Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (No 23) drives between Boston Celtics center Tyler Zeller (left) and forward Jae Crowder (right) in the third quarter in game two of the first round of the NBA playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. PICTURE: USA TODAY Sports

DPA/Los Angeles

LeBron James seized the moment and moved the Cleveland Cavaliers halfway home.
“King” James poured in 15 of his 30 points in the final frame to go along nine rebounds and seven assists, carrying the Cavs to a 99-91 home court victory Tuesday over the pesky Boston Celtics for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference best-of-seven first-round playoff series.
“I’ve been in this moment before, and a lot of our guys haven’t, so I felt it was important for me to put my stamp on the game the way I know how, and that’s being aggressive,” James said.
“I was able to make a few plays to help our team get the win and to be there for my team when needed.”
Cavs coach David Blatt said: “LeBron recognized the moment. He imposed his will on the game. That’s what makes him the great player he is.”
Kyrie Irving had 26 points while Timofey Mozgov and Kevin Love added 16 and 13, respectively, for the second-seeded Cavs, who have won 22 of their last 23 home contests.
“It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t pretty,” said Irving, who had nine fourth-quarter points.
Isaiah Thomas scored 22 points, and Jared Salenger added 14 for the seventh-seeded Celtics, who host game 3 on Thursday night.
“We made those guys earn everything they got, and that’s a step in the right direction from game one,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said.  “You hold a team to 99 points, you have a shot to win.”
Stevens tipped his hat to James: “He’s obviously a great competitor and also the most physically-talented and one of the best mental players in the game. Add that together and you have one heck of a player. That’s why he’s considered one of the all-time best and considered the best in the game right now.”
Cleveland fell behind by as many as nine in the second quarter but used a 15-5 period-ending run to take a 51-50 lead into the break.
The Cavs started the second half on a 17-4 burst highlighted by a pair of spectacular dunks off alley-oop passes. James hit Love with one for a reverse slam and converted another in transition from Irving to cap the run for a 68-54 cushion with 6:51 left in the quarter.
The Celtics refused to go away. Instead, they went on a 22-11 tear, capped by a Thomas three-point play to draw within 79-77 with 9:17 remaining.
“We went up 14, but we stopped scoring and didn’t get stops,” Blatt said. “They ran back at us. That’s basketball.”
But James scored 13 points and Irving added seven to give the Cavs a 95-89 advantage with two and a half minutes left.
After James missed badly on three-point try, Tristan Thompson grabbed the rebound. He got it back to James, who powered in for layup with 1:13 to go, and the Cavs held on. “When you’re great you do great things,” Thompson said. “He put us on his back and led us to victory.”
Bradley Beal scored 28 points, John Wall had 26 along with a franchise playoff-record 17 assists, and the visiting Wizards beat the Raptors to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference playoff series. Marcin Gortat netted 16 points for the fifth-seeded Wizards, who outscored the hosts 71-44 in the middle two quarters and dominated the boards 45-28 overall. Washington hosts pivotal game 3 on Friday in the best-of-seven series.
DeMar DeRozan and freshly-minted NBA Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams scored 20 points apiece for the fourth-seeded Raptors, who lost All-Star guard Kyle Lowry in the fourth quarter to a left leg injury.
Dwight Howard had nine of his 28 points in a game-breaking 19-4 fourth-quarter run along with 12 rebounds, and the Rockets manhandled the visiting Mavs to go ahead 2-0 in their Western Conference playoff series. James Harden netted 24 for second-seeded Houston, while Josh Smith finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and seven of his nine assists in the final frame.
Monta Ellis scored 24, but German juggernaut Dirk Nowitzki finished with just 10 and 13 rebounds for seventh-seeded Dallas, which hosts game 3 on Friday.