Cavaliers win with defense, escape with 100-99 victory over Hornets; three takeaways

2. Another ho-hum triple-double for LeBron

James notched his second triple-double of the 2017-18 season and the 57th of his career on Friday. He ended the night with a game-high 27 points on 10-of-20 shooting. He also had game-highs in rebounds with 16 and assists with 13.

The Cavs had great ball movement and came out of the gate passing maybe the best they have all year, and that was thanks in large part to James.

In the first quarter alone, they assisted on their first six made baskets, and tallied nine total assists on 11 made baskets. James had eight of those nine assists, making him just one assist shy of his career-high for any quarter. The last time he had nine in a single quarter was against the Pacers in January of 2010.

His nine total assists in the first half led to 22 of the Cavs’ 54 first-half points.

In the second half, James found his scoring rhythm, going off for 21 points, and also began to rebound the ball more consistently after grabbing just four boards in the first half.

After the third quarter, he already recorded a triple-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

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