Cavaliers-Nets Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSON
Posted Nov 12 2012 6:18PM

Brooklyn's Deron Williams has long been considered one of the NBA's elite point guards. Second-year pro Kyrie Irving is quickly making his claim for the same status with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

When the two square off Tuesday night in Brooklyn, the Nets hope Williams' starting backcourt mate can start playing up to expectations, while the Cavaliers are looking for better bench scoring to take a load off Irving.

The Nets (3-2) have got in a habit of being lulled to sleep by lackluster opponents lately, and are hoping to end that trend against Cleveland (2-5).

Brooklyn blew a 22-point lead in last Monday's loss to Minnesota and let a 21-point advantage slip to five in the game's final two minutes of Sunday's 82-74 victory over Orlando. It wasn't exactly an uplifting win, as the Nets shot a season-low 37.2 percent.

"We're not happy about how we finished the game and how we almost gave up a 20-point lead again," Williams said. "I don't know if we got lackadaisical or what because we were up 20, but this is something that can't happen time after time."

Not helping matters is the continued shooting slump of new Net Joe Johnson. Acquired from Atlanta in the offseason, the six-time All-Star was supposed to combine with Williams to give Brooklyn one of the league's best backcourts. Williams is holding up his end of the bargain, averaging 16.0 points while shooting 45.9 percent, but Johnson is averaging 13.6 points - his lowest output since 2002-03 - and shooting a career-worst 36.2 percent.

Partially softening the blow for Brooklyn is the strong play from Brook Lopez. After missing all but five games last season due to injury, Lopez is averaging 16.4 points.

Irving's scoring average of 22.9 points ranks near the top of the league and rookie Dion Waiters is averaging 15.4, but Cleveland isn't get much production from its second unit.

The Cavaliers, losers of three in a row entering the last of a six-game road trip, are near the bottom of the league in bench scoring, averaging 26.6 points. Daniel Gibson has been Cleveland's only reliable scoring threat from the bench at 9.7 points per game.

Hampering the team's second unit is rookie Tyler Zeller's concussion and broken cheekbone, as he missed his third straight game in Sunday's 106-91 loss at Oklahoma City.

Coach Byron Scott has exhausted his options. He has 12 players on his roster that have played in at least three games and are averaging at least 10 minutes.

"We've just got to get somebody else on that second unit to step up. The opportunity's there," Scott said. "The opportunity's there. I'm just hoping one of these guys will just step up and take a chance and take hold of it.

"If not, we'll just keep trying to find different pieces to the puzzle."

The Cavs split their four-game series with the Nets last season, with Irving averaging 29.0 points in the final two games he played.

Williams, Johnson lead Nets over Cavaliers 114-101

By BRIAN MAHONEY
Posted Nov 14 2012 12:45AM

NEW YORK (AP) Brooklyn's Backcourt broke out.

Deron Williams had 26 points and 10 assists, Joe Johnson scored 25 points, and the Nets beat the road-weary Cleveland Cavaliers 114-101 on Tuesday night for their third straight victory.

Expected to be one of the league's best guard tandems, Williams and Johnson are still trying to find their way together in a new home on a rebuilt team. They know games such as this one are expected, and both said they can be delivered regularly.

"It's probably the best game that we've had together," Johnson said. "It's still early in the season, but yeah, I'm sure that's the vision everybody had, that's the vision I had and I'm sure this won't be the last (big) game. Like I say man, we're just figuring things out."

Brook Lopez added 23 points for the Nets, who opened a 20-point lead at home for the third straight game, but this time barely let up and beat the Cavaliers for the sixth time in eight meetings after losing nine in a row, mostly during the LeBron James era.

Anderson Varejao scored a career-high 35 points and grabbed 18 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were wrapping up a six-game, coast-to-coast trip and played much of the game with the urgency of a team that wanted to be home.

They haven't played there since Nov. 2, their second game of the season, and dropped the final four games of the trip to finish 1-5.

Williams and Johnson, perennial All-Stars who have been nicknamed "Brooklyn's Backcourt," put things together for the first time since the Nets acquired Johnson from Atlanta over the summer. Neither had a 20-point game before Tuesday, and Johnson had been shooting only 36.2 percent.

Williams shot 10 of 20, and Johnson was 9 of 16 while adding six assists and five rebounds.

"It definitely felt like we played better together today and like I said, we both got going today which was good, so hopefully we can continue to make improvements," Williams said. "Me and him have been talking a lot the last couple of days trying to get each other going and find out where, you know, our spots are on the court."

The Nets held Orlando below 20 points in a franchise-record seven straight quarters during a home-and-home sweep and were allowing 90.4 points per game, fourth-best in the NBA. But the offense had been spotty, particularly once they got ahead. They blew a 22-point lead last week in a loss to Minnesota and most of a 20-point advantage Sunday against the Magic.

This time, there was no letup, in part because they just ran by a Cleveland team that didn't have its legs. Brooklyn finished with a 23-8 advantage in fast-break points.

Kyrie Irving had 34 points and eight assists for Cleveland, which started its trip Nov. 3 in Milwaukee, went out to California for two stops, then hit Phoenix and Oklahoma City before wrapping up here. Cavaliers coach Byron Scott told his players Tuesday morning not to let their minds drift to thoughts about being back home, but their defense never showed up in Brooklyn.

