INQUIRER Sports

PORTLAND, Oregon -- LeBron James scored 37 points and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds to spark the Cleveland Cavaliers past Portland 84-83 here Wednesday in a National Basketball Association game.

The NBA scoring leader was the only double-figure scorer for the Cavaliers and also passed out a team-best four assists as Cleveland improved to fourth place in the Eastern Conference at 25-19.

Brandon Roy had 16 points and eight assists for Portland, which had 16 points and nine rebounds from LaMarcus Aldridge.

The Trail Blazers led 29-20 after the first quarter, 48-42 at halftime and 68-62 entering the fourth quarter but Portland could only muster 15 points in the final 12 minutes.

Portland fell to 26-19, ninth in the Western Conference and out of the playoffs with a record that would be fourth-best in the East.