James’ Versatility Trumps Pierce’s 50

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers spoiled the highest-scoring game by a Boston Celtic player in more than 16 years.

James had 43 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his fourth triple-double of the season and the Cavaliers overcame Paul Pierce’s 50-point performance to beat the Celtics, 113-109, in double overtime on Wednesday night at Boston.

Pierce made 17 of 36 shots from the field and 16 of 20 from the free-throw line to become the first Celtic to score 50 since Larry Bird had 50 on Nov. 10, 1989.

Cleveland Coach Mike Brown said it was a game the Cavaliers would have lost last year.

“We’re not a good road team and so any way we can win on the road, we’ll take it,” he said. “It was a character win because we could have folded.”

The Celtics trailed by as many as 13, but Pierce scored 31 points after the first half to keep the game close before fouling out with one minute left in the second overtime.

James, coming off a 44-point performance against San Antonio on Monday, drew Pierce’s final foul and made one of two free throws. On Cleveland’s next possession, James sealed it with a layup in traffic.

“We just made the big play at the end,” James said. “We just willed a way to win. This was one of the wildest games, especially on the road. But I love it. Being on the road, you got the fans against you and we found a way to win. It was awesome.”

New York 98, Toronto 96 -- Jamal Crawford made a jumper with three seconds left at New York to help the Knicks end a 10-game losing streak, its longest since ending the 1984-85 season with a franchise-record 12 straight losses.

The Raptors’ Charlie Villanueva had tied the score on a three-point basket with 17 seconds left.

Eddy Curry scored 18 points and Jalen Rose had 17 against his former team to earn his first victory since joining the Knicks on Feb. 3. All-Star Chris Bosh scored 25 points for Toronto, which had a three-game winning streak ended.

Miami 110, Orlando 100 -- Dwyane Wade had 36 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists at Orlando, Fla., to lead the Heat past the Magic for the second consecutive day.

Orlando trailed by 21 at the end of the third quarter but used an 11-0 fourth-quarter run to close within six with 2:13 left but could get no closer.

Antoine Walker had 26 points for Miami, but Shaquille O’Neal had only seven points and 11 rebounds before fouling out with 27.6 seconds left. Dwight Howard had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Orlando.

Philadelphia 103, San Antonio 100 -- Allen Iverson scored 42 points and Chris Webber had 21, including a key pair of free throws in overtime, to help the 76ers win at home.

The Spurs, ending an eight-game trip 6-2, matched their season high with 23 turnovers, made only eight of 13 free throws and blew a 92-87 lead with 20 seconds left in regulation.

Tony Parker led San Antonio with 23 points. Nazr Mohammed had 16 points and a career-high 20 rebounds.

New Jersey 95, Charlotte 94 -- Vince Carter tipped in his own miss with 9.6 seconds left to help the Nets end a seven-game losing streak on the road.

Richard Jefferson scored 25 points and Nenad Krstic had 20 for New Jersey. Brevin Knight scored a game-high 28 points but missed an opportunity to win the game when his leaner in the lane hit the front rim with three seconds left.

New Orleans 102, Portland 86 -- Kirk Snyder scored 22 points at Oklahoma City to lead the Hornets, who lost rookie point guard Chris Paul to another injury.

Paul, already wearing a flak jacket to protect his bruised ribs, hurt his shoulder when he ran into 7-foot-3, 305-pound Portland center Ha Seung-Jin in the third quarter.

Zach Randolph, Martell Webster and Juan Dixon scored 12 points each for Portland.

Phoenix 116, Denver 101 -- Shawn Marion had 21 points and 12 rebounds and Raja Bell had 20 points at Denver to help the Suns to their sixth victory in seven games.

Carmelo Anthony scored 29 for Denver, which finished 0 for 14 from three-point range.

Minnesota 102, Seattle 92 -- Ricky Davis had 25 points and Kevin Garnett had 23 points and 15 rebounds, helping the host Timberwolves end a four-game losing streak -- all at Minneapolis.

Ray Allen scored 23 points for Seattle, which lost for the seventh time in eight games. Former Clipper Chris Wilcox, acquired Tuesday, made his SuperSonic debut with nine points and three rebounds in 13 minutes.

Memphis 84, Sacramento 78 -- Pau Gasol scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds at Memphis, Tenn., to lead the Grizzlies to their third straight victory.

Consecutive three-pointers by Shane Battier put Memphis ahead, 80-78, with 4:34 left. Neither team scored again until a pair of free throws by Eddie Jones with 13.9 seconds left followed by two more from Chucky Atkins.

Kevin Martin scored 14 for the Kings, who missed 18 of 19 three-point attempts.

Indiana 88, Milwaukee 77 -- Anthony Johnson scored 24 points and Peja Stojakovic had 16 of his 20 in the second half at Indianapolis to help the Pacers to their fifth victory in six games.

Jeff Foster grabbed 18 rebounds for the Pacers, who led, 76-70, before putting it away with a 6-0 run.

Michael Redd led Milwaukee with 24 points.

Dallas 103, Washington 97 -- Dirk Nowitzki had 25 points at Dallas and the Mavericks went ahead for good with a 10-0 run midway through the second quarter to go into the All-Star break with the best record (41-11) in the Western Conference.

Caron Butler led the Wizards with 27 points and 11 rebounds.