3-4-17 at Heat

clejgabriele

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Wrap-Up -- The Cavaliers started Saturday night’s matchup in Miami hitting 10 of their first 12 shots.

Unfortunately, that’s about as good as it would get for the Wine and Gold in a game they essentially sacrificed to the basketball gods – playing without four of their regular five starters and falling, 120-92, to wrap up a three-game road trip on South Beach.

One night after setting an NBA regular season record with 25 three-pointers, the Cavaliers saw the Heat can 18 of the 34 triples they attempted on Saturday night as Cleveland dropped its 12th straight game at AmericanAirlines Arena.

The Cavaliers also had the services of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving when they canned those 25 bombs against Atlanta. But on Saturday night, the All-Star duo – who combined for 81 points in Friday’s victory over the Hawks – both got the night off.

Channing Frye led six Cavaliers in double-figures – scoring all 21 of his points after intermission, going 9-of-12 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from long-range to go with four boards, a pair of steals and a block.

Kyle Korver, getting his first start in a Cavaliers uniform, followed up with 15 points – going 5-of-9 from beyond the arc, 5-of-12 overall.

Richard Jefferson notched double-figures for the fourth time in his last six outings, chipping in with 11 points off the bench.

Deron Williams also got the start in just his third game with Cleveland, finishing with 10 points and a team-high seven assists. Tristan Thompson and Derrick Williams – who signed with the Cavs for the rest of the season earlier in the day – each finished with 10 points and six boards.

DeAndre Liggins led the Cavaliers with eight boards off the bench against his former team.

Goran Dragic led both teams with 23 points and Hassan Whiteside doubled-up with 20 points and a game-high 13 boards as the Heat won for the 18th time in their last 22 games.

Six Cavs score in double-figures but it isn't enough in South Beach.

Miami dominated Cleveland on the boards, 48-33, and forced 16 turnovers that led to 28 points. The shorthanded Cavaliers – who finished with just four second chance points and two on the fast break – scored 16 points in the second quarter and 17 in the fourth.

Turning Point -- Even without their two top scorers, the Cavaliers came out hot on Saturday night and shot 68 percent from the floor in the first period, knotting the suddenly-hot Heat at 35-apiece after one.

They stuck with Miami well into the second quarter, cutting the Heat’s lead to just three – 49-46 – on Richard Jefferson’s dunk midway through the period. But Luke Babbitt and Goran Dragic warmed up just before intermission and keyed an 18-5 run that gave the Heat a 16-point edge heading into the locker room.

The Heat would go on to lead by as many as 28 in the third quarter and 31 in the fourth.

By the Numbers – .605 … Richard Jefferson’s field goal percentage over his past six games – shooting .474 from long-range and .900 from the stripe while averaging 10.7 points per.

Quotable – Channing Frye, on his second half performance on Saturday night …

”It doesn’t really matter, to be honest with you.  We were down by 20.  The guys just told me to go out there and be aggressive and just go out there and play, so I tried to do that.”

Up Next -- The Cavaliers return home for one – facing off against the same Miami Heat on Monday night at The Q – before heading back on the road for three more: taking on the Pistons in Detroit on Thursday night, facing the Magic two nights later in Orlando and wrapping up with a heavyweight matchup in Houston against James Harden and the Rockets next Sunday night.

shorthanded-cavaliers-fall-in-miami-2

Shorthanded Cavaliers Fall in Miami

clenadams

cavsheat-game-photos-march-4-2017

#CavsHeat Game Photos - March 4, 2017

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After their record-setting performance on Friday night in Atlanta, the Cavaliers wrap up their mini-road trip on Saturday – taking on the hot Heat in the second half of a weekend back-to-back.

In Friday’s 135-130 shootout at Philips Arena, the Wine and Gold set an NBA regular season record – drilling 25 triples, the final one by Kyle Korver that essentially sealed the win for Cleveland. In the victory, the Cavaliers went 25-for-46 from deep and featured six players who each hit at least three threes.

Despite dropping two of their last three – including a 110-99 loss on Friday night in Orlando – the Heat still come into tonight’s contest having won 17 of their last 21 games.

Miami, which now trails Detroit by just 1.5 games for the final playoff spot in the East, dropped its only matchup against the Cavaliers this season – with the Wine and Gold thumping the Heat by 30 points in early December at The Q as Cleveland’s Big Three combined for 78 points.

