King of Kings: James’ 40-16 fuels Heat

MIAMI—LeBron James had a monster game of 40 points and 16 assists while Dwyane Wade added 39 as the Miami Heat pushed their winning streak to 12 games by outlasting the Sacramento Kings, 141129, in double overtime on Tuesday night.

“King” James’ 16 assists were a career high, and made him the first player to total 40 points and 16 assists since Phoenix’s Kevin Johnson in April 1994.

The Heat needed every drop of James’ and Wade’s heroics to rescue the Eastern Conference leading Heat (41-14) and run up their league-best streak against the struggling Kings.

“It was probably like 20 innings if it were a baseball game,” James told reporters. “But we needed double overtime and we did it.”

Miami led 110-101 with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter before the Kings ran them downwith an 11-2 run that included three consecutive three-pointers from Marcus Thornton, who had a team-high 36 points.

After both teams scored 12 points in the first overtime, James tallied 11 points in the second as the home team outscored the Kings 17-5 to finally put the game away.

In other games, it was Indiana Pacers 108, Golden State Warriors 97; Brooklyn Nets 101, New Orleans Hornets 97; Cleveland Cavaliers 101, Chicago Bulls 98; Milwaukee Bucks 95, Dallas Mavericks 90; and Orlando Magic 98, Philadelphia 76ers 84. In Indianapolis, David West had 28 points and seven rebounds, and the Indiana Pacers overcame the ejection of Roy Hibbert following a fourth-quarter scuffle to beat Golden State.

West also was called for a technical foul, along with the Warriors’ David Lee, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, for the altercation that began with 6:10 remaining in the game.

In New Orleans, Deron Williams scored 33 points, Brook Lopez added 20 while playing against his twin brother, Robin, as the Brooklyn Nets snapped a two-game skid.

In Chicago, Dion Waiters scored 25 points to help make up for the absence of Kyrie Irving, and the Cleveland Cavaliers snapped an 11-game losing streak against the Chicago Bulls.

In Dallas, Monta Ellis scored 22 points, and Milwaukee spoiled Dirk Nowitzki’s first game in nearly 10 years with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.

In Philadelphia, Arron Afflalo and Tobias Harris scored 16 points apiece, and Orlando snapped a 10game road losing streak.