LOS ANGELES—LeBron James scored 23 of his 31 points in a dominant second half, and Dwight Howard added season highs of 21 points and 15 rebounds in the Los Angeles Lakers’ ninth consecutive victory, 128-99, over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night.
James added eight assists while passing Isiah Thomas for sole possession of eighth place on the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) career list. The longtime Cavaliers superstar led a decisive run during the third quarter and poured it on in the fourth for the Lakers, who still haven’t lost since Christmas.
Los Angeles won its third straight game without Anthony Davis, who is out with a bruised backside.
Kevin Love had 21 points and 11 rebounds for Cleveland in the third stop of a six-game road stretch. Two days after the Cavs posted a surprising win at powerhouse Denver, they couldn’t keep up with a franchise icon who hasn’t slowed down since he moved to the West Coast.
Returning from a one-game absence with an apparent case of flu, James improved to 2-0 against the Cavaliers since he departed for the second time in 2018. James had 32 points and 14 rebounds in his return to Cleveland in November 2018, and he was injured last January when the Cavs beat the Lakers at Staples Center.
Tristan Thompson had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Cleveland. Collin Sexton and Darius Garland added 16 points apiece.
Cleveland jumped to a 14-point lead in the first half while most of the Lakers played listlessly, but Los Angeles ran away from the middle of the second quarter onward.
James, who passed Thomas with his 9,062nd assist, is the NBA’s leader with a career-best 10.7 assists per game while molding himself into a virtuoso playmaker alongside Davis.
While James took control with 12-for-16 shooting, Howard capped another outstanding game in his bounce-back season with his ninth career 3-pointer in the fourth quarter.
The Orlando Magic, meanwhile, made a pair of costly defensive mistakes in the final 80 seconds. Evan Fournier’s quick change of mind and a big shot by Aaron Gordon more than made up for it.
Gordon made a three-point play with 1.1 seconds remaining, and the Magic beat the Sacramento Kings, 114-112, on Monday night in Sacramento.
“That’s a terrific win,” Orlando coach Steve Clifford said. “That to me was more of a win where we fought like hell, and made big plays at the end than it was a lot of stuff that you’re going to look at and say we’re on our way.”
Gordon and Fournier made it possible with their freelancing at the end.
De’Aaron Fox put the Kings ahead, 112-111, with a three-point play with 15 seconds left. After a timeout, Orlando inbounded the ball to Fournier, who went up for a shot at the right elbow before passing down low to Gordon.
“I got to my spot, but I saw two bodies in the air,” Fournier said. “I was literally about to shoot, and I saw AG and I had to pass it.”
Facing a double-team and with his back to the basket, Gordon flipped the ball up and in. He was fouled by Cory Joseph, and made the ensuing free throw to give the Magic their fifth win in seven games.
“I was going to rebound. I thought Evan was going to shoot it, but he made a great play,” Gordon said. “It was a good pass, and I just put it on the rim. It went in. Evan did the hard part. He set the whole play up.”
Gordon finished with 19 points and nine rebounds in his return to Orlando’s lineup after missing one game with calf tightness. Nikola Vucevic had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and Fournier scored 25 points.
Gordon’s game-winner came after the Magic blew a pair of defensive assignments down the stretch.
“What was disappointing is [those] plays are just blown coverages on stuff we covered in detail ad nauseam this morning,” Clifford said. “Should have never happened.”
Fox had 31 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds for Sacramento. Nemanja Bjelica set career highs with 34 points and eight 3-pointers.
“Orlando knocked down shots, and made plays down the stretch,” Kings Coach Luke Walton said. “You don’t want to come down to these one-point games because crazy things happen. You have to take care of business before that.”
Fournier struggled with his shot all night but went 12 for 12 on free throws. Orlando was 25 for 30 from the line while Sacramento was 10 of 11.
Vucevic and Fournier had 15 points apiece in the first half to offset Bjelica’s 22 before the break. Orlando led by eight after the first quarter and was up 65-52 at halftime.
Image credits: AP