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Wrap-Up -- Fresh off two losses in Los Angeles and with a date against the league’s hottest squad set for Thursday, the Cavaliers almost needed to take Tuesday’s matchup in the Valley of the Sun.
They did exactly that, taking care of business in three quarters of efficient basketball – drubbing the Suns, 129-107, to even their mark on the longest roadie of the season at 2-2.
Still playing without Tristan Thompson, Kevin Love, Rodney Hood and Cedi Osman, the Cavaliers continued to tweak the lineup – with Coach Tyronn Lue moving Kyle Korver into the starting lineup in place of JR Smith. The move worked to perfection – with Korver netting 16 of his 22 points in the first half and Smith coming off the bench with 14 points of his own.
After going 4-for-5 from long-range in Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, Korver stayed hot against Phoenix – going 5-of-6 from long-range and 6-of-7 from the floor overall. Swish had a nice overall outing in 22 minutes off the bench – 2-of-4 from deep to go with five boards, a steal and a blocked shot.
LeBron James made as many trips to the line on Tuesday (15) as he had in the previous three games combined – canning 13 of those free throws en route to his career-best 14th triple-double of the season, finishing with 28 points, 13 boards and 11 assists, all game-highs. For good measure, the King added a team-high tying three steals and a pair of swats.
Jordan Clarkson, the league’s second-ranked bench scorer, did nothing to hurt his standing – exploding for 17 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter. On the night, the fourth-year man went 8-of-14 from the floor, 6-of-10 from deep.
Jeff Green made his second straight start and finished with 11 points, as did Ante Zizic off the bench.
Green went just 4-of-12 from the field, but was outstanding on the defensive end – tallying three steals and a game-high three blocks.
Zizic continued to be the model of efficiency on the offensive end – going 5-for-5 from the floor on Tuesday – 19-for-22 since being pressed into the rotation five games ago.
George Hill had a solid night as the seventh Cavalier in double-figures – adding 10 points, three boards, two steals and a pair of assists.
LeBron James records his 14th triple-double of the season with win in Phoenix.
Larry Nance Jr. started the second half but left the game just over a minute into the third quarter with a sore right hamstring.
Rookie Josh Jackson and young vet T.J. Warren led the Suns with 19 points apiece; Warren doubling-up with 10 boards. Devin Booker – who came into the contest having scored at least 30 points in six of his previous seven games – was held to just 17 points on 7-for-17 shooting.
As a team, the Wine & Gold shot 49 percent from the floor and were 17-of-38 from beyond the arc. Cleveland handed out 25 assists and outscored Phoenix on the break, 27-15.
Turning Point -- In the Cavaliers’ much-needed wire-to-wire win, the turning point turned out to be the opening tip.
Cleveland was all business in this one – jumping out to a double-digit lead less than three minutes into the affair on Kyle Korver’s three free throws and never looking back. The Wine & Gold led by 20 after one quarter and by 16 at the break.
LeBron James started the fourth quarter, picking up the triple-double less than two minutes into the period and enjoying the rest of the victory from the bench.
By the Numbers – .769, .818 … Kyle Korver’s shooting percentage (10-of-13) and three-point percentage (9-of-11) over his last two games. The league’s four-time three-point percentage champ is slowly climbing the charts once again – currently sitting in the third spot at .440 – trailing only Golden State’s Klay Thompson and Utah’s Joe Ingles.
Quotable – Kyle Korver, on getting the start on Tuesday night in Phoenix …
”It went alright, I guess. I don’t know if this is a one-game thing or not. I told Ty (Lue) I was ready to do whatever he needs. Just call me up before the game starts.”
Up Next -- Following Tuesday’s blouwout in the Valley of the Sun, the Wine & Gold can see light at the end of the tunnel, with two more contests remaining on the six-game, 12-day trip. On Thursday night, the Cavaliers travel to Portland, where they’ll take on the red-hot Blazers, who’ve won 10 straight and will meet Cleveland after three nights off. The Cavs close out the trip on Saturday night in Chicago – taking on the Lottery-bound Bulls at the United Center before returning home for three-game homestand next week.