(On tonight’s loss…)
“It was tough to watch. Probably a little bit more for me than Larry Drew because they got the win. 119-116 points, 50 percent and 52 percent from the floor. I don’t know if anyone played any defense throughout the course of the game. I thought Jarrett Jack was good, especially in the second quarter. He was really good generating offense for us the right way, getting the ball up the floor, moving the basketball, and talking to his guys about getting stops. Other than that I thought coming out into the game, we didn’t do anything defensively in terms of putting up resistance to these guys. They kind of got what they wanted to offensively all night.”
(On “respecting the game”…)
“I don’t think we played good basketball tonight. There were a lot of areas during the course of the game where we didn’t play good basketball. We probably put together a eight minute stretch in the first half, and maybe a five minute stretch in the second half. Other than that, we were just out there playing the game in my opinion.”
(On thoughts coming into the game…)
“Coming in, we talked about respecting your opponent. We came in here last time, they were short-handed and they beat us, and tonight’s the same thing. You put them on the guys’ minds, and it’s up to them to go out and perform. We didn’t perform at all defensively, and offensively we scored, but I didn’t like the way we played offensively either.”
(On the team’s slow start…)
“I thought we didn’t come out and start well. I thought we allowed them to get an offensive rhythm. We gave up way too many points for a defensive team like us, the cavalry that we are. Once you let a team get into a rhythm, they’re NBA guys just like we are. They came out, they can make plays, make shots. I thought we allowed them to dictate the whole pace of the game tonight.”
(On the loss…)
“In this league, sometimes you struggle with playing in the moment. Sometimes you struggle with playing to the competition that you’re playing against. Obviously, the moment with us that we’re in is being eliminated from the playoffs. Guys struggle with the ‘we’re playing for nothing’ type of cause. Then you’re playing against a team who’s struggled all season. But, you got to tip your hat to them. They came out, regardless what their record was, they played their same basketball to get them a win tonight.”
(On Brandon Knight and Ramon Sessions…)
“I thought both guys really played well. I thought Brandon made some really big shots for us in that second half, and Ramon does what he does as far as penetration, drawing fouls and getting to the basket. Both guys I thought really set the tone for us.”
(On the defense…)
“Coming in at halftime both teams were in the 60s as far as scoring. It was really turning into a non-defensive game, and I just wanted to remind our guys at halftime that we weren’t playing these final games to just make it an offensive game. We had to put together a string of stops. I thought we played with a little bit more urgency, particularly on the defensive end in the second half, and it enabled us to get out and get some easy baskets. It looked like at the start that it was turning into a really high-scoring game, and I just felt whichever team from a defensive standpoint would make some sort of a stand, they’d have a pretty good chance of winning the game.”
(On Cleveland’s transition game…)
“They did a really good job, make or miss, getting the ball out quick. We were scoring baskets, yet we couldn’t get back and get matched. That was a little troublesome. They’ve got big guys that are really athletic on the floor. [Tristan] Thompson and [Tyler] Zeller really do a good job of running the floor. [Anderson] Varejao gets up and down as well.”
(On his performance…)
“Just staying ready, and knowing when your number is called, you’ve got to be ready. That’s what coach always tells me: ‘When I put you in there, you go out there and bring energy, you play defense, you run the floor.’ Now, with me being here, that’s my role on this team, to go out there and bring energy. That’s what I try to do. My teammates always do a good job of helping me out on the floor, making sure I’m in the right spot, finding me in transition. I give a lot of credit to those guys.”
(On his chemistry with John Henson…)
“Just kind of talking on the bench and talking during practices and shootarounds, and knowing once I get the ball where he’s going to be. If I’m flashing high, knowing where he wants the ball. It was really helpful for us to talk a little bit before the game on the side because when we got out there we were able to click and get everything on the right page.”
(On the win…)
“A win’s a win, man. At this point it’s good just to get wins. For me personally, I love when we win. It’s kind of a weight off your shoulders a little bit and it lets you know that you’re progressing the right way. That’s all that you can ask for.”
(On coming back from a 14-point deficit…)
“We just fought back, and that’s all you can do with a young team like this, is fight back. I think we held our composure and finally finished out a game.”
(On providing a spark off the bench…)
“Yeah, just kind of had a good game. They got the ball to me early on in the game, [I] hit some shots, and it just kind of opened up for me and I got a good rhythm going.”
CAVALIERS NOTES:
- Cleveland held Milwaukee to 78 points on 30-74 (.405) shooting from the field, including 7-24 (.292) from the three-point line. The 78 points are a season-low by a Cavaliers opponent this season.
- The Cavaliers outrebounded the Bucks 52-34, including 21-8 on the offensive glass leading to 19-10 second chance points advantage. The 21 offensive rebounds are a season-high. In 12 January games, Cleveland is averaging 14.3 offensive rebounds and 15.3 second chance points. On the season, the Cavs are averaging 12.5 offensive rebounds per game.
- The Cavs have outrebounded its 12 opponents in 2014 by an average margin of 6.7 rebounds per game (47.2 to 40.5). Cleveland has held at least a +10 advantage on the glass in 6 of 12 games this month.
- Cleveland scored 40 points off the bench tonight. The Cavs have outscored the opponent’s bench in 32 of 43 contests and have scored at least 40 points 19 times.
- Anderson Varejao tallied 16 points on 8-11 (.727) shooting, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block in 26 minutes. Varejao is averaging a double-double over the past 14 contests (since Dec. 29) with 11.3 points on .508 (67-132) shooting, 13.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.4 steals in 32.7 minutes per game.
- Tristan Thompson recorded his 21st double-double of the season (2nd-most in East) with 14 points on 6-12 (.500) shooting and 10 rebounds (five offensive) in 24 minutes. He has posted a double-double in 10 of the last 14 games (since Dec. 29), including double-doubles in eight of the last 10 contests (since Jan. 5). Thompson is averaging a double-double over his last 27 contests (since Nov. 30) with 13.2 points and 10.1 rebounds in 33.7 minutes per game.
- Kyrie Irving posted his fifth double-double of the season (10th career) with 10 points, three rebounds, a game-high ten assists and zero turnovers in 28 minutes. Irving dished out seven assists in the third quarter which ties his career high for assists in a single quarter (4/17/13 at CHA, 2nd Q). Tonight was the second time this season that Irving had at least 10 assists and zero turnovers in a game (vs. POR 12/17/13).
- Dion Waiters finished with 13 points, a career-high tying eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in 28 minutes off the bench. Waiters is averaging 14.7 points in 29.3 minutes per game as a reserve this season and has scored in double figures in 22 of 29 appearances as a substitute.