CLEVELAND — LeBron James scored 28 points and performed a few signature dunks, Mo Williams added 22 and the Cleveland Cavaliers began a long stretch of home games over the next month with a 108-100 win over the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night.
James had 11 assists and nine rebounds as the Cavs, who just returned from a long road trip, improved to 15-3 at Quicken Loans Arena, where they'll play 10 of their next 12 before Feb. 19. The Eastern Conference leaders will host the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.
Cleveland's Shaquille O'Neal added 16 points and became the fifth player in NBA history to surpass 28,000 in his career.
Chris Bosh scored 21 for Toronto, but was limited to just five after halftime by Cleveland's defense, which allowed 60 points in the opening half. The Raptors only scored 17 in the fourth.
Williams left briefly with a left shoulder strain but came back and hit the game's biggest shot, a 3-pointer with 5:27 left that gave the Cavs a 98-94 lead. James found a cutting Anderson Varejao for a basket to put the Cavs up by six and then James, who has so far turned down a chance to compete in the All-Star weekend dunk contest, slammed one to make it 102-94.
Cleveland's defense, nearly nonexistent for three quarters, put its talons in the Raptors in the fourth quarter. Toronto went 7-of-20 from the field in the final 12 minutes.
Andrea Bargnani scored 19 for Toronto, which lost for just the fourth time in 14 games.
Williams added 10 assists for the Cavs, who have won 10 straight home games over the Raptors. James could have finished with a triple-double, but had a 10th rebound slip out of his hands with 29 seconds left.
With a layup in the opening minute, O'Neal joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), Karl Malone (36,928), Michael Jordan (32,292) and Wilt Chamberlain (31,419) as the only players to reach the milestone.
James has not yet given his reasons for declining to participate in the dunk contest, once the premier event during All-Star festivities. At last year's event, James tentatively put himself in the field after watching a competition he felt needed a spark.
During the second quarter, James delivered a dunk that probably would have earned a few "10s" from the judges. Williams drove the baseline and delivered a no-look bounce pass to a slashing James, who caught the ball and double clutched before pounding it through the rim.
In the first half, the Raptors did almost anything they wanted on offense. They got easy shots and moved the ball with ease against Cleveland's shoddy defense. O'Neal finally took a stand in the third quarter, sending a message to Toronto with two hard fouls.
On the second one, which was O'Neal's fourth personal, the 325-pounder flattened Jarrett Jack, who flopped to the floor and flung his arm to one side for dramatic effect. However, the rough fouls seemed to ignite Cleveland's D and the Cavs began to separate in the third quarter. They outscored the Raptors 18-10 over the final six minutes to open a 91-83 lead entering the fourth.
Notes
Before the game, James and Browns Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown signed large copies of a commemorative Sports Illustrated edition they both appeared on. Afterward in the locker room, James gave specific orders on how he wanted one framed. "I want it to be legendary," he said. … Raptors G Sonny Weems pulled a rib cage muscle in pregame warmups and sat out. … Cavs F Jamario Moon is targeting a return next week after missing two weeks with an abdominal strain. …. Toronto guard Marco Belinelli returned after missing two games with the flu and scored 14. … The league denied Atlanta's protest over a shot-clock error in a Dec. 30 loss to Cleveland. Commissioner David Stern ruled the mistake didn't have a "clear impact" on the Cavs' 106-101 win.