12-14-16 at Grizzlies

clejsykes

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Wrap-Up -- On Tuesday night at The Q, the Cavaliers were without one-third of their Big Three and still managed to manhandle a red-hot Grizzlies squad. On Wednesday night in Memphis, the Cavaliers were without the entire trio – and the results were predictably different.

Even without the services of Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James, the Wine and Gold were still able to cut the Grizzlies’ lead to two early in the third quarter. But they simply didn’t have enough ammo to hold the fort – falling, 93-85, on Wednesday night at the Grindhouse.

Going with a starting five of DeAndre Liggins, J.R. Smith, Channing Frye, Mike Dunleavy and the irrepressible Tristan Thompson, Cleveland shot just 37 percent from the floor, including 36 percent from long-range.

The Cavaliers were paced by James Jones, who came off the bench to notch 15 points – going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc, 5-for-8 from the floor overall.

Rookie Kay Felder was also impressive off the bench, finishing with 14 points on 4-for-8 shooting, canning both triples he attempted and adding three boards, four assists and a pair of steals.

Tristan Thompson, who hasn’t had a night off in 393 straight contests, was supposed to see limited action in the second half of the home-and-home back-to-back wound up logging 28 minutes and led the Wine and Gold with 11 boards – his 15th game this season grabbing double-digit boards.

Getting the spot start, Mike Dunleavy chipped in with 11 points and six boards. J.R. Smith, who snapped out of a funk in Tuesday night’s win in Cleveland, struggled from the floor again – finishing with eight points on 4-for-15 shooting, missing all three treys he attempted.

Marc Gasol – who missed Tuesday night’s contest – doubled-up for Memphis on Wednesday, finishing with 17 points and 11 boards. But, like the Cavaliers, it was a reserve who led the Grizz in scoring, with Troy Daniels finishing with 20 points – going 7-for-13 from the floor, 4-of-8 from long-distance.

The shorthanded Cavs have their five-game winning streak snapped in the Grindhouse.

The Cavaliers were no match for Memphis in the paint – losing the rebounding battle, 55-40, and getting outscored by a 20-3 mark in second-chance scoring.

Turning Point -- When the Grizzlies went into the halftime locker room up 11, it looked like they’d coast home in the second half. But the Wine and Gold opened the second stanza on a 7-0 run and eventually cut Memphis’ lead to just two – 47-45 – on J.R. Smith’s pretty baseline turnaround.

But Marc Gasol and Tony Allen began heating up from the floor and the duo keyed a Memphis outburst that would see them close the quarter on a 27-5 run.

Gasol and Allen combined for 15 points in the third – two fewer than the Cavaliers posted as a team – while Memphis’ reserves were a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor in the period.

By the Numbers – .737 … James Jones’ three-point percentage so far this season – going 14-for-19 from beyond the arc.

Quotable – Coach Tyronn Lue, on his team’s effort on Wednesday night …

”I thought our guys did a good job of trying to find one another. They were switching one through five, switching some of the pick and rolls, and switching out on some of the pin-down stuff. So, we did a good job of handling that, coming back and holding this team to 43 percent shooting on the field. We competed, but at the end we didn’t win the game.”

Up Next -- After Wednesday night’s loss in Memphis, the Wine and Gold return to The Q where they’ll take on D’Angelo Russell and the Lakers on Saturday night at The Q. After that, it’s another mid-week road-and-home, back-to-back – traveling to Milwaukee for a Tuesday night matchup before welcoming the Bucks to The Q on Wednesday. The following Friday, the Cavaliers welcome the Brooklyn Nets to town for their final tune-up before Golden State comes to Cleveland for a huge Christmas Day martchup.

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Grizzlies Drop Shorthanded Cavs, Snap Streak at Five

clenadams

cavsgrizzlies-game-photos-december-14-2016

#CavsGrizzlies Game Photos - December 14, 2016

clejgabriele

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The Wine and Gold will look to tie their longest win streak of the season when they travel to Memphis for the second half of their home-and-home back-to-back with the Grizzlies. (Cleveland plays its second such series next week – taking on the Bucks in Milwaukee on Tuesday before traveling back to The Q the following night.)

The Cavs closed out their three-game homestand with a convincing 103-86 win over the Grizzlies last night in Cleveland – using a late first-half run to pull away and hold off Memphis, a team they’ve topped in four of the last five meetings.

The Grizzlies, who had won six straight coming in, were already shorthanded – playing without Chandler Parsons and Mike Conley – before they decided to give Marc Gasol a rest.

Tonight, the All-Star center will be in action, but Cleveland’s Big Three will not – with Kyrie Irving (who didn’t play in Tuesday’s win), Kevin Love and LeBron James back at home.

Tyronn Lue’s squad will have an uphill battle at the Grindhouse, but he’ll also see how they’ll perform on the road without their superstar trifecta.

On a nightly basis, Coach Lue fields a pregame question about who will and won’t be in the lineup. One name he doesn’t even bother mentioning is Tristan Thompson – who will assume his starting center spot surrounded by a starting lineup of Iman Shumpert, James Jones, J.R. Smith and DeAndre Liggins on Wednesday night.

Thompson – who posted his sixth double-double of the season in Saturday night’s win over Charlotte – will suit up for his 393rd consecutive game on Wednesday night. The NBA’s iron man has grabbed double-digit boards in 14 games this season, just one fewer than team-leader, Kevin Love.

Tristan will have his work cut out for him in the Bluff City in the second half of the back-to-back when he takes on Marc Gasol, one of the most skilled two-way bigs in either Conference.

Gasol is having one of his best seasons as a pro and has been almost unstoppable of late – averaging 27.3 points, 10.0 boards and 5.3 assists over his last four games, including a 28-point, 11-rebound, 10-assist outing against New Orleans, his second career triple-double.

The Cavaliers didn’t play a perfect game in winning their fifth straight on Tuesday night, but one of the highlights of the win was the play of J.R. Smith, who had his best offensive game of the young season – finishing with 23 points – drilling four of his first five three-pointers before cooling off after intermission.

Overall, Swish went 6-of-10 from long-range, 8-for-17 overall – posting his first 20-point game of the year.

Swish moved past Dale Ellis for 14th place on the NBA’s all-time three-pointers list with his third triple of the night (and he’ll eclipse Craig Ehlo for 8th on the Cavaliers’ all-time list after hitting his next three). Including Cleveland’s Tuesday night win at The Q, over the course of his career, Smith’s teams have gone 46-8 in games in which he’s hit at least six triples.

The shorthanded Grizzlies have been starting a pair of rookies – Andrew Harrison and Troy Williams – in the backcourt, and they’ll likely roll that way again tonight. Both managed double-figures in Tuesday’s loss, but did so shooting a combined 10-for-27 from the floor, including 2-for-9 from beyond the arc.

Since his arrival in Cleveland in January 2015, Iman Shumpert has been viewed almost exclusively as a defensive specialist – and he definitely excels on that end of the floor. But this season, one in which he came to Camp healthy and void of distractions, he’s been outstanding offensively.

Despite a quiet night on Tuesday, Shump has notched double-figure scoring in three of his last four outings, averaging 11.3 points on 58 percent shooting from long-distance (11-for-19) to go with 4.3 boards off the bench.

So far this year, the former Georgia Tech standout, ranks 5th in the NBA in three-point percentage at .468.

If he starts heating up on Wednesday, he’ll get a look at Tony Allen – one of the league’s most tenacious defenders. Actually, without LeBron in the lineup, Allen will likely check several Cavaliers in the inter-Conference affair.

The 13-year veteran struggled on Tuesday night at The Q, but has been very good on the offensive end lately – