CHICAGO (AP) - LeBron James made all 10 of his shots and scored 24 points in the first quarter as the Cleveland Cavaliers grabbed a 33-25 lead over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night.
James, averaging a league-leading 30.2 points showed no sign of the recent back trouble that caused him to miss practice on Monday and Tuesday. He scored 33 points in a 104-83 win over New Jersey on Wednesday and kept it going against the Bulls.
He wowed the crowd midway through the first quarter when he drove upcourt and past Tyrus Thomas for a hard dunk, and the acrobatics continued. He drove along the right side for another hard dunk with about two minutes left and went through the lane for a scoop layup with 1:34 remaining. He missed the ensuing free throw, but the Cavaliers got the rebound and James buried a 3-pointer — his first of two in the quarter.
James scored a season-high 51 points at Memphis on Jan. 15, and his career-high is 56 at Toronto on March 20, 2005.
The 24 points in a quarter matched the club record he set in the fourth quarter against Toronto on Jan. 6, when he finished with 39.
James was also one shy of Jalen Rose's United Center scoring record for any quarter and tied Michael Redd's mark for points against Chicago in a period. The 10 field goals tied Jamal Crawford's arena record.
James scored four more points in the second quarter, giving him 28, as the Bulls built a 53-47 halftime lead. |