LeBron's 45 carry Cavs past Pacers
Cleveland: LeBron James scored 45 points and got some needed help in game seven to stay unbeaten in the opening round of the NBA play-offs, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 105-101 win over the Indiana Pacers.
James improved to 13-0 in the first round and kept Cleveland's season alive - for the time being.
It took everything James and the Cavs had to hold off the Pacers, who were swept by Cleveland a year ago and came in confident after a 34-point win in game six.
The Cavs will open the conference semi-finals on Wednesday (AEST) at the top-seeded Toronto Raptors.
James played 43 minutes, leaving late in the third quarter and heading straight to the locker room to be treated for cramps.
The 33-year-old was going to leave it all on the floor in what some Cleveland fans feared could have been his last game with the franchise.
Tristan Thompson made a rare start for Cleveland as coach Tyronn Lue used his 34th different starting lineup this season.
The centre had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Victor Oladipo scored 30 and Darren Collison had 23 for the Pacers, who were still within four points in the final minute.
At the end of the game Oladipo was immediately embraced by James, who had never played a deciding first-round game and wasn't about to let Indiana end his run toward an eighth-straight finals.
AP