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Wrap-Up -- Playing the second half of a back-to-back in hostile territory after having won 17 of their last 18, no one would’ve faulted the heavy-legged Cavaliers if they fell to the Wizards on Sunday.
But behind LeBron James’ third consecutive triple-double, the Wine & Gold found enough juice to pull away from Washington and win for the eighth time in their last nine road outings – taking the 106-99 decision on Sunday night in D.C.
The last two meetings between these two teams in the nation’s capital resulted in shootouts and with the score tied at 60-apiece at half, that looked to be the case again on Sunday. But the Cavaliers clamped down on the Wizards in the fourth quarter, holding them to 16 points on 7-for-22 shooting.
But the story of the game was James – who turns 33 in two weeks but is playing as well as he has at any point during his future Hall of Fame career.
The four-time MVP tallied his fourth triple-double in the last five games – and 61st of his career – finishing with 20 points on 8-for-23 shooting, leading both squads with 15 assists and 12 boards.
Kevin Love actually led the squad in scoring on Sunday – registering 25 points on 9-for-20 shooting, including 5-of-8 from long-distance, to go with nine boards and a steal.
The Cavaliers got seven points apiece from their other three starters, but the bench came up big again – with Jeff Green and Kyle Korver notching double-digit scoring and the reserves as a unit combining for 40 points – their 21st time this season reaching the 40-point plateau.
Korver, who’s now notched double-figures in his last five games, finished with 11 points – going 4-of-6 from the floor. Green, who’s tallied double-figures in six of his last eight, finished with 15 points, five boards, two helpers and pair of blocked shots. In going 4-of-5 from the stripe, Green missed his first free throw in the last 10 games.
Bradley Beal led both teams with 27 points, but posted 25 of those through the first three quarters. Mike Scott, who’s been as hot as any shooter in the league over the past two weeks – and has always thrived against Cleveland – followed up with 19 points off the bench.
Another balanced scoring attack by the Wine & Gold fuels their 5th straight win.
The Cavs shot 47 percent from the floor and, with 14 triples, extended their franchise record of hitting double-digit threes to 20 straight games. The Wizards outrebounded Cleveland, 51-42, but also missed seven of their 16 free throw attempts in the loss.
Turning Point -- Sunday’s game was tied at 60-apiece at intermission and again at 83 after three quarters.
It was nip-and-tuck throughout the fourth quarter until the 3:24 mark, when Kevin Love canned a three-pointer to improve Cleveland’s lead to six, 100-94. On Washington’s next possession, Love picked John Wall and fed ahead to LeBron James, who pirouetted past Mike Scott, scored on a layup and was fouled. James canned the free throw to put the Wine & Gold ahead by nine – 103-94.
Scott canned a three with 1:09 to play to get the Wizards to within six. But LeBron split a pair of free throws in the closing moments to seal the deal.
By the Numbers – 25.8, 11.0, 13.4 … points, rebounds and assists that LeBron James is averaging over his last five games – with four triple-doubles in the mix.
Quotable – LeBron James, on his “pretty bad” triple-double on Sunday night in D.C. …
”I actually played pretty bad tonight. I wasn’t strong with the ball, I had six turnovers; kinda lazy with the ball at times. My teammates did a great job of bailing me out. I tried to put the ball on time, on target to get those assists but they have to make the shots. And that’s why I love my teammates.”
Up Next -- The Cavaliers stay on the road after dropping the Wizards on Sunday, traveling to Milwaukee for the second time this season to face off against Giannis Antetokuonmpo and the Bucks on Tuesday night. Cleveland comes home to face the Bulls for the third time this season in their final contest at The Q before embarking on their West Coast trip that takes them to Golden State for their perennial Christmas Day showdown, followed by stops in Sacramento and Salt Lake City.