(CNN Philippines) — Behind LeBron James’ 38 points, the Cleveland Cavaliers fended off the Chicago Bulls, 106-101, on Wednesday PHT to grab a 3-2 series lead in the National Basketball Association (NBA) Eastern Conference semifinals.
James also hauled down 12 rebounds and had six assists and no turnovers in 41 minutes for the Cavs, who squandered a 17-point lead.
Read: Curry shines in Warriors’ drubbing of Grizzlies in Game 4
Kyrie Irving scored 25 points and dished out five dimes, while Tristan Thompson had a double-double contribution of 12 points and 10 boards.
Jimmy Butler produced 29 points, while Mike Dunleavy added 19 for the Bulls, who again missed Pau Gasol for the second straight game due to a strained left hamstring.
Derrick Rose dropped 12 points in the first period, but only had four points – going 2-of-15 from the field – in the last three quarters to finish with 16.
Also read: Hawks soar in Game 4, pull even with Wizards
Meanwhile, James Harden registered a triple-double performance – 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists – to lead the Houston Rockets to a 124-103 rout of the Los Angeles Clippers to extend their Western Conference semifinal series.
Dwight Howard added 20 points and 15 rebounds for Houston, which used a 36-point second quarter to establish an enormous lead early in the game.
The Clippers relied on Blake Griffin, who scored 30 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, and Chris Paul, who had 22 points and 10 assists.
