RECAP
A banged-up LeBron James scored 26 points and got enough help from his teammates to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers past the Denver Nuggets 94-85 on Thursday night.
James bruised his left shin and hobbled to the locker room with 29 seconds left in the first half. He came back with the shin wrapped for support.
He also got support from Damon Jones and Donyell Marshall.
Jones scored 17 points and Marshall 11, both hitting big 3-pointers as the Cavaliers ended a three-game losing streak.
Carmelo Anthony, coming off a career-high 42 points in a win over Charlotte on Tuesday night, scored 23 to lead Denver but shot just 8-of-23.
Greg Buckner added 15 points and Earl Watson 14 for the Nuggets, who shot 38 percent to Cleveland's 53 percent.
James ended a stretch of six games with 30 or more points. That could be good news for the Cavaliers, who went 1-5 with James carrying the load during that stretch.
James, who declared that the team was in a funk following Tuesday night's loss to Atlanta, added nine assists, including a no-look pass to Alan Henderson that thrilled the crowd.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 16 points after missing one game with a sprained right knee.
Marshall hit a 3-pointer to cap a 12-4 run for an 83-76 lead with 3:46 left as the Cavaliers took control. He made another with 1:51 left to finish off Denver.
The Nuggets were without Marcus Camby, inactive with a sprained right pinkie finger. Camby is second in scoring for Denver, averaging 16.8 points per game.
Despite his injury, James still showed quickness, stealing an inbounds pass for an easy slam to end the third quarter with Cleveland ahead 66-65.
Francisco Elson, who started in Camby's place, kept missing open jumpers, shooting 1-for-5 for two points.
Neither team could establish control early as the Nuggets opened with a 17-7 lead, then missed their next 11 shots as the Cavaliers put together a 22-2 run.
James took a breather and the Nuggets started a 14-0 run to go up 39-33 late in the first half. The Cavaliers were ahead 44-40 at halftime, led by James' 17 points.
Notes
Camby is day-to-day and will be a game-time decision Friday night at New Jersey. ... G Earl Boykins missed his second game with a left hamstring strain. ... James leads all Eastern Conference players with 665,849 votes in the first All-Star returns. ... The Nuggets are 9-0 when they score at least 100 points. ... Former Cavaliers guard Andre Miller handed out tickets to more than 20 family members and friends. "The first years of your career are always the most memorable. I really enjoyed it in Cleveland and have a lot of good memories," he said.
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