LeBron scores 27, Cavs down Raptors again

CLEVELAND — Once his layup dropped, LeBron James sent another message.

As Cleveland’s crowd cheered following his artistic shot, James walked within a few feet of Toronto’s bench, pounded his chest several times and screamed, “I’m still a problem!”

The Raptors didn’t need any reminders.

James scored 27 points, the last coming on a sensational layup, and the Cavaliers continued to gain momentum with the playoffs quickly approaching by beating Toronto 112-106 on Tuesday night.

James added nine rebounds and six assists as the Cavs posted their second win in two weeks over the Eastern Conference’s top team, whose lead over second-place Boston remains at two games. This time, the Cavaliers were much healthier than when they beat the Raptors on March 21 despite missing five rotational players and coach Tyronn Lue.

Jose Calderon added 19 points and Kevin Love 18 points and 15 rebounds for the Cavs, who are 9-1 since March 17 despite not having all their pieces.

James still isn’t sure what the postseason may bring for Cleveland, which has eliminated Toronto in each of the past two postseasons.

The Cavs made their first five 3-pointers — in less than four minutes — and opened a 16-point lead. Love dropped three of the 3s with the others by Rodney Hood and Calderon, who made his first six field-goal attempts and scored 14 in the opening half. AP