James and Lakers down Suns while Bucks romp past Knicks

LOS ANGELES: LeBron James scored 31 points as the Los Angeles Lakers won a thrilling duel with the Phoenix Suns 106-103 on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals of the NBA’s in-season tournament.

James produced a trademark clutch fourth quarter performance with 15 points in a victory that sends the Lakers into a last-four showdown with the New Orleans Pelicans in Las Vegas on Thursday.

In Tuesday’s other quarterfinal, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard combined for 63 points as the Milwaukee Bucks advanced to the semifinals with a 146-122 rout of the New York Knicks.

But the game of the night was unquestionably in Los Angeles, where James and the Lakers held off a ferocious second-half fightback from Kevin Durant and the Suns to prevail in a classic.

The Lakers dominated the first half to lead by 12 at the break, up 59-47.

But the Suns roared back in the third quarter, outscoring the Lakers 35-24 to make it a one-point game heading into the fourth.

The 38-year-old James though was in no mood to surrender victory and found his scoring touch to shepherd the Lakers over the line.

Austin Reaves nailed a superb three-pointer to give the Lakers a four-point advantage with 15 seconds on the clock.

Durant cut the gap to two points with a reverse layup but missed with a last-gasp attempted buzzer beater that would have forced overtime.

“I’ve been there a lot in my career and I understand the assignment,” James said of his ruthless fourth-quarter display.

“I was happy I was able to make a couple of plays, but the big shot came from AR (Austin Reaves) to take us up by four... that was big-time.”

James finished with 31 points from 12-of-25 shooting, with 11 assists and five rebounds. Anthony Davis added 27 points