LeBron James scores 57 points, Celtics win seventh straight

LA, November 4: LeBron James produced a memorable performance as the Cleveland Cavaliers ended their four-game losing sequence by overcoming the Washington Wizards 130-122.

James posted 57 points on 23-of-34 shooting with 11 rebounds and seven assists to help break Cleveland's slump in the NBA on Friday.

It was James' 11th 50-point game of his career, tying Allen Iverson for the sixth-most of all time.

James also became the youngest player in NBA history to score 29,000 career points.

"Every shot that I took," the four-time league MVP said. "I felt like it was going in."

Wizards guard Bradley Beal, who said before the game that he believed Washington were the best team in the Eastern Conference, had 36 points.

The Boston Celtics, meanwhile, extended their winning streak to seven games with a 101-94 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Boston trailed by 18 points at half-time, after only scoring 37 points in the first half. But Kyrie Irving, who scored a team-high 25 points with six assists, led a second-half charge.

Al Horford scored 20 points, while reigning MVP and Thunder star Russell Westbrook put up 19 points and 11 assists.

SIMMONS INSPIRES RED-HOT SIXERS

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons scored 14 points with 11 assists and 11 rebounds in a 121-110 win over the Indiana Pacers. Simmons joined Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history with multiple triple-doubles in their first nine career games, as he helped Philadelphia to their fourth consecutive victory.

Detroit Pistons centre Andre Drummond scored 24 points with 15 rebounds to help Detroit to a 105-96 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. More impressively, Drummond, a notoriously bad free-throw shooter, drained 14 of his 16 attempts from the charity stripe.

WALKER STRUGGLES IN HORNETS LOSS

Charlotte Hornets point guard Kemba Walker scored just 13 points on four-of-12 shooting (one of six from three-point range), which led to a loss to the San Antonio Spurs. Walker also had just four assists to go with two turnovers, while being outshined by San Antonio starter Patty Mills.

SMITH SOARS OVER PELICANS

Do not leave Mavericks rookie Dennis Smith Jr. open in transition.

FRIDAY'S RESULTS

Philadelphia 76ers 121-110 Indiana Pacers Cleveland Cavaliers 130-122 Washington Wizards Houston Rockets 119-104 Atlanta Hawks San Antonio Spurs 108-101 Charlotte Hornets Toronto Raptors 109-100 Utah Jazz Boston Celtics 101-94 Oklahoma City Thunder Chicago Bulls 105-83 Orlando Magic Detroit Pistons 105-96 Milwaukee Bucks New York Knicks 120-107 Phoenix Suns New Orleans Pelicans 99-94 Dallas Mavericks Denver Nuggets 95-94 Miami Heat Los Angeles Lakers 124-112 Brooklyn Nets

WARRIORS AT NUGGETS

Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant will march into Denver having won five of their last six games. The defending champs got off to a slow start, but Curry, Durant and Klay Thompson are all averaging more than 20 points per game. Paul Millsap scored 27 Friday to lead the Nuggets past the Heat, which was Denver's fourth win in their last five games.

Source: OPTA