Superman goes coast-to-coast



LeBron James had a stirring 6-second sequence and led Cleveland past Phoenix.
CLEVELAND (AP) -- In 6 shining seconds, LeBron James made a block at one end, a dunk at the other and left a lasting memory of greatness.
"It was unbelievable," said Phoenix guard Leandro Barbosa.
James scored 32 of his 44 points in the second half, and brought Cleveland back almost all by himself as the Cavaliers rallied for their fifth straight win, 113-106 over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.
James added 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Cavs, who trailed by 17 midway through the third quarter when their third-year superstar took control of the game.
And, in a stirring 6-second sequence of the fourth, James made one of the best plays of this NBA season -- or any other.
The feat
First, he hustled back on defense and blocked a floating layup by the speedy Barbosa, whose shot would have tied it. Then, James quickly retrieved the ball, sped down the floor, eluded Boris Diaw with a head fake and delivered a vicious, right-handed dunk that gave the Cavaliers a 97-93 lead.
Two plays. Six seconds. Over 100 feet. Thousands of dropped jaws.
"I was like, 'Holy Moley!"' Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "That was one of the most athletic plays I've ever seen."
The Suns were stunned.
"He made a million highlights in a very short time," said reigning league MVP Steve Nash, who led Phoenix with 24 points.
James scored 16 points in the third and added another 16 in the fourth when Cleveland's defense finally slowed the Suns, holding the NBA's highest-scoring team to 19 points on just 6-of-20 shooting.
During the Cavs' winning streak, James is averaging 37.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists, and his 44-point, 11-rebound, 7-assist effort has only been matched by Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Hakeem Olajuwon since 1991-92.
But it was his game-changing block of Barbosa that stood out.
"That play was very key," James said. "I just wanted to make a play to try and take the life out of them a little bit."
Even more than one-half hour following the game, Barbosa got wide-eyed as he tried to describe how James ran him down from behind.
Quick turn of events
"I never saw him," said Barbosa, who started for the injured Raja Bell. "I asked coach, 'How did he do that?' My teammates said I was dribbling like crazy and he still caught me. All of a sudden, he's at the other end."
Shawn Marion added 22 points and James Jones 20 for the Suns, who shot 66 percent from the field in the first half but only 37 percent in the second.
Sasha Pavlovic had 15 points, Donyell Marshall 14 and reserve Anderson Varejao six with seven rebounds in a season-high 19 minutes for Cleveland. The wild-haired Varejao, a Cavs fan favorite because of his hustle, missed the first two months of the season following shoulder surgery..
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