- Wildlife populations plunge 73% since 1970: WWF
- 'Sleeper agent' bots on X fuel US election misinformation, study says
- Death toll rises to 109 after Haiti gang attack, official says
- Tigers beat Guardians and on brink of advancing in MLB playoffs
- Argentina MPs back Milei's veto of university funding
- Man City sink Barca in Women's Champions League as Bayern outgun Arsenal
- Greek international Baldock, 31, found dead in pool: state agency
- Florida seaside haven a ghost town as hurricane nears
- Pharrell Williams to co-chair Met Gala exploring Black dandyism
- Wall Street indices hit fresh records as Chinese shares tumble
- Taiwan's president to deliver key speech for National Day
- Sea row on the menu as ASEAN leaders meet China's Li
- Injured Kane won't start England's Nations League clash with Greece
- Discord seen as online home for renegades
- US forecasts severe solar storm starting Thursday
- Mozambique starts tallying votes in tense election
- Zelensky moves to court European leaders in drive for military aid
- Ratan Tata: Indian mogul who built a global powerhouse
- Rodgers rejects 'false' suggestions of role in Saleh dismissal
- One dead as storm Kirk tears through Spain, Portugal, France
- Indian business titan Ratan Tata dead at 86
- Lebanon facing 'catastrophic' situation as 600,000 displaced: UN
- US warns Israel not to repeat Gaza destruction in Lebanon
- Musk's X returns in Brazil after 40-day showdown with judge
- Call her savvy? Harris unleashes unconventional media blitz
- Lucian Freud 'masterpiece' fetches £13.9 million at London sale
- SoFi Stadium to hold next two CONCACAF Nations League finals
- McIlroy and DeChambeau set for PGA-LIV 'Showdown' in Vegas
- Fed minutes highlight divisions over rate cut decision
- Steve McQueen debuts new WWII film at London festival
- Run blitz edges India and South Africa closer to World Cup semi-finals
- Zelensky to court European leaders in drive for military aid
- Israel captain says 'difficult' to focus on football in time of war
- Macron to host Ukraine's Zelensky after meeting Ukrainian troops
- Root says 'many more to get' after England Test runs landmark
- India pile up World Cup high to rout Sri Lanka
- One year later, Israeli hostage family learns of loss
- Texans receiver Collins, Pats' safety Peppers out for NFL clash
- Biden-Netanyahu talk as Hezbollah, Israeli forces clash
- Musk's X available again in Brazil after 40-day ban
- Reddy stars as India crush Bangladesh to clinch T20 series
- Nobel winners hope protein work will spur 'incredible' breakthroughs
- What are proteins again? Nobel-winning chemistry explained
- Arch rivals Ghana, Nigeria drawn together in CHAN qualifying
- AI steps into science limelight with Nobel wins
- Trump lauds India's Modi as 'total killer'
- Wall Street, Europe rise as Chinese shares tumble
- Hunkering down for Hurricane Milton at Disney -- but first, a few rides
- Reddy, Rinku power India to 221-9 in second Bangladesh T20
- Overshooting 1.5C risks 'irreversible' climate impact: study
LeBron's 50 leads Lakers victory as 'Pop' sets NBA win mark
LeBron James unleashed his second 50-point performance in a week to spark the Los Angeles Lakers over Washington 122-109 on Friday but missed a historic NBA milestone.
James scored 50 points on 18-of-25 shooting, including 6-of-9 from 3-point range, and was 8-of-8 from the free throw line while contributing seven rebounds and six assists to power a Lakers team that had lost nine of its prior 11 games.
"We missed a lot of chippies, but we kept fighting, we kept defending, and I was able to hit a hot streak at one point," James said.
The 37-year-old forward, a four-time NBA champion and four-time NBA Most Valuable Player, scored 56 points last Saturday in a home win over Golden State. James had the first back-to-back 50-or-more Laker totals at home since the late Kobe Bryant in 2007.
James was in a "zone" after hitting 17 in the first half, scoring 12 points in a row for the Lakers at one stage in the third quarter.
"I just try to stay in that zone as long as possible," James said. "I was able to hit a couple."
It was the 14th career 50-point game for James, tying him for sixth on the all-time list.
But James finished two assists shy of becoming the first player in NBA history with 30,000 career points, 10,000 career rebounds and 10,000 career assists.
James was pleased to get a hug during the game at one stage from his mother Gloria.
"The fact she was here tonight was a treat for me," James said. "She's my biggest supporter, my biggest inspiration and my biggest love."
San Antonio's Gregg Popovich won his NBA record 1,336th regular-season coaching victory, with Dejounte Murray scoring 27 points to lift the Spurs over visiting Utah 104-102.
Popovich, 73, has guided the Spurs to five NBA titles and was coach of the US Olympic squad of NBA stars that won a gold medal last year in Tokyo. He thanked former players, coaches, mentors and those who have backed the club during his tenure.
"It's just a testament to a whole lot of people. Something like this does not belong to one individual," Popovich said. "All of us share in this record. It's not mine. It's ours."
The Spurs made 6-of-8 free throws in the final 14.2 seconds to hold off the Jazz (41-25). San Antonio improved to 26-41, one game behind New Orleans for the last play-in spot for the playoffs.
- Suns fall, Heat win -
Toronto's Gary Trent Jr. scored 42 points and Pascal Siakam added 25 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds to lead the Raptors to a 117-112 victory at Phoenix, dropping the NBA overall leaders to 53-14 on the season.
Cameron Payne led the Suns with 24 points while Devin Booker added 22 for Phoenix, who still lead the Western Conference by 7 1/2 games over Memphis.
Bam Adebayo scored 30 points and grabbed 17 rebounds while Jimmy Butler added 24 points to spark the Eastern Conference-leading Miami Heat over visiting Cleveland 117-105.
The Heat improved to 45-23, stretching Miami's lead in the East to 2 1/2 games over idle defending champion Milwaukee.
Ja Morant scored 37 points and dished out eight assists to rally the Memphis Grizzlies from a 15-point second-half deficit to defeat visiting New York 118-114.
Morant delivered his 24th 30-point game of the season and scored 15 in the last 12 minutes for his 12th double-digit fourth quarter of the campaign.
Slovenia's Luka Doncic had 30 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 113-110 victory at Houston.
Boston's Jayson Tatum had 31 points, eight rebounds and six assists to spark the Celtics over visiting Detroit 114-103. Jaylen Brown returned from a right ankle sprain to score 22 points for Boston (41-27).
Trae Young had game highs of 27 points and 11 assists to spark Atlanta over the visiting Los Angeles Clippers 112-106.
Miles Bridges scored 26 points and Terry Rozier added 25 to lead Charlotte in a 142-120 triumph at New Orleans.
Orlando's Mo Bamba scored 27 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to spark the Magic over host Minnesota 118-110.
L.Davis--AMWN