With LeBron James back in action and Larry Hughes leading the way this time, the Cleveland Cavaliers ended their six-game losing streak by beating the Indiana Pacers 118-105 on Tuesday night. Anderson Varejao also returned to action for the Cavaliers.

"It felt like it did last year," James said. "We're back now, we'll see what happens."

Larry Hughes sparked the Cavaliers with his 36 points off the bench and hit 13 of 17 shots, including five of eight from three-point range. LeBron James made his comeback after a five-game absence and helped with 17 points and Zydrunas Ilgauskas also scored 17 points. Pavlovic chipped in with 16 points.

"I thought there were two LeBron Jameses out there," Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said about Larry Hughes performance.

James had missed the last six games due to a sprained finger, an injury that occurred during a match against Detroit on Nov. 28. Against the Pacers he played with a glove on his left hand.

"The last time I didn't start was probably - never," James said. "I had no problem with it. It's one time. Andy, Larry, and LeBron coming off the bench, it's kind of dangerous. It raised the intensity level of the fans."

Although he was expected to play, nobody was expecting him to play off the bench, but when game began with Cleveland's megastar on the bench in his white-and-wine warm-ups it was all clear. This was the first time James hadn’t started in 333 career regular-season games. It may have been one of the only times in his career that he wasn't on the court for the opening tip.

For the Pacers, Mike Dunleavy scored 23 points and Jermaine O'Neal finished with 18 to help Indiana, who has lost three of their last five games. Troy Murphy chipped in with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

The Cavaliers shot 61 percent in the first half and scored a season-high 65 points over that stretch to take a 16-point lead into the locker room.