The Wine & Gold head to the Windy City on Sunday afternoon as they wrap up their four-game season series with the Chicago Bulls. Tipoff from the United Center is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. (ET).
The Cavs come into Sunday's matchup looking to avenge their loss to the Bulls earlier this past week on MLK Day. On Friday, Cleveland played a well-rounded game against the Miami Heat despite dropping the contest by six.
Cavs Visit Bulls
From where to catch all the action to Sunday'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 Sunday's matchup.
Guess the score and win tickets!
The star of Friday's game was undoubtedly sophomore swingman Cedi Osman who poured in career-high 29 points against the Heat after tallying a previous career-high of 25 just couple nights earlier against the Boston Celtics. Cedi's 29-point effort was a game-high and came off 11-20 (.550) shooting. The Turk also tallied four rebounds, four assists and two steals in 39 minutes against Miami.
Cedi's fellow sophomore, Ante Zizic, fell just shy of a double-double with 11 points on 4-7 (.571) shooting and a team-high nine rebounds on Friday. Zizic has now scored in double digits in a career-best six consecutive games averaging 16.2 points on .603 (38-63) shooting from the field and 8.3 rebounds in 30.0 minutes per game over that span (since 1/16).
Young gun Collin Sexton shot 3-6 (.500) from beyond-the-arc and finished with 13 points, two rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes. The rook has now scored in double figures in 43 games so far (tied with Luka Doncic for most among all rookies this season), including each of his last 14 games.
At two-guard, Alec Burks tallied 13 points on 5-9 (.556) shooting, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal in 30 minutes versus the Heat. With his fourth point, Burks reached the 4,000-point mark for his career and has scored in double figures 17 times since being acquired by the Cavaliers.
As the Cavs look to replicate Friday's shooting performances, they'll be tasked with defeating a Bulls team that has lost 12 of their last 13 games, including their most recent matchup to the Clippers on Friday night in the Windy City.
In that 106-101 loss, the Bulls were led by Zach LaVine who canned 29 points on 10-20 shooting. Both Bobby Portis (18 pts/14 rbs) and Chandler Hutchison (12 pts/12 rbs) tallied double-doubles while Kris Dunn nearly joined the fray with a nine point, 10 assist performance. Jabari Parker was Chicago's leading bench scorer with 15 reserve points.
Tonight's matchup between the Cavs and Bulls is the fourth and final time these two Central Division rivals square off this season. Cleveland's next divisional game will come on February 9 against the Indiana Pacers in Indy.
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
For live in-game updates, follow @cavs, @CavsJoeG, @CavsFredMcLeod, @MrCavalier34, @CavsJMike and @chones22 on Twitter.
Probable Starters/Status Update*
#2 - Collin Sexton
#10 - Alec Burks
#1 - Rodney Hood
#16 - Cedi Osman
#41 - Ante Zizic
G
G
F
F
C
#32 - Kris Dunn
#8 - Zach LaVine
#15 - Chandler Hutchison
#24 - Lauri Markkanen
#5 - Bobby Portis
Status Update: (Cavs) - Kevin Love (Left Foot Surgery, Out),
John Henson (Left Wrist Surgery, Out),
David Nwaba (Left Ankle Sprain, Out),
Tristan Thompson (Left Foot Soreness, Out),
JR Smith (NWT)
Status Update: (Bulls) - TBD
*Subject to change.
Head-to-Head Matchup
On Friday, the Cavs will look to snag their first win over the Bulls after dropping the previous three to Chicago this season.
Despite being on the wrong end of the rivalry this campaign, the Cavs have played the Bulls tough, especially in their last visit to the United Center on November 10. In that game, the Cavs had three players finish with at least 20 points including Tristan Thompson, Collin Sexton and Rodney Hood.
Against Chicago, T.T. recorded a double-double with 22 points on 10-14 (.714) shooting, 12 rebounds (seven offensive) and two steals in 34 minutes of work, while Sexton posted 20 points on 8-16 (.500) shooting, four rebounds and three assists in 34 minutes. Rodney Hood had 20 points, two rebounds and two assists in 29 minutes of action.
On Deck
Following Sunday's afternoon battle in the Windy City, the Wine & Gold return to The Land for a three-game homestand beginning on Tuesday, January 29 against the Washington Wizards. The Cavs will then play host to the Dallas Mavericks the following Saturday before rounding out their homestand against the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, February 5.