3-16-17 vs. Jazz

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Wrap-Up -- It’s not always pretty against the Utah Jazz. But by the same token, a home win at this time of year with Kevin Love returning to the lineup could almost be considered a thing of beauty.

The Cavaliers don’t play at home much this month – but they made hay while the sun was shining this week – sweeping their mini two-game homestand with Thursday night’s hard-fought 91-83 win, Cleveland’s fifth straight win over the Jazz at The Q.

Love – who last saw action on February 11 against Denver – had been ahead of schedule throughout his rehab stint following arthroscopic knee surgery and, although he was expected to play this weekend, was able to give it a go against Utah – finishing with 10 points and nine boards in just under 20 minutes of action.

Aside from Love’s comeback, as the great Joe Tait used to say: ‘They won’t be sending tape of this one to Springfield.’

Both teams shot just 42 percent from the floor. The Jazz shot 24 percent from long-range and the Cavaliers were only slightly better – going 9-for-33 from beyond the arc. Both teams committed double-digit miscues and the ugliness even extended to the free throw line, where the Cavaliers were 10-of-19; Utah, 10-of-14.

Of course, even the staunch Jazz defense had no answer for LeBron James – who continues his late season barrage.

For the fourth time in his last seven outings, LeBron topped the 30-point plateau – finishing with 33 points on 13-for-20 shooting, including 2-of-5 from long range. James had his triple-double streak snapped at two games, but he continued to dominate the boards – posting double-digit rebounds for the ninth time in his last ten outings – leading Cleveland with 10 rebounds to go with six assists, a pair of steals and a block.

Kyrie Irving also kept rolling – posting his 17th straight game of at least 20 points – adding 21 points on 8-for-19 shooting, adding four boards and four assists before leaving the game in the fourth quarter after suffering some tightness in his left knee.

The only other Cavalier to tally double-figures on Thursday was J.R. Smith, who notched his second game of 12 points off the bench – and after starting his comeback going 4-for-19 from long-range through the first three games, has combined to go 7-for-12 over his last two.

LBJ stuffs the stat sheet as the Wine and Gold grind out the victory at The Q.

The Jazz were led by Rudy Gobert, who doubled-up with 20 points and a game-high 19 boards – blocking a pair of shots to make it 37 straight games with at least one swat.

Gobert was 10-of-13 from the floor on Thursday night; the rest of Utah’s starters were a combined 17-for-48.

Turning Point -- The Jazz don’t get blown out very often and despite playing the previous evening in Motown, were locked and loaded for the Cavs on Thursday.

At first, it looked like the Wine and Gold might be able to pull away – running out to a two-touchdown lead early in the second quarter. But Cleveland went cold to close the first half, with Utah ending the opening stanza on a 10-2 run to go into the locker room just a deuce.

The Cavaliers held their edge after intermission, but Trey Lyles drilled a triple less than a minute into the fourth quarter to give Utah its first lead of the night. Three minutes later, Gobert’s layup put the Jazz up three, 77-74, with 8:30 to play.

But on Cleveland’s next possession, J.R. Smith tied the affair with a three-pointer. LeBron would proceed to score the next seven points – on a pair of free throws, a dunk and three-pointer – giving the Wine and Gold a seven-point edge and just enough room to begin icing the victory.

By the Numbers – 12-3 … Cavaliers’ home record against the Western Conference at The Q this season, wrapping up the inter-Conference home portion of their schedule on Thursday night. The Cavs have now won 32 of their last 38 games against the West on the corner of Huron and Ontario.

Quotable – Kevin Love, on his return to the lineup …

”(I’m) happy to be back, especially to get one in front of our home crowd before we go on a four-game road trip. So it was good…It was either going to be this weekend or tonight, I think once I saw how I was progressing and didn’t have any hiccups along the way, that tonight just felt right and we decided it was in front of our home crowd (that I would come back). It felt good.”

Up Next -- After their two-game stopover at The Q, the Wine and Gold get right back on the road – where they’ll play six of their final eight games this month. This weekend, they travel to Tinseltown for their annual Staples Center back-to-back, facing off against Doc Rivers’ Clippers on Saturday before taking on Luke Walton’s Lakers the following night. After a two-day break, Cleveland heads for the Rockies – facing off against the Nuggets in Denver next Wednesday. Tyronn Lue’s squad wraps up the roadie next Friday night in Charlotte.

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Cavs Outlast Jazz in Love's Return

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Breaking Down The 'W' - March 16, 2017

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#CavsJazz Game Photos - March 16, 2017

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As the Cavaliers continue to get healthy for the season’s final home stretch, they play their last home game at The Q before finishing the month with six of their final eight games on the road – welcoming the surging Jazz to town.

For the Wine and Gold, who’ve won four straight over Utah in Cleveland, it wraps up the Western Conference home schedule for the season, with the Cavaliers going 11-3 at The Q against the West so far this season, taking 31 of the last 37 overall.

Tyronn Lue’s squad got exactly what the doctor ordered on Tuesday night, with the Cavaliers destroying the Pistons essentially from the opening tap – throttling Detroit by 32 after finishing a three-game roadie at 1-2.

Cleveland gets right back on the road for four games – beginning this weekend in L.A. – so every home contest from here on out is meaningful. Quin Snyder’s Jazz – who’ve won six of their last seven – are coming off a win over those same Pistons on Wednesday night in Motown.

In the first meeting this season, Utah kept LeBron winless in Salt Lake City since his return to Cleveland – handing the Cavs a 100-92 loss back in January

As the MVP race begins to heat up in earnest, LeBron James continues his major push for No. 5 – putting him in the ultra-rarified air of Bill Russell, Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (who won six).

As great as the King’s been all season, as he usually does, he’s hit the accelerator since the calendar turned to February – and he’s gone into overdrive in March. In Tuesday’s win over Detroit, LeBron notched his 10th triple-double of the season – the fifth in his last nine appearances and 52nd of his career – and he did it in just three quarters of work.

Over that nine-game stretch, the 13-time All-Star has averaged 26.3 points on 55 percent shooting, adding 12.2 rebounds and 9.4 assists. He’s grabbed double-digit boards in eight of those nine games.

On Thursday night, LeBron will square off against a fellow All-Star – Utah’s leading scorer, Gordon Hayward. The seventh-year star from Butler is coming off a 25-point, nine-rebound, six-assist performance last night against the Pistons.

When he tops the 20-point mark, the Jazz are 33-9 – and that includes his 28-point effort against Cleveland on January 10 in Salt Lake City when he went 10-of-12 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from long-distance in Utah’s eight-point win.

Quietly and without much fanfare, the Jazz have built one of the best young squads in the league out West, drafting wisely and building around Quin Snyder’s defensive philosophy.

A perfect example of both is their prized big man, Rudy Gobert.

Taken with the 27th overall pick in 2013, Gobert has improved in each of his four seasons, currently averaging 13.1 points and 12.7 boards – ranking fourth in the NBA with 46 double-doubles so far this season. The French-born center leads the league with at least one block in 63 games this season, including one in each of Utah’s past 35 contests.

He was a thorn in Cleveland’s side in their meeting back in January – doubling-up with 11 points and 14 boards, going 5-of-7 from the floor to go with three steals and a block.

On Thursday night, he’ll lock horns with Tristan Thompson – who’s been showing some signs of fatigue over the past couple weeks.

Coach Lue won’t impede Tristan’s consecutive games played streak, but he did mention scaling back his big man’s minutes down the stretch. Since doubling-up in four straight games straddling the All-Star Break, Thompson has done so only once – a 14-point, 13-rebound effort last Saturday night in Orlando.

While Kevin Love and Kyle Korver continue to get healthy, the scoring burden has fallen primarily on the shoulders of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. Cleveland’s All-Star duo has been up to the task – and Irving’s been otherworldly since early February.

After a 14-point, 14-assist night in a February 1 win over Minnesota, Irving has tallied at least 20 points in a career-high 16 straight games – averaging 27.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists over that stretch. The only other player in franchise history to post a longer stretch than Kyrie’s current run is LeBron – who did so in 49 straight contests back in 2007-08.

In 2014, Kyrie posted the only triple-double of his career against Utah and he dropped 34 on the Jazz in the next matchup. But he’s had his hands full in the previous two meetings, averaging 17.5 points per but shooting just 29 percent from the floor, including 17 percent from long-range.

He’ll be up against nine-year veteran, George Hill, who’s having one of his best seasons as a pro this year with Utah – averaging a career-best 17.7 ppg. Hasn’t posted nearly the amount of 20-point performances that his counterpart has – doing so only 15 times. On the positive side, Utah is 14-1 when he does.

Cleveland’s bench was excellent in Tuesday night’s win over Detroit – featuring three of the seven Cavaliers in double-figures.

In the lopsided victory, Deron Williams had his best scoring game as a Cavalier, finishing with 13 points – canning all six shots he attempted from the floor. Derrick Williams also netted 13 points – his seventh double-digit scoring effort in 15 games with the Wine and Gold – going 3-of-5 from long-range in 21 minutes of work. And J.R. Smith had the best outing since returning from injury one week ago in Detroit – finishing with 12 points, hitting three of his four three-point attempts, adding five boards and a steal.

Cleveland’s second unit should get a big boost on the upcoming road trip as well. Richard Jefferson – who’s notched 16 points in back-to-back contests – will rejoin the reserves as will Kyle Korver, who’s been out since March 6 with a sore foot.

Joe Johnson has had a solid season coming off the bench for the Jazz, although he’s started three of their last four games. In Utah’s Thursday night win over Detroit, it was Joe Ingles who did most of the damage off the bench – finishing with 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting from long-range.

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KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers vs. Jazz

After a 128-96 victory over Detroit on Tuesday, the Cavaliers continue their home stand on Thursday night against the Utah Jazz. Tipoff from Quicken Loans Arena is at 7:00 p.m. (ET).

The Cavaliers improved to 27-7 at home (3rd-best in NBA) after Tuesday’s 32-point win over Detroit. Cleveland still sits atop the Eastern Conference with a 44-22 (.667) record, including a 30-11 (.732) mark against East opponents.

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The Jazz will be last Western Conference opponent that will visit The Q this regular season. The Cavs have won 31 of their last 37 home games against the West, which include an 11-3 mark at The Q in 2016-17.

Cleveland will aim to keep their dominance over the West going as they welcome an up-and-coming Utah Jazz squad into the North Coast.

The Northwest Division leading Jazz enter Thursday's showdown as the fourth seed in the West with a 43-25 record.

A big reason for Utah's success this season is due to the play of their star swingman, Gordon Hayward. The 6th year pro out of Butler is averaging 22.1 points and 5.1 assists. Utah is 33-9 when he scores 20-plus points and 7-3 when he scores 30-plus.

Radio: WTAM 1100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 La Mega

Programming Note: On Thursday, March 16, 2017, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Cavs – Jazz game (7:00 p.m.) and the Blue Jackets – Panthers game (7:00 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) - Kevin Love, (Left Knee Arthroscopy, Questionable), Kyle Korver, (Left Foot, Out)

The Cavaliers have won each of the last four home games against the Jazz, outscoring them by an average of 10.3 points (106.8-96.5) over that stretch.

Defensively, Cleveland has held Utah to a combined .423 shooting from the field, while also outrebounding them 46.3 to 37.0 in that span.

The matchup will be final meeting between the two teams this regular season.

Giveaway: Kyrie Irving Bobblehead Giveaway courtesy of Mountain Dew

Harvest for Hunger Food Drive: With one in six Northeast Ohioans struggling to put food on their table, the Cavaliers are once again joining the Greater Cleveland Food Bank for their annual “Harvest for Hunger” campaign. MORE DETAILS

This weekend, it’s the Wine and Gold's annual Staples Center back-to-back – facing the Clippers on Saturday night and the Lakers on Sunday. The following Wednesday, it’s a date with Mike Malone’s improved Nuggets in Denver before the roadie wraps up next Friday night in Charlotte. VIEW FULL SCHEDULE

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#CavsJazz Game Preview - March 16, 2017

On Thursday, March 16, 2017, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Cavs – Jazz game (7:00 p.m.) and the Blue Jackets – Panthers game (7:00 p.m.). Please refer to these programming details, available online HERE.

Cavaliers Live Pregame Show begins at 6:30 p.m. | Tipoff at 7:00 p.m.

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#CavsJazz Programming Note - March 16, 2017

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3‑16‑17 vs. Jazz