James' 48 Put Cavs Up 3-2

Jun 01, 05:00 AM

Current Headlines: By Greg Boeck

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- He mesmerized everybody -- and posterized the Detroit Pistons with three oh-my-goodness windmill slams.

King James played beyond his royal nickname Thursday, and in one of the epic performances in NBA playoff history, LeBron James refused to lose Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.

Virtually by himself, he dunked, shot and willed Cleveland to a dramatic 109-107 double-overtime win that gave the Cavaliers a 3-2 lead in the series.

A win Saturday at home in Game 6 (8:30 p.m. ET, TNT) would send the Cavs into the Finals against the San Antonio Spurs.

"This is definitely a big win, one of the biggest in the Cavaliers' franchise history," James said. "But we have a goal. We can't dwell on this."

The rest of the basketball world will. He scored 25 consecutive points and 29 of the Cavs' final 30. He finished with a Cleveland playoff-record 48 points to go with nine rebounds and seven assists.

"I cannot believe he scored 29 of the last 30. He did it all," Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "He didn't quit. I don't know what he can't do. Wow."

Said Pistons coach Flip Saunders: "He was in a zone. Phenomenal."

James looked exhausted afterward.

"I feel terrible. I'm banged up, winded, fatigued," James said. "Hopefully, I can take my 2-year-old to one of his grandmothers' houses so I can rest."

The 6-8 forward deserved a rest.

In the waning seconds of regulation, James delivered back-to-back windmill slams to keep the Cavs in the game. He added a third in the first overtime. In the second, he nailed a three-pointer to tie the score at 107, then polished off the Pistons with a driving layup with 2.2 seconds to go.

"Just the simple fact we won means more than anything," James said. (c) Copyright 2005 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.