Final Dime: Cavaliers 98, Pistons 88

Daniel Gibson notched 13 points in Wednesday's win. Allen Einstein NBAE/Getty Images

Former Cavs assistant John Kuester went 11-deep into his bench, but the Wine and Gold were simply too much for the scrappy young Pistons on Thanksgiving Eve – carving up Q’s squad – 98-88 – for their eighth straight win against their Central Division rivals to the North.

The new-look Pistons – minus Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince, and with three rookies in the rotation – clawed back to get within single-figures of the Cavaliers in the second half of Wednesday’s drubbing. But LeBron James slammed the door on Detroit’s late rally.

LeBron led everyone with 34 points, going an even 12-for-24 from the floor – including a monstrous throwdown midway through the fourth – and 9-of-11 from the stripe. James added eight boards, seven assists and a steal.

“We got solid production from our bench which was good and then ‘Bron was ‘Bron,” said Coach Brown. “He shoots 50 percent from the field and gets almost a triple-double again. For a guy as talented as he is, it seems so ordinary.”

No. 23 spent most of the night paired up with Pistons rookie Jonas Jerebko – who got a baptism by fire on Wednesday at the Palace.

Cleveland led by as many as 18 and by double-figures through most of the second half. But, as has been the case lately, the Pistons closed the gap. Ben Wallace’s free throw brought the Pistons to within five with just 1:13 to play, but LeBron and Mo Williams iced the victory at the stripe.

“When games are close, it’s time for me to do what I do best, and that’s close the game out,” said James. “I wasn’t concerned at all.”

Mo Williams followed up with 14 points and a game-high eight assists, while Boobie Gibson and Anthony Parker added 13 points apiece. Jamario Moon rounded out the double-figure scoring for Cleveland – notching 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting.

The Cavaliers will take Thanksgiving off before heading to Charlotte to take on Larry Brown’s Bobcats on Friday night.

2. With Wednesday night’s win, the Cavaliers have now matched the longest win streak ever against Detroit – eight games. The last time Cleveland accomplished that was between October, 1979 and December, 1980.

3. The Cavaliers have performed well both with and without the Diesel this season. In nine games with O’Neal, the Wine and Gold are 6-3, averaging 97.1 ppg. Without, including Wednesday’s win, they’re 5-1 – averaging 102.8. With Shaq in the lineup, however, their allowing opponents less than 10 points fewer per game and shooting 65 points higher (.467-.402) from beyond the arc.

4. Daniel Gibson came into Wednesday’s game leading the league in three-pointers off the bench with 25. Of course, once he sees the Pistons colors, that number’s bound to go up. On Wednesday, Boobie went 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.

5. LeBron has been a beast on the road through the month of November, scoring at least 30 points in every game. His numbers in six games away from The Q this month are 35.1 points, 6.5 boards and 7.1 assists per game. In that span, Cleveland is 5-1.

6. With the win, the Cavaliers are now 6-2 (.750) on the road, tied with Phoenix for the most road wins in the NBA.

7. This season, Big Ben Wallace – who was dealt with Sasha Pavlovic to the Suns in exchange for Shaq and was on the verge of retirement – is averaging almost 30 minutes a game. The league’s four-time Defensive Player of the Year has started every game for Detroit this season. And with Tayshaun Prince and Rip Hamilton sidelined, 13-year pro and former Cavalier, Ben Wallace has become the Pistons’ veteran rock.

“It’s tough,” said the now salt-and-pepper Wallace. “I try to explain to the guys that right now, we’re trying to steal some wins. Our best offensive player is out and probably our best defensive player is out. (Prince and Hamilton) aren’t just good players, they’re like coaches on the floor.”

8. After two seasons in Cleveland – where he served as the club’s “Offensive Coordinator” – Coach John Kuester returned the Pistons, where he won an NBA Championship in 2004. The affable “Coach Q” has gone 5-10 with his young club and was asked pregame if he had any advantage defending LeBron James after having coached him the past couple seasons.

“The only thing that’s good about knowing him is to say ‘Hi’ to him,” quipped Q. “I think he would drive hard on his mom. He’s that kind of competitor and he wants to do whatever it takes to win. I’d like to say that he’s going to take it easy tonight, but I’ve got a gut feeling that he’s not.”

9. Coach Mike Brown elected to give Shaq’s shoulder one more game to rest. O’Neal’s been out since November 14, but made the trip to Motown and will likely be in uniform for Friday night’s battle in Charlotte.

“We’re taking him day to day,” said Coach Mike Brown. “We just decided to hold him out. He had a contact practice on Monday. I pulled him out of practice yesterday.”

10. The Cavaliers continue to be the league’s top-scoring team in the first quarter, having notched at least 28 points in the first quarter of each of their last ten games.