"I don't want to talk about the defense. There was nothing there defensively," Scott said. "We've got to get more guys that are going to be competitive and passionate about the defensive end."

Cleveland led after one only because Varejao shot 7 of 8 for 17 points, his highest total in an NBA quarter, helping the Cavs to a 30-29 edge. But the Nets had already started blowing it open by the time he returned a little more than four minutes into the second.

He quickly scored upon re-entering, but the Nets responded with an 8-2 run to open a 48-34 lead. It was 64-42 by halftime. Brooklyn shot 62 percent in the second while holding Cleveland to 5 of 20 (25 percent) and outscoring the Cavs 35-12.

"They hit us in the mouth on both ends of the floor. We weren't executing. We got in a hole and it's hard to fight back against a good team such as Brooklyn," Irving said.

Rookie Dion Waiters missed his first eight shots, then threw up his arms as if to say "finally" when his 3-pointer popped out of the basket and then back in for his first field goal nearly midway through the third. Then it was Varejao's turn to look annoyed, tossing the ball off the backboard stanchion after Lopez beat the Cavs down the floor for a layup that made it 77-53 with 5:16 remaining in the third.

The Cavs finally made a dent late in the third, with Irving scoring 14 points in the period to trim it to 85-75. But he and Varejao started the fourth on the bench as Brooklyn quickly regained control. The Nets reopened a big cushion when Johnson hit two 3-pointers and three free throws in a nine-point flurry over 85 seconds midway through the period.

NOTES: Scott led the Nets to their greatest NBA success, trips to the NBA Finals in 2002 and `03 while compiling a 149-139 record from 2000-04. He remembered the move to Brooklyn being discussed when he was there, though delays and lawsuits held up plans to relocate sooner. ... Varejao's previous best quarter was 14 points in the second period against Orlando on Feb. 11, 2010, according to STATS LLC. ... Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia, a frequent spectator at Knicks games, sat courtside.

Notebook: Nets 114, Cavaliers 101

Jake Appleman, for NBA.com
Posted Tue Nov 13, 2012 11:24 PM - Updated Tue Nov 13, 2012 11:24 PM

THE FACTS: For the third straight home game, the Brooklyn Nets built a 20-point lead. For the second straight game, they didn't let it get away.

Boosted by superlative performances from Deron Williams (26 points, 10 assists) and the team's bench, the Nets beat the Cavaliers 114-101 at Barclays Center. Brook Lopez pitched in 23 points and Joe Johnson (25 points, six assists) caught fire late to seal the victory.

Struggling at the end of a six-game road trip, an unreal start from Anderson Varejao (a career-high 35 points, 18 rebounds) and point guard pyrotechnics from Kyrie Irving (34 points, eight assists) were not enough for the Cavaliers, although Irving and Varejao made their case as an in-style NBA JAM tandem.

QUOTABLE: "It's better to try and figure out how you can correct, when you're having 20-point leads than to be 20 points down." -- Nets coach Avery Johnson

THE STAT: The Nets had 23 fast-break points to just eight for the Cavaliers.

TURNING POINT: Varejao checked out with 1:23 remaining in the first quarter, allowing the Nets an easier time on offense and providing much needed relief for their over-matched interior defense. The Nets' second unit then reeled off a 24-6 run, staking the Nets to a 14-point lead.

QUOTABLE II: "I was just trying to be active and tried to be aggressive on offense." -- Varejao

QUOTABLE III: "He's got the ball on a string. When he's in the pick-and-roll situation, it's very tough for our big men to get out and show on him because he's so good at splitting, and he's quick." -- Williams, on Irving as a tough cover

INSIDE THE ARENA: Tuesday's encounter featured arguably the most entertaining basketball that Barclays Center has played host to yet. Williams made plenty of nifty plays matched up against Irving, whose imitation of a crafty water bug delighted ... CC Sabathia of the Yankees, former New York Giant Michael Strahan, baseball Hall-of-Famer Eddie Murray, hip hop industry figure Irv Gotti, and talk show host Jimmy Fallon attended the game.

ROOKIE WATCH: Dion Waiters (3-for-16) suffered through a horrible shooting night for the Cavs.

NOTABLE: Varejao scored 17 of the Cavs' first 28 first-quarter points on 7-for- shooting, to go along with seven rebounds. ... The Nets missed their first 13 3-pointers. ... The Cavaliers scored 64 points in the paint. Avery Johnson praised the energy and pick-and-roll defense of reserves Andray Blatche (13 points) and Reggie Evans (eight rebounds) after a significant chunk of that damage was done in the first quarter...

UP NEXT: For the Cavaliers, Saturday vs. Dallas, Sunday @ Philadelphia, Nov. 21 vs. Philadelphia. For the Nets, Thursday vs. Boston, Sunday @ Sacramento, Tuesday @ L.A. Lakers.

• Cavaliers: Harangody, Zeller
• Nets: Brooks, Wallace

• Cavaliers: --
• Nets: --

• Lead Changes: 3
• Times Tied: 11

• Arena: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #74 Curtis Blair, #35 Kane Fitzgerald
• Attendance: 17032
• Duration: 2:12