
![]() LeBron James notched 14 points in Saturday night's win at The Q. David Liam Kyle NBAE/Getty Images |
Mo Williams led everyone with 24 points in Saturday’s win – one that saw the return of one of the Wine and Gold’s indispensable components (and Williams backcourt partner) – Delonte West.
Coming off the bench in his first appearance of the season, West looked very sharp – going 5-for-7 from the floor for 13 points with a pair of rebounds and assists in 24 minutes of action.
“Delonte really affects the game in a lot of different ways,” praised Coach Brown. “He’s a guy who can score, but also run the team and distribute the ball at the right time.”
Williams has looked more comfortable – and more aggressive – with each passing game. Mo was 9-for-14 from the floor, including 5-of-8 from beyond the arc. On two occasions, Williams dazzled the sold-out crowd with silky behind-the-back moves to finish fast breaks and keep the Cavaliers ahead of the feisty Bobcats.
“We’re getting more and more familiar with each other and each game, we’re getting better together on the floor and playing off each other,” said Williams.
Despite shooting 63 percent from the floor in the first half, the Wine and Gold led by only four, 45-41. But the Cavaliers rediscovered their defensive identity in the second half, holding the Bobcats to just 13 points in the third quarter and wearing them down in fourth – when Charlotte never got to within single figures of Cleveland.
LeBron James followed up with 14 points – coasting on 5-for-11 shooting from the field. James added a team-high nine assists and seven boards. Anthony Parker rounded out the starters in double-figures with 13 points. Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 10 points on 5-for-5 shooting, adding a season-high five blocks.
Cleveland shot 58 percent from floor and 56 percent from long-distance in Saturday night’s win. The Cavaliers’ 17 turnovers and Charlotte’s 10 offensive rebounds are the only things that kept the ballgame as close as it was.
The Cavaliers wrap up their first ‘four-games-in-five-nights’ stretch of the season, winning the second two by double-digits heading into Tuesday night’s showdown with the Wizards at Quicken Loans Arena.
2. In all ten tries since the team’s inception, the Bobcats have never beaten the Cavaliers at The Q. They’re now 0-10 on the corner of Huron and Ontario. Cleveland topped the Hornets in their first 14 visits to Cleveland.
3. Delonte West saw his first action of the season, coming off the bench to standing ovation with 4:22 to play in the first quarter. His first shot rattled around the rim and out, but West finished with 13 points – all in the second half – in 24 productive minutes. West also got rung up with a tech late in the fourth quarter.
4. Last year, the Cavaliers were the best team in the league in terms of back-to-backs – going 16-3. They’re 1-1 after the first week of 2009-10. LeBron was also the league’s top performer on the second night of a back-to-back, averaging 31.3 ppg.
5. The duo of Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Shaquille O’Neal – dubbed by some “Tower City” – had a massive night on the defensive end. Big Z fell just two blocks short of his career high of seven, swatting five Bobcats offerings. Shaq swatted two more to go with five boards and three assists.
6. The Cavaliers continue to shoot well from downtown, hitting on connected on 9-of-16 (.563) three-pointers. Over the last three games, Cleveland’s gone an even 28-for-56 (.500) from long-distance. For the season, the starting backcourt combo of Mo Williams and Anthony Parker are shooting a combined .562 (18-for-32) from three-point range.
7. The Cavaliers had their best shooting half of the season on Saturday night, hitting on 63 percent – (20-for-32). At the time, the frontcourt trio of Shaq, Z and Anderson Varejao were 9-of-11 from the floor.
8. Cleveland held Charlotte to 38 percent shooting and 38 points after halftime on Saturday. For the entire night, the Bobcats totaled just two fast break points.
9. It was just a matter of time, but Shaq finally got into ‘FTM’ column. Shaq had missed his first ten free throws before canning a pair (to the delight of the crowd) with 5:48 remaining in the fourth.
10. Some of the Cavaliers might have been going out for Halloween, but Daniel Gibson definitely was. Boobie left the locker room dressed in a “Spider-Man 3 – Venom” costume. (That’s the all-black, evil version of Spider-Man.) As he walked out, Gibson joked, “Didn’t y’all know I’m Spider-Man once I leave here?”


