Cavaliers beat Pacers in two OTs
CLEVELAND -- Paul George outscored LeBron James and was extra tough on him through two overtimes, but it was the Cleveland Cavaliers who persevered in a 135-130 win over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
James scored 41 points to go with 16 rebounds and 11 assists for his 11th triple-double this season and the 53rd of his career. He played 52 minutes and scored just three points after the fourth quarter.
George scored 43 points, including 19 in the two overtimes and 13 in the second overtime alone. He added nine rebounds and nine assists.
With the win, the Cavs (49-27) remain a half-game behind Boston (50-27) for first place in the East. The Pacers (37-40) are tied for eighth with the Miami Heat, who also lost Sunday. The Chicago Bulls won Sunday and are now alone in seventh, a game ahead of the Pacers and Heat.
The Pacers have lost four straight and six of their last seven. They have also dropped eight in a row on the road
Kyrie Irving scored 23 points and Kevin Love added 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Cavs. J.R. Smith added 18 points on six 3-pointers.
C.J. Miles scored 27 off the bench for the Pacers, who also received 19 points from Thaddeus Young and 17 from Jeff Teague.
James tied Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 787 consecutive regular-season games with at least 10 points. Only Michael Jordan (866 consecutive games) had more consecutive games with double-digit points in NBA history. James now has 21 games with at least 30.
Smith nailed a 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in the first overtime to give the Cavs a 114-113 lead, but George tied it with a free throw with 2.1 seconds to go.
Smith made a 3-point shot with 2:05 left in the second overtime to put the Cavaliers head to stay at 123-120.
The Cavs led 91-77 with 10:21 left in regulation but couldn't hold it. The Pacers regained the lead on Teague's 3-pointer with 3:48 remaining, and again on Miles' 3-pointer with 1:25 to go. James tied it at 104 with a soft fadeaway with 1:01 left.
Tristan Thompson missed two free throws for the Cavs and Myles Turner missed a jumper for the Pacers -- both inside 30 seconds -- that could have won the game.
James scored 16 points in the fourth quarter. Miles poured in 11.
NOTES: Pacers F Lance Stephenson scored four points and committed five fouls in the second Indiana debut of his career. Drafted by the Pacers in 2010 and then re-signed as a free agent last week, Stephenson played his first game for Indiana since Game 6 of the 2014 Eastern Conference finals. That game was against LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Stephenson played for the Pelicans and Timberwolves this season and hasn't practiced with the Pacers. ... Cavs F Richard Jefferson (left knee tendinitis) played 11 scoreless minutes Sunday after missing the previous two games. ... Cavs G Kyle Korver (sore left foot) missed his fourth consecutive game. Coach Tyronn Lue said Korver was able to shoot on the court before the game, but hasn't done much running. On Saturday, cleveland.com reported that Korver had switched to the Nike Kyrie 3 shoe to provide more support for his ailing foot.