12-10-16 vs. Hornets

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Wrap-Up -- For much of the young season, LeBron James – who leads the Cavaliers with a career-best 9.1 assists per contest – has been content to facilitate the offense while still scoring the basketball when the game dictated.

But on Saturday night, James illustrated why he’s one of the rarest athletes to ever play the sport.

After passing Elvin Hayes to move into the 9th spot on the league’s all-time scoring list on Friday night, LeBron became the first frontcourt player to top the 7,000-assist mark on Saturday – and did so as only the King can: going off for a season-high 44 points, adding 10 assists, nine boards, three steals and a block, willing the Wine and Gold past a stubborn Hornets squad, 116-105, on Saturday night at The Q.

And as the closing seconds wound down on the Cavs fourth consecutive win, Cleveland’s four-time MVP casually spun the ball on his finger at halfcourt until the final buzzer sounded.

The Cavaliers thumped Miami on Friday night – winning their second straight outing by at least 30 points. And when the Cavaliers shot 68 percent in the first half and took a 15-point edge at halftime, it looked like Saturday’s contest would be more of the same.

But the Hornets chipped away at Cleveland’s second-half edge and got to within three by the midway point of the third quarter. But the Cavs increased their lead to 11 to end the third and in the fourth, it was all LeBron – who finished with 17 of his 44 in the fourth, going 6-of-9 in the quarter and 17-for-24 overall on the night. His five three pointers were also a season-high.

Kevin Love followed up with 22 points – his fourth straight topping the 20-point plateau – going 7-for-12 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the stripe to go with six boards and three steals.

Iman Shumpert continued his career season, one that’s seen him hit career highs from the floor, from three-point range and at the stripe – finishing with 16 points off the bench, going 5-of-8 from the floor, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. In 32 action-packed minutes, Shump added five boards, two assists and a steal – posting a game-high +22 in the win.

Tristan Thompson grabbed double-digit boards for the third time in his last four outings – doubling up for the sixth time this season with 13 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting to go with a game-high 12 rebounds.

The Wine and Gold shoot 58% from the floor to grab their fourth straight victory.

Kyrie Irving rounded out the Cavaliers in double-figures, but had his streak of topping the 20-point mark snapped at a career-best 12 games – finishing with 11 points on 4-for-13 shooting.

One game removed from shooting 55 percent from the floor against New York, the Cavaliers hit a new high-water mark on Saturday night, shooting a season-best 58 percent, canning 13 more three-pointers and topping the 110-point mark for the 11th time this season – and improving to 11-0 when they do so.

Turning Point -- It didn’t take Steve Clifford’s squad long to cut into Cleveland’s halftime lead, jumping out to a 14-3 run to start the second stanza.

The Cavaliers went on a mini-run of their own to extend their lead back to 11 – 83-72 – on LeBron’s triple late in the third. But once again, the Hornets went on a roll to cut it to four – 84-80 – with just under two minutes to play in the period.

But Cleveland would proceed to close the quarter on an 8-1 run – set up by free throw makes by Iman Shumpert and Tristan Thompson and capped by Kyrie Irving’s three-pointer with 16 seconds remaining, setting the stage for LeBron’s dominant fourth period.

By the Numbers – .961 … LeBron James’ winning percentage against Charlotte over his past 26 head-to-head matchups, improving to 25-1 over that span with Saturday night’s victory.

Quotable – Kyrie Irving, on LeBron James’ three-point shooting in Saturday’s win …

”I like when he shoots them. I love them. Regardless of if they go in or not, I still love when he’s like that. But on nights like this it just makes him a lot harder to guard. I’m always amazed to see some teams decide they’ve got to live with something and they start going under his screens. I think that when he’s knocking those things down, he’s impossible to guard.”.”

Up Next -- After pulling away from the Hornets to earn their fourth straight win, the Cavaliers get ready for a home-and-home back to back against Marc Gasol and the Grizzlies (who knocked off Golden State on Saturday night) – facing them at home on Tuesday night before a trip to the Grindhouse on Wednesday. After a couple days off, the Wine and Gold welcome Luke Walton’s new-look Lakers to The Q for a Saturday night affair.

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After Friday night's victory against the Heat, the Cavaliers return to Quicken Loans Arena on Saturday night for a matchup against the Charlotte Hornets. Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m. (ET).

This season, the Cavaliers are 10-2 at Quicken Loans Arena where they are averaging 115.2 points, which includes five contests with 120 points or more.

Everything You Need to Know
        From where to catch all the action to Saturday's game notes, Cavs.com has you covered.

Get into the conversation with other die-hards.

Since March 25, 2014, Cleveland holds a 64-5 record when scoring at least 100 points at The Q. They have also won 36 straight home games when shooting at least .500 from the field.

Both those records were improved on Friday night as the Cavs routed the Heat, 114-84, to extend their winning streak to three games.

As has been the case all year, the Big Three were almost unstoppable, combining for 78 points before Coach Lue pulled his power troika midway through the fourth quarter with a matchup against a tough Hornets team on deck.

The Wine and Gold were excellent both offensively and defensively in Friday’s one-sided win. They shot a season-high 55 percent from the floor while holding Miami to 34 percent shooting – restricting them to 15 points in the fourth quarter on 4-for-24 shooting.

Cleveland hopes to have the same production at both ends of the floor on Saturday as they host a Charlotte squad who is also playing their second game in as many nights.

The Hornets smashed the Orlando Magic on Friday, 109-88, allowing the starters to rest their fourth quarter before beginning a five-game road swing.

Like the Cavs, the Hornets have won their last three games. The winning streak moves Charlotte to five games over .500 (14-9) for the first time since starting the season 6-1.

Swingman, Nicolas Batum, has been rock solid during their win streak, averaging 14.7 points, 13 rebounds and 5.6 assists while the Hornets unquestionable leader and floor general, Kemba Walker is off to an All-Star-like start to his season, leading the team in points (23.6 ppg) and assists (5.0 apg).

Radio: WTAM 1100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 La Mega

Programming Note: On December 10, 2016, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Islanders game (7:00 p.m.) and the Cavs – Hornets game (7:30 p.m.). To view TV listings, CLICK HERE.

For live in-game updates, follow @cavs, @CavsJoeG, @CavsFredMcLeod, @MrCavalier34, @CavsJMike and @chones22 on Twitter.

Status Update: (Cavs) - Mo Williams, (NWT), J.R. Smith, (Left Knee Hyperextension, TBD)

Status Update: (Hornets) - None to Report

The Cavs have won seven of the last eight meetings with Charlotte, which includes a 100-93 victory on November 13th at The Q.

Cleveland also has an all-time home record of 40-10 against Charlotte and is 22-4 against them at The Q since 2000-01.

Saturday's matchup will be the second of four meetings between the Conference foes this season (at CHA 12/31 &amp; 3/24).

Hardwood Classics Night presented by Elk &amp; Elk: The Cavs will host a series of Hardwood Classics (HWC) Nights presented by Elk &amp; Elk at Quicken Loans Arena throughout the 2016-17 season, turning the clock back to the years 1983-1987.

Each HWC Night will transport fans at The Q to the mid-80’s when the Cavaliers played at the Richfield Coliseum, World B. Free led a ‘comeback season’ and a new look team took shape in ‘86 with Mark Price, Brad Daugherty, Ron Harper and Hot Rod Williams coming together in Cleveland. MORE DETAILS

Following tonight's matchup, it’s a mid-week home-and-home back-to-back against the Memphis Grizzlies – with David Fizdale’s squad making their lone visit on Tuesday night and the Cavaliers traveling to the Grindhouse for a Wednesday night affair. GET TICKETS | VIEW FULL SCHEDULE

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#CavsHornets Game Preview - December 10, 2016

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On December 10, 2016, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Islanders game (7:00 p.m.) and the Cavs – Hornets game (7:30 p.m.). Please refer to these programming details, available online HERE.

Cavs vs. Hornets
Cavaliers Live Pregame Show begins at 7:00 p.m. | Tipoff at 7:30 p.m.

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#CavsHornets Programming Note - December 10, 2016

Presented by:

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