CLEVELAND (AP) — Don’t tug on Superman’s cape. Don’t touch LeBron James’ headband. Those are the rules.

Next time, the Chicago Bulls will know better.

James scored 27 of his 37 points in the second half, and took exception to the Bulls knocking his headband askew as the Cleveland Cavaliers had one of their best performances since the All-Star break, a 91-72 win over Chicago on Sunday night.

James scored eight points, including two on a ridiculous dunk, as the Cavs opened the fourth with 11 straight points to go up by 14. James had 16 points in the fourth, outscoring the Bulls, who dared mess with his headband.

“That’s like my cape,” James said. “If you knock a superhero’s cape off they get very angry.”

Playing all but 1 minute, 33 seconds, James added nine rebounds and seven assists as Cleveland went 4-0 against Chicago this season. It’s the first time the Cavs swept a season series against the Bulls since going 3-0 in the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season.

Drew Gooden added 13 points and 11 rebounds and Anderson Varejao added 13 boards for Cleveland.

Ben Gordon had 17 points, and Kirk Hinrich and Luol Deng 15 apiece for the Bulls, who could do little but watch James take over in the fourth.

“LeBron was able to get off on us a little, and we didn’t do a good job of stopping him,” Hinrich said. “He’s made big plays against us all season.”

In Cleveland’s four wins over Chicago, James averaged 34.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists.

After blowing a 25-point lead in a win at Chicago last week, once the Cavs finally opened a sizable advantage they never gave it back. Cleveland was only up 63-60 entering the fourth before their 11-0 burst.

The Bulls closed within eight, but Eric Snow hit a baseline jumper and Flip Murray buried a 3-pointer to make it 79-66 with 4:55 remaining.

“We got up by double digits, and in everyone’s mind was what happened on Thursday when they made their run,” James said. “I didn’t want that to happen again.”

James fed Donyell Marshall for nearly identical 3-pointers from the corner late in the third period as the Cavs pushed their lead to 63-60 entering the fourth.

On Cleveland’s second possession of the final period, Marshall hit another 3 from the same spot to put the Cavs ahead by eight. Then, James knifed between two defenders near the foul line, blasted down the lane and dunked to make it 70-60 with 10:33 left.

Led by Darius Songaila’s 14 points and 56 percent shooting from the floor, the Bulls led 42-40 at halftime. But Songaila didn’t score in the second half and Chicago cooled off, too, going just 12-of-35 in the second half.

“We just couldn’t hit shots,” Deng said. “We had good looks but they weren’t falling and we kept turning the ball over.”

The first LeBron-leave-you-shaking-your-head moment came in the second quarter when he sprinted down the right side, filled the lane and soared for an alley-oop pass from Snow for a ferocious two-handed slam.

Notes

Chicago’s 72 points were a season-low. … James, one of 23 players selected Sunday to try out for the U.S. team for this year’s world championships and 2008 Beijing Games, had trouble remembering the last time he had to make a team. “Sixth grade, I think,” he said. James played on the 2004 team in Athens which settled for a bronze. He said a three-summer commitment is worth every second to re-establish America’s supremacy in hoops. “It’s not like we’re giving up three years,” he said. “Plus, we’ve got some unfinished business.” … Bulls F Malik Allen was inactive with a sprained neck that has been bothering him for more than a week. Andres Nocioni started in his place, but was on the bench in early foul trouble. … Cavs coach Mike Brown (36) and Bulls coach Scott Skiles (42) both celebrated their birthdays. … Bulls C Luke Schenscher, who signed a 10-day contract earlier in the day, had a No. 54 on the back of his jersey but not his last name.

CLEVELAND (AP) — In 6 shining seconds, LeBron James made a block at one end, a dunk at the other and left a lasting memory of greatness.

“It was unbelievable,” said Phoenix guard Leandro Barbosa.

James scored 32 of his 44 points in the second half, and brought Cleveland back almost all by himself as the Cavaliers rallied for their fifth straight win, 113-106 over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday.

James added 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Cavs, who trailed by 17 midway through the third quarter when their third-year superstar took control of the game.

And, in a stirring 6-second sequence of the fourth, James made one of the best plays of this NBA season — or any other.

First, he hustled back on defense and blocked a floating layup by the speedy Barbosa, whose shot would have tied it. Then, James quickly retrieved the ball, sped down the floor, eluded Boris Diaw with a head fake and delivered a vicious, right-handed dunk that gave the Cavaliers a 97-93 lead.

Two plays. Six seconds. Over 100 feet. Thousands of dropped jaws.

“I was like, ‘Holy Moley!”‘ Cavs coach Mike Brown said. “That was one of the most athletic plays I’ve ever seen.”

The Suns were stunned.

“He made a million highlights in a very short time,” said reigning league MVP Steve Nash, who led Phoenix with 24 points.

James scored 16 points in the third and added another 16 in the fourth when Cleveland’s defense finally slowed the Suns, holding the NBA’s highest-scoring team to 19 points on just 6-of-20 shooting.

During the Cavs’ winning streak, James is averaging 37.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists, and his 44-point, 11-rebound, 7-assist effort has only been matched by Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Hakeem Olajuwon since 1991-92.

But it was his game-changing block of Barbosa that stood out.

“That play was very key,” James said. “I just wanted to make a play to try and take the life out of them a little bit.”

Even more than one-half hour following the game, Barbosa got wide-eyed as he tried to describe how James ran him down from behind.

“I never saw him,” said Barbosa, who started for the injured Raja Bell. “I asked coach, ‘How did he do that?’ My teammates said I was dribbling like crazy and he still caught me. All of a sudden, he’s at the other end.”

Shawn Marion added 22 points and James Jones 20 for the Suns, who shot 66 percent from the field in the first half but only 37 percent in the second.

Sasha Pavlovic had 15 points, Donyell Marshall 14 and reserve Anderson Varejao six with seven rebounds in a season-high 19 minutes for Cleveland. The wild-haired Varejao, a Cavs fan favorite because of his hustle, missed the first two months of the season following shoulder surgery.

“We know what we are going to get out of Andy every night, that is hustle, rebounding and defense,” James said. “I know he feels good to be back playing with us. I know it’s good to see him.”

Eddie House scored 16 points for Pacific Division-leading Phoenix, which dropped to 2-2 on a six-game road trip.

James single-handedly brought the Cavs back in the third quarter, scoring 14 of his 16 in the final 7:49 of the period as Cleveland trimmed a 72-55 deficit to 87-84 going into the fourth period.

Leading 60-55, the Suns ran off 12 straight points early in the third and seemed on the verge of pulling away for good before James took it upon himself to carry the Cavs. He made a three-point play and two 3-pointers while scoring 14 of Cleveland’s final 20 points in the quarter.

Barbosa made his sixth start because Bell sat out with a sore calf. Bell, averaging 14.2 points in 38 minutes, strained his calf in practice on Saturday.

The lightning-quick Barbosa drove past Cleveland defenders and picked up five assists in the first six minutes of the first quarter as the Suns shot 70 percent (14-of-20) to open a 10-point lead.