CLEVELAND -- Mo Williams made two free throws with 9 seconds left and Delonte West made the kind of plays down the stretch reserved for LeBron James as the Cleveland Cavaliers won without their superstar, beating the San Antonio Spurs 97-95 on Monday night.

Williams finished with 17 points for the Cavs, playing their second straight game without the injured James. The NBA's reigning MVP is nursing a tender right ankle and the Cavs are being extra cautious. West had 16 points and made a key steal in the final minute as Cleveland became the first team to reach 50 wins this season.

Manu Ginobili scored a season-high 38 points to lead the Spurs, playing their first game without guard Tony Parker. He's out six weeks with a broken hand.

The Cavs have a little time to heal up with their next game not until Friday in Philly.

MILWAUKEE (AP)—The sellout crowd expected to see LeBron James . Instead, rookie Brandon Jennings sporting a new dyed red mohawk that makes him look a little like a rooster, did all the strutting.

The 20-year-old point guard scored 25 points and the Milwaukee Bucks beat Cleveland 92-85 on Saturday night, with James reduced to a spectator on the bench and limping noticeably when he walked from it. “Right now, I’m playing for something bigger,” Jennings said. “Main thing is get to playoffs, having the city start believing in us and keep going on from there.”

Cleveland’s six-game winning streak was snapped and the Cavaliers will have to wait until at least Monday night to become the first team to reach 50 wins this season. The Cavs are 2 1/2 games up on the Lakers for the NBA’s best record at 49-15. Coach Mike Brown insisted his decision to sit James was for rest and had nothing to do with the previous night when the star twisted his right ankle.

Brown said his superstar could play, if needed, but that wasn’t apparent while watching James. Brown said that James might sit against San Antonio on Monday. “He’s logged a lot of minutes. If you don’t include this game, we play one game in a week,” Brown said. “For me, this is a great opportunity to rest him and a great opportunity for some other guys to have an opportunity to step up.” While he blew bubbles and joked with teammates on the bench, he was clearly limping as he walked to the bench in the first quarter and again to the locker room at the half.
 
James, leading the NBA in scoring at 30 points per game, only got off one shot on this night. After he returned from the locker room for the second half, he grabbed a basketball and sent an underhand toss toward the hoop from the elbow. After the game, James didn’t speak to reporters, but was smiling and joking in the locker room, telling teammates that he’d see them on the bus before he left.

In the first game James missed this season, Cleveland couldn’t overcome his absence for a team already missing Shaquille O’Neal (right thumb surgery) and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who can’t be re-signed until March 22. “They’ll be people saying it was a great game and they’ll be other people saying well, LeBron didn’t play, if he would have played, they would have won,” said Andrew Bogut, who had 15 points and nine rebounds. “It’s a lose-lose situation for us.”

Only in perception. Milwaukee trails Toronto only by percentage points for fifth in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks have won nine of the last 10 and 15 of 19. Jennings, who said earlier this week maybe he’d stop shooting after several poor performances, hit five 3-pointers and went 6 of 14 from the field.

Jennings said he was disappointed that James sat on the sideline, so he danced for him a little as the Bucks basically cruised from the start of the second half, opening up a 15-point lead and never letting Cleveland within seven. “Maybe it was the crowd, maybe it was just the whole environment, maybe it was just playing against Cleveland, I had my shot falling,” he said. “You’re going to play with a lot of swagger when you’re playing against the No. 1 team in the Eastern Conference, even though LeBron didn’t play tonight, a little disappointed.”
 
Delonte West scored a season-high 27 points for Cleveland, but Milwaukee got contributions from all over, getting 16 points and a career-high 13 rebounds from Carlos Delfino and 10 points and 11 rebounds from Luc Richard Mbah a Moute “I felt like guys stepped up to the plate with LeBron being out, and I didn’t,” said Mo Williams. the former Bucks point guard who went 3 of 17 from the field. “If I was that third piece we could have won this game.”

John Salmons added 12 more for the Bucks to continue his streak of double-digit performances in every game since being traded from Chicago at the deadline. Cleveland didn’t seem too worried, though, missing James on this night. “We know what the overall picture is,” Jamison said. “He’s a part of that.”

NOTES: It was Milwaukee’s fourth sellout this season. … Jamison scored 15 points in the second quarter. … Cleveland is 9-12 without James since drafting him No. 1 overall in 2003. … James wasn’t on the bench to start the game, but arrived in a gray jacket and jeans in the first quarter.

CLEVELAND (AP)—Zydrunas Ilgauskas has forgiven the Cleveland Cavaliers. Feeling betrayed after he was traded last month, Ilgauskas wants to return to the only NBA team he has played for to help it win a championship.

Ilgauskas, the towering center known to Cleveland fans simply as “Z,” told his agent Herb Rudoy to begin negotiations with the Cavs on March 22—the first day he can sign. “The NBA rules do not allow any contract discussions until that date,” Rudoy said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. “It is Zydrunas’ desire to return to the Cavaliers if a suitable contract can be agreed upon.” It’s likely the Cavs will accept him back with open arms. General manager Danny Ferry agonized over the decision to trade Ilgauskas, a former teammate, close friend and the franchise’s leader in rebounds and games played, to Washington as part of the deal for forward Antawn Jamison.

Now, Ferry has a chance to make everything right. Plus, with Shaquille O’Neal sidelined for at least another six weeks with a thumb injury, the Cavs need the 7-foot-3 Ilgauskas more than ever. After being traded on Feb. 17, Ilgauskas never played for the Wizards. He bought out his contract from the club, making him a free agent and clearing him to sign with any other team after 30 days.
 
But despite interest from several playoff contenders, including Atlanta, Dallas and Denver, the 34-year-old wants to return to Cavs, who drafted him in 1996. Earlier this week, a few of the Cavaliers took advantage of a game in New Jersey to visit Ilgauskas, who has a place in New York’s SoHo district.
 
Rudoy said Ferry also stopped in recently to meet with Ilgauskas, who has received hundreds of e-mails and letters from Cleveland fans urging him to come back. “He has been overwhelmed and deeply touched by the outpouring of support and affection by the fans and by his teammates,” Rudoy said. “He hopes to return to bring a championship to the Cavaliers and to the city of Cleveland.”

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- LeBron James had 26 points and 14 assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers opened a 20-point first-quarter lead and cruised to a 111-92 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday night.

J.J. Hickson added 20 points and 13 rebounds in his second straight start for the injured Shaquille O'Neal and Antawn Jamison had 19 points as the Cavaliers won their fifth straight game. Mo Williams added 16. The win completed a two-game sweep of the Knicks and Nets over the past three days, the two teams that have a ton of money to throw at James should he decide to test the free-agent market this summer.

James put on a show for both. Brook Lopez had 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead New Jersey (6-54), which has now lost eight straight to the King, including all four this year. Rookie Terrence Williams added a career-high 21 points for the Nets, who never got closer than 11 points after being outscored 35-15 in the opening 12 minutes.

James was terrific in the first period, scoring 10 points and picking up eight assists. He also took the time to tease the crowd of 17,502 laying in two dunks on uncontested breakaways, with both plays eliciting "boos" from the fans who wanted monster jams. James seemed content to distribute the ball and that was never clearer than in an eight-point spurt in which three of his assists led to two dunks by Jamario Moon and another by Jamison. James best assist came with 2:10 left in the quarter. Dribbling the ball at the top of the key, he jumped in the air as if he was going to fire a pass to the left corner and then threw the ball between his legs before he came down, finding Anderson Varejao for a layup that had the crowd back in his corner. The 14 assists were one shy of James' career high. The six-year veteran also showed he could pick up the tempo.

When the Nets made a run in the second quarter, James dribbled the length of the court and threw down a violent dunk that drew gasps. This was also the second big game for Hickson, who became the starting center when O'Neal had surgery on his injured right thumb. He probably won't be back until late April. Hickson had 17 points and nine rebounds against New York and he followed with another big game against New Jersey.

(New York) - Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas has been visited in New York by several of his former Cleveland teammates who want him to re-sign with the Cavaliers.

The Cavs traded the 7-foot-3 Ilgauskas last month to Washington in a deal for forward Antawn Jamison. Ilgauskas bought out his contract from the Wizards, allowing him to sign with any other team after 30 days.

His agent, Herb Rudoy, said Ilgauskas also was visited by Cleveland General Manager Danny Ferry.

Ilgauskas has drawn interest from other teams. Rudoy said he expects Ilgauskas, Cleveland’s career leader in games played and rebounds, to make an announcement by the weekend. He can't sign with Cleveland until March 22.

Rudoy said that while Ilgauskas loves Cleveland, he was disappointed about being used as a ``pawn'' in the deal to get Jamison.

(Copyright 2010 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.)