James, Cavs roll past New Jersey

Apr 13, 2007, 3:40 GMT

Cleveland, OH - LeBron James scored a game-high 35 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Cleveland Cavaliers clinched home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs with a 94-76 win over the New Jersey Nets at Quicken Loans Arena.

Larry Hughes added 19 points and six assists for the Cavaliers, who are now tied with Chicago for the second seed in the Eastern Conference.

Vince Carter deposited 26 points and Jason Kidd had eight points, 11 rebounds and eight assists for the Nets, who fell two games behind Washington for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.

Richard Jefferson finished with just five points on 2-of-13 shooting for the Nets, whose magic number for clinching a playoff berth is two.

James took control of the game in the third quarter, scoring 15 points as the Cavaliers shot 82 percent from the field and outscored New Jersey 36-19 to take a commanding 72-51 lead heading into the final quarter.

New Jersey never threatened in the fourth.

Cleveland shot 52.1 percent and outrebounded the Nets 42-29.

After Cleveland jumped out to a 10-5 lead, New Jersey went on a 13-2 run, capped by Josh Boone's hook shot putting the Nets ahead, 18-12, with just over two minutes to go in the first frame.

The Cavaliers, however, scored eight of the final nine points of the quarter to take a 20-19 edge after 12 minutes.

James' running jumper sparked a 9-2 Cleveland run to close the second quarter, giving the Cavaliers a 36-32 lead at the half.

Game Notes

Chicago owns the tiebreaker with Cleveland and therefore has the best chance at avoiding a first round matchup against the defending champion Miami Heat...New Jersey shot 41.8 percent and committed 20 turnovers...Cleveland won the season series with New Jersey, 2-1.

© 2007 The Sports Network

Game Notes

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