Wrap-Up – On Monday night in Miami, the Cavaliers were closing out a four-game road trip, part of grueling post-All-Star road schedule – and unfortunately they looked every bit the part. And after a close first quarter, Dwyane Wade and the Heat blew the game wide open and didn’t look back – handing the road-weary Wine and Gold the 106-92 loss at American Airlines Arena.
LeBron James scored 16 of his team-high 26 points in the fourth quarter as he tried to ignite a Cavaliers comeback. His late surge cut Miami’s 24-point fourth-quarter lead to just a dozen with 2:41 to play, but when Hassan Whiteside’s hookshot put Miami up two touchdowns with a minute remaining, Coach Blatt pulled his superstar – who added four assists and a pair of rebounds in the loss.
Kyrie Irving cooled down a bit on Monday night – although he couldn’t get much hotter after his previous two games – following up with 21 points on 5-for-15 shooting. The only other Cavalier in double-figures was Timofey Mozgov, who finished with 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting.
Kevin Love sat out his second straight game just to get some general rest before the season’s homestretch. And Shawn Marion, who hadn’t seen action since February 12, saw some late-game action, logging eight minutes and finishing with five points.
The Cavaliers fell for the second time this season on South Beach, dropping a Christmas Day decision before topping the Heat at The Q on February 11. Dwayne Wade led all scorers with 31 points in that Christmas Day decision and he repeated the feat on Monday night – netting 16 of his 32 points in the decisive second quarter.
The Heat shot 55 percent from the floor to the Cavaliers’ 38 percent. Miami outrebounded Cleveland, 44-32, and outscored them in the paint by the same margin, 44-32.
LBJ buckets 26, Kyrie adds 21 points.
View some of the best snapshots.
Mozgov throws the hammer down, plus the foul.
Go inside the locker room.
Watch final game highlights from Monday's game.
Turning Point – The Cavs fell behind early on Monday, trailing by 10 within the first four-and-a-half minutes of the game. But Cleveland rallied early and tied the game on an and-1 by Timofey Mozgov – who crushed a left-handed dunk off a beautiful baseline feed from Kyrie.
But Miami scored the final five points of the period and would proceed to hold the Cavs to just 16 points on 33 percent shooting in the second quarter. Dwyane Wade took over in the second and the Wine and Gold found themselves down 18 at intermission.
By the Numbers – 3 … home games that the Cavaliers have played of the 14 contests since the All-Star Break. They close out the season with eight of their final 13 at Quicken Loans Arena.
Quotable – LeBron James, on the Heat taking advantage of a tired Cavaliers squad …
”(Miami) knew what our schedule has been for the last couple weeks and they came out and wanted to push the tempo and get up and down the floor. And they did a great job of doing that.”
Up Next – Following Monday night’s loss in Miami to close out the four-game road trip at 3-1, the Wine and Gold finally head home where they’ll play two straight at The Q for the first time since the All-Star Break (and before hitting the road for three more away). On Wednesday, they welcome the Brooklyn Nets to Cleveland before heading to Indiana on Friday, trying to avenge a pair of consecutive road losses to the Pacers. Cleveland plays every Sunday afternoon for the rest of the season, beginning with this weekend’s trip to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks.