Game Summary
The Cavaliers round out their three-game homestand tonight when they welcome the Washington Wizards to town. Tipoff from The Q is at 7:30 p.m. (ET).
The Wine & Gold will look to salvage this homestand after dropping games to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday and the Sacramento Kings last night. In the loss to the Kings, the Cavs still had one of their best shooting performances of the season.
Cavs Host Wizards
From where to catch all the action to Saturday's game notes, Cavs.com has you covered.
FOX Sports Ohio
WTAM 100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 FM La Mega
Joe G.'s guide to a victory.
Learn more about Saturday's matchup.
Great seats are still available!
Cleveland shot a season-best .531 (43-81) from the field against Sacramento, which was the fifth game this season the Cavs have shot .500 or better.
Cleveland's reserves poured in 58 points - their sixth 50-plus point performance of the campaign. Heading into tonight's game, the Cavs bench is averaging 42.3 bench points this season, good for seventh-best in the NBA.
Jordan Clarkson was once again a big reason why the bench played so well, recording a season-high 26 points on 11-19 (.579) shooting, including 4-7 (.571) from deep, four rebounds and one steal in 30 minutes off the bench against Sacramento. He has scored in double figures in 23-of-25 games this season and is averaging a career-high 16.6 points (third-highest among all NBA reserves).
In terms of starters, rookie Collin Sexton seems to be getting more comfortable in his main role as the season moves along. The 19-year-old finished Friday’s game with 23 points on 9-16 (.563) shooting while dishing out two assists over 35 minutes. He recorded 18 points in the first half and has now scored in double figures in 21 games so far (second-most among all rookies this season), including in all 15 of his starts.
As the Cavs look to rebound in front of their home crowd tonight, they'll be facing a Wizards team that has won three straight despite having a sluggish start to the season.
Washington still has a losing record (11-14, third in Southeast Division), but are hoping their recent string of victories will help right the ship as they head into the winter months. Their most recent win - a 131-117 scoring fest versus the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday - seemed to be a statement game by the players, six of whom tallied double-digit performances.
Bradley Beal was the No. 1 star of the night for the Wiz, canning 36 points on 12-22 shooting while swingman Otto Porter Jr. also excelled, dropping 20 points and snagging 11 boards for a double-double. Kelly Oubre Jr. was Washington's third-leading scorer after he posted 19 points off the bench in Atlanta.
With one regular season game already in the books and another slated for tonight, the next time these two teams meet will be on January 29 (7:00 p.m. ET) at Quicken Loans Arena before they round out their 2018-19 season series in the nation's capital on February 8.
Where to Catch the Action
TV: FOX Sports Ohio
Tune in for Cavaliers LIVE on FSO for pre-and-postgame coverage starting 30 minutes prior to tipoff and immediately following the conclusion of the game.
Radio: WTAM 1100, 100.7 WMMS, 87.7 La Mega
Programming Note: On Saturday, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Capitals game (7:00 p.m.) and the Cavs – Wizards game (7:30 p.m.). To view channel information, CLICK HERE.
For live in-game updates, follow @cavs, @CavsJoeG, @CavsFredMcLeod, @MrCavalier34, @CavsJMike, @angel_gray1, @cayleighgriffin and @chones22 on Twitter.
Probable Starters/Status Update*
#2 - Collin Sexton
#1 - Rodney Hood
#16 - Cedi Osman
#22 - Larry Nance Jr.
#13 - Tristan Thompson
G
G
F
F
C
#2 - John Wall
#3 - Bradley Beal
#31 - Tomas Satoransky
#22 - Otto Porter Jr.
#13 - Thomas Bryant
Status Update: (Cavs) - Kevin Love (Left Foot Surgery, Out), David Nwaba (Right Knee Soreness, Out), JR Smith (NWT), Rodney Hood (Right Toe Sprain, Doubtful), Matthew Dellavedova (Trade Pending, Out), John Henson (Trade Pending, Out)
Status Update: (Wizards) - Dwight Howard (Lumbar Microdiscectomy Procedure, Out), Jeff Green (Lower Back Soreness, Out)
*Subject to change.
Head-to-Head Matchup
As mentioned, tonight's matchup will be the second of four regular season meetings between the two teams (1/29 at CLE, 2/8 at WAS).
In their last 15 contests against the Wizards (dating back to 11/26/14), the Cavs are 10-5. Over that span, Cleveland is averaging 111.9 points (.481 FG%, .390 3FG%) and has scored at least 100 points in 12 of the 15 meetings.
Their last matchup at The Q (4/5/18) featured Cleveland overcoming a 17-point deficit (87-104) with 7:35 left in the fourth quarter to win, 119-115. In that victory, the Wine & Gold were able to go on a 32-11 run to close out the contest.
That win also saw the Cavaliers shoot .545 (42-77) from the field and .481 (13-27) from long range in addition to 26 assists. Six players for the Cavs scored in double figures, including Kevin Love (16 pts, 6 rbs, 3 asts, 31 mins), Rodney Hood (11 pts, 3 rbs, 2 asts, 2 stls, 27 mins) and Jordan Clarkson (10 pts, 2 stls, 22 mins).
Game Promotions
Toy Drive: Tonight is the last game where you can donate new, unwrapped toys for charity.
Mascot Night
Levin Furniture Family Fun Pack: Every Saturday and Sunday home game, join us with a Family Fun Pack. The pack includes 4 tickets to the game, 4 hot dogs, 4 bags of chips and 4 drinks!
On Deck
Following Saturday's matchup against the Wizards, the Cavs will hit the road on Monday to battle the Bucks in Milwaukee.
The Wine & Gold will then return to The Land on Wednesday, December 12 to play the New York Knicks, which tips off another three-game homestand. They'll then meet the Bucks again on Friday the 14th at 7:30 p.m. (ET) before rounding out the homestand against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday the 16th at 3:30 p.m. (ET).