling in the Nov. 20 game in Dallas. He has missed the last two games. ... Mitchell has 113 career wins, tied for the franchise lead with Lenny Wilkens.
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monuow crazy, I gained over 13 ins on my leap by completing the at | 50 inch vertical [dot] com |. now being being the shortest kid on court is the least thing I have to worry about in basketball finally, heh
Toronto Raptors vs Cleveland Cavaliers Nov.24/07
kenman539 1 year ago
can you believe how bad the last play was for the raps
unoriginallusername 3 years ago
he was with miami when they won
JayK07 3 years ago
I was talking about the Heat
JayK07 3 years ago
what team did kapono used to be at? if thats the team u root for i feel for u because kapono is amazin!
sudanesekid 3 years ago
jamario moon forever
sup619 4 years ago
cause he sucked ass while he was in cleveland
brandonderoche 4 years ago
Great ass game. Kapono is awesome. Y DIDNT WE KEEP HIM!!!!!!!
JayK07 4 years ago
thx for the video
VrM1104 4 years ago
this is Raptors game in a hour LOl
moneyindabank6 4 years ago