LeBron James buzzer-beater lifts Cavaliers to win over Bulls

(The Sports Xchange) – Forward LeBron James made a baseline jump shot as time expired to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to an 86-84 win against the Chicago Bulls in Game Four of their Eastern Conference semi-final playoff series on Sunday.

 LeBron James
LeBron James

James finished with 25 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists as the Cavaliers evened the best-of-seven series at two games apiece ahead of Game Five in Cleveland today.

Teammates mobbed James after he drilled the shot from 21 feet along the left baseline.

It was the second consecutive buzzer-beater in the series. In Game Three, Rose banked in a three-pointer as time expired to win the game.

Cleveland trailed by as many as 11 points in the second half before embarking on a 23-5 run that made it 80-73 with 4:03 remaining. Guard J.R. Smith sparked the turnaround with a trio of three-pointers early in the fourth quarter.

Center Timofey Mozgov contributed 15 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland.

Guard Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 31 points and four assists. Guard Jimmy Butler scored 19 points, and center Joakim Noah provided eight points with 15 rebounds.

Already beset by injuries, Cleveland sustained another scare when James rolled his left ankle with 3:36 remaining in the third quarter. He stayed down on the court for a couple of minutes but returned after a Cavaliers timeout.

Bulls forward Pau Gasol missed the game because of a strained left hamstring.