The Cavaliers continue their four-game homestand on Friday night when they welcome the Utah Jazz to town. Tipoff from The Q is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET).
Coming into Friday, the Wine & Gold are looking to rebound from their loss to the Miami Heat on Wednesday night. Despite the loss, the Cavs can still make the most of this homestand by learning from their mistakes and improving upon the positives in their recent defeat.
Cavs Host Jazz
From where to catch all the action to Friday'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 Friday's matchup.
Great seats are still available!
One of those silver linings is Cleveland's ability to connect from the free throw line. In fact, the Cavaliers shot .846 (11-13) from the line on Wednesday and have now shot at least .800 from the charity stripe on 18 occasions this season, including in three of their last four outings.
Cleveland also shot well from behind-the-arc, going 13-31 (.419) from three-point range, which was their eighth contest connecting on .400 or better from deep.
Wednesday's game marked the return of Tristan Thompson after missing a few weeks with an ankle injury. Against Miami, T.T. finished with a team-high 14 points (5-9 FG) and two steals in 23 minutes. He also made his 2,000th career field goal with his fourth make of the night.
Rodney Hood also returned to the floor against the Heat and contributed 13 points on 5-7 (.714) shooting, including 3-4 (.750) from beyond-the-arc. It was his 25th outing scoring in double-digits this season.
For Jordan Clarkson, the scoring machine has put up strong numbers over his last 10 appearances, averaging 19.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 30.9 minutes per game (since December 12). On Wednesday, he added 11 points and five assists. This season, Clarkson is averaging a career-high 16.9 ppg (third-highest among NBA bench players).
The Cavs will need to play to their advantages on Friday night if they want to take advantage of a slumping Jazz team. Utah has now lost three of their last five games, including their most recent matchup against the Toronto Raptors, 122-116, on Tuesday night.
Jae Crowder led the Jazz in scoring against Toronto with 30 points as a reserve while Derrick Favors posted 21 on 8-12 shooting. Last year's rookie sensation, Donovan Mitchell, finished the night with 19 points and four boards.
As the Cavs and Jazz prepare to lock horns on Friday night in Cleveland, the two teams will meet only one more time this season on January 18 in Salt Lake City. That game will also be the penultimate contest of Cleveland's upcoming six-game road trip, their longest of the 2018-19 campaign.
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 Friday, FOX Sports Ohio is airing the Blue Jackets – Hurricanes game (7:30 p.m.) and the Cavs – Jazz 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
#10 - Alec Burks
#1 - Rodney Hood
#16 - Cedi Osman
#13 - Tristan Thompson
G
G
F
F
C
#11 - Dante Exum
#45 - Donovan Mitchell
#2 - Joe Ingles
#15 - Derrick Favors
#27 - Rudy Gobert
Status Update: (Cavs) - Kevin Love (Left Foot Surgery, Out),
John Henson (Left Wrist Surgery, Out),
JR Smith (Personal, Out),
David Nwaba (Left Ankle Sprain, Out),
Ante Zizic (Right Knee Soreness, Out)
Status Update: (Jazz) - TBD
*Subject to change.
Head-to-Head Matchup
Heading into Friday's game against Utah, Cleveland has played exceptionally well against the Jazz in recent years, especially at home. In fact, Cleveland holds a 12-2 record at The Q versus Utah since since 2004-05.
The Cavaliers have also won each of the last six games at home against the Jazz, which is good for their second-longest active home winning streak against a single opponent. In those six games, the Cavs have outscored the Jazz by an average of 9.7 points per game (104.5-94.8) while defensively Cleveland has held Utah to a combined .427 shooting from the field. They have also forced 15.2 turnovers and outrebounded them 46.3-38.8 during that span.
Last season at The Q on December 16, 2017, the Cavs picked up a 109-100 victory. They shot .532 (42-79) from the field, .455 (10-22) from three-point range and .882 (15-17) from the free throw line. The Cavs also dished out 30 assists that night - one of five occasions last season recording at least 30 assists.
Game Promotions
- Cheers to Wine & Gold United
- Giveaway: Cedi Osman Stainless Steel Tumbler presented by Mountain Dew ICE
- Postgame Fan Free Throws
On Deck
Following Friday's game against the Jazz, the Wine & Gold enter the back half of their four-game road trip, tipping off against the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night (8:00 p.m. ET) before closing with a game against the Indiana Pacers on the following Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. (ET).
As mentioned, Cleveland then enters their longest road trip of the season beginning on Wednesday, January 9 against NOLA followed by games against the Rockets, Lakers, Blazers, Jazz and Nuggets.