CLEVELAND -- LeBron James scored 31 points and finished a month averaging a triple-double for the first time in his career, and the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 129-123 on Tuesday night.
James had 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his 12th triple-double of the season and 67th of his career. He also reached 8,000 assists and became the first player in NBA history to reach that milestone, along with 30,000 points and 8,000 rebounds.
Rodney Hood's three-point play with 40 seconds remaining gave Cleveland a 123-121 lead. James and George Hill hit two free throws each in the final 16 seconds to seal the win.
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Jarrett Allen's two free throws gave Brooklyn a 119-117 lead with 1:18 to play. Jordan Clarkson's 3-pointer put Cleveland ahead, but Allen Crabbe's runner in the lane put the Nets up 121-120.
Hood hit a jumper from the wing and made the foul shot that gave Cleveland a two-point lead. D'Angelo Russell attempted to draw a foul but barely got off a wild shot from the corner, which led to James' foul shots.
The win could also help Cleveland position in the NBA draft. The Cavaliers own Brooklyn's No. 1 pick, acquired in a trade with Boston. The Nets have the seventh-worst record in the league, but have lost nine of 10.
Russell led Brooklyn with 25 points. Caris LeVert scored 18 while DeMarre Carroll had 16 (see full recap).
NBA
Beal, Wizards hold off Bucks
MILWAUKEE -- Bradley Beal scored 21 points, hitting a clutch 3-pointer and a free throw down the stretch, to help the Washington Wizards hang on for a 107-104 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
Otto Porter Jr. added 17 points and Markieff Morris 14 for Washington which stayed hot after snapping the Philadelphia 76ers' seven-game winning streak Sunday with a 109-94 victory.
The Bucks lost a chance at clinching the season series with the Wizards who hold the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference. Washington improved to 2 1/2 games ahead of the sixth-place Bucks. The road team won both games of the series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds and Jabbari Parker had a season-high 19 points for Milwaukee.
In the fourth, Morris hit a clutch jump shot and added a dunk before passing up an open look and finding Beal open for a 3 and a 106-101 lead with 59.7 seconds left.
Khris Middleton, who had 17 points, converted a 3-point play and after a Wizards turnover, Tomas Satoransky came up with a rebound in a scramble under the Bucks' basket. Washington got the ball on the ensuing play. Beal made one free throw for the final point. After a Bucks' timeout, Antetokounmpo inbounded the ball to Eric Bledsoe who lost control of the ball and Washington escaped with the victory (see full recap).
Lillard leads Blazers to 4th straight win
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Damian Lillard had 26 points and 12 assists, and the Portland Trail Blazers won their fourth straight with a 116-99 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night.
Jusuf Nurkic added 17 points and nine rebounds for Portland, which sits in fifth place in the Western Conference -- a game back of San Antonio -- after winning five of its last six games. The current four-game winning streak matched the team's longest of the season.
Zach Randolph had 20 points for the Kings, who lost their fifth straight overall. Sacramento has dropped 10 straight games at Portland's Moda Center.
With just 18 wins, Sacramento is in second-to-last place in the West, above only the Phoenix Suns. The Kings have lost four straight and six of their last seven.
The Kings were playing the second of a back-to-back, after losing to Minnesota 118-100 on Monday night. Randolph sat out that game but returned against the Blazers. Randolph played six seasons in Portland.
Lillard had scored 197 points in the past five games, the most points for a Blazer over a five-game stretch in franchise history (see full recap).