These two teams square off again on Monday night in Cleveland with the final matchup slated for April 10 on South Beach.

After notching 13 points in the opening period on Friday, it was obvious that Uncle Drew was on his way to one of those nights. When the smoke cleared, Kyrie had posted his second 40-point game of the season – going off for 43 points on 14-for-21 shooting, including 5-of-8 from long-range.

The four-time All-Star, who was perfect in 10 attempts from the stripe – including six straight to ice the victory in the final minute – led both teams with nine assists and had four of Cleveland’s seven steals. And as good as Irving has been over the last month – topping the 20-point mark in 11 straight games including Friday night’s – he’s been even better over the last week, averaging 32.5 points, 6.5 assists and 4.3 steals over his last four outings.

His opposite number on Saturday night – Goran Dragic – comes in as the Heat’s leading scorer and has tallied double-figures in 51 of the 54 games he’s played this season.

The nine-year veteran struggled in last night’s loss in Orlando – going just 3-for-15 from the floor – and the Cavaliers held him in check during their first meeting, but Dragic has had some big nights against Cleveland in the past.

With Dwyane Wade now in Chicago, the meeting between Cleveland and Miami has lost some of its luster. But lately, it doesn’t seem to matter who’s on the other bench when the four-time MVP and reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Month takes the floor.

LeBron’s recent reign of terror continued on Friday night in Atlanta – with James exploding for 38 points, going 14-for-27 from the floor, including 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, leading both squads with 13 boards to go with eight assists.

Friday marked LeBron’s fourth straight game grabbing double-digit boards and ninth time this season he’s canned at least four triples in a game. And for a player who prides himself on efficiency, James is shooting .605 from the floor since the start of February, including a .566 mark from long-range over that span.

Since returning to Cleveland, the 13-time All-Star has averaged 25.6 points per in seven meetings against his former squad, including a 28-point, 8-rebound, 8-assist effort in the Cavs’ 30-point win earlier this season.

The Heat will try to slow down the King with a combination of Luke Babbitt and rookie Rodney McGruder on Saturday night on South Beach.

Miami has one of the best two-way bigs in the Eastern Conference in Hassan Whiteside – the league’s current rebounding leader at 14.2 boards per contest.

Whiteside – who also leads the NBA in defensive rebounding (10.6 per), is fourth among shot-blockers (2.05) and sixth in double-doubles (40) – has grabbed double-digit rebounds in 52 games this season and has blocked at least three shots in 16 more.

Whiteside’s had some success against the Wine and Gold – including a two-game stretch last year in which he combined for 11 blocks – but was kept completely under wraps in the lone matchup this season – finishing with just eight points on 4-for-10 shooting, grabbing a dozen boards in the lopsided loss.

On Saturday night, he’ll face off against Tristan Thompson – who’ll try to shake out of a recent funk. After doubling-up in six of his previous seven games, Thompson hasn’t scored in double-figures in any of his last four outings and has grabbed double-digit boards just once over that span.

That could be a tall order against a Heat team that traditionally gives Tristan trouble – holding him to just 3.3 points and 5.3 boards over his last three meetings against Miami.

The last time these two squads faced off, the Cavaliers leading scorer was Kevin Love – who went off for 28 points and 15 boards. Miami’s leading scorer in that early December loss was Derrick Williams, who came off the bench to finish with 17 points.

It’s only fitting that on the day of their rematch that Williams would ink a deal to remain with the Cavaliers for the rest of the season after an outstanding audition off a pair of 10-day contracts. Williams, the former No. 2 overall pick in the 2011 Draft, was released by Miami on February 6 before signing on with Cleveland.

And all he’s done since his arrival is average 10.3 points and 3.1 boards while shooting 56 percent from the floor in nine games off the bench. He was once against the model of efficiency on Friday night in Atlanta – finishing with nine points, going 3-for-5 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc.

The Heat’s third- and fourth-ranked scorers – Tyler Johnson and James Johnson – both do their work off Eric Spoelstra’s bench, with former Cavalier Wayne Ellington giving them three reserves that each average double-figure scoring.

keybank-five-keys-cavaliers-at-heat

KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers at Heat

clejsykes

The Cavaliers will wrap up their three-game road trip tonight when they face off against the Miami Heat for the second time this season. Tipoff from AmericanAirlines Arena is at 8:00 p.m. (ET).

With last night's 135-130 victory over the Hawks in Atlanta, the Cavs have won ten of their last 13 and own the best record in the Eastern Conference at 42-18.

CAVS TO DON GOLD JERSEYS.
        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.

In Friday's night's victory, Cleveland set an NBA regular season record for three-pointers made in a single game, going 25-of-46 from beyond the arc. The performance marked the fourth time in team history the Cavs have connected on at least 20 three-pointers in a regular season game, all coming this season. Furthermore, six Cavs players made at least three triples, which had never happened in NBA history. Cleveland also holds the all-time playoff record for threes in a game (also 25 vs. ATL on 5/4/16). (Elias Sports Bureau)

Coming into tonight’s contest, Cleveland has connected on at least 10 three-pointers in 14 straight games. The franchise record for consecutive games with double-digit three-pointers is 16 (twice, 10/25/16-11/29/16 and 3/9/16-4/5/16). On the season, the Cavs currently rank 2nd in the NBA in three-pointers made per game (13.3) and three-point percentage (.392). Cleveland’s 796 three-pointers this season are already the third-most in franchise history, trailing the 2014-15 (826) and 2015-16 (880) seasons.

The Wine and Gold have connected on at least 10 three-pointers in 14 straight games. On the season, the Cavs currently rank 2nd in the NBA in three-pointers made per game (13.3) and three-point percentage (.392).

Cleveland was able to take advantage of open looks on the perimeter due to great ball movement, tallying 31 assists as a team against the Hawks. The Wine and Gold are now 21-1 when shooting at least .500 from the field and 9-1 when recording 30 or more assists.

The Cavs will look to keep their hot shooting going against a Miami Heat team they beat by 30 points in their only other meeting this season.

Like the Cavaliers, Miami is on the second end of a back-to-back as the Heat fell to the Magic in Orlando, 110-99.

Despite the loss, the Heat have been playing their best basketball as of late, winning 17 of their last 21 games to stay in the hunt in the Eastern Conference standings with a 28-34 record.

Miami is led by their floor general, Goran Dragić, who enters Saturday's play leading the Heat in scoring (20.1) and assists (6.0) per game.

Radio: WTAM 1100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 La Mega

Programming Note: On Saturday, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Senators game (7:00 p.m.) and the Cavs – Heat game (8:00 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) - J.R. Smith, (Right Thumb Fracture, Out), Kevin Love, (Left Knee Arthroscopy, Out)

Status Update: (Heat) - Chris Bosh, (Out), Justise Winslow, (Right Shoulder Surgery, Out), Josh McRoberts, (Left Foot Stress Fracture, Out)

As mentioned, the Cavaliers defeated the Heat by 30 points (114-84) at The Q in the first meeting on December 9th, giving the Heat their largest defeat of the season.

Defensively, Cleveland blocked nine shots and limited Miami to .342 (31-89) shooting from the field, including .222 (6-27) from three-point range.

On the offensive end, the Cavs shot .554 (46-83) from the field and had 23 assists.

The two teams will meet again on Monday night at The Q and wrap up their four-game season series on April 10 at AmericanAirlines Arena.

After Saturday's contest, Cleveland stops home quickly for a Monday night meeting with the Heat at The Q before embarking on another three-game junket – traveling to Detroit next Thursday night, followed by Orlando on Saturday and Houston the following night.VIEW FULL SCHEDULE | VIEW FULL SCHEDULE

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#CavsHeat Game Preview - March 4, 2017

On March 4, 2017, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Senators game (7:00 p.m.) and the Cavs – Heat game (8:00 p.m.). Please refer to these programming details, available online HERE.

Cavaliers Live Pregame Show begins at 7:30 p.m. | Tipoff at 8:00 p.m.

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#CavsHeat Programming Note - March 4, 2017

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3‑4‑17 at Heat

Shorthanded Cavaliers Fall in Miami

#CavsHeat Game Photos - March 4, 2017

KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers at Heat

#CavsHeat Game Preview - March 4, 2017

#CavsHeat Programming Note - March 4, 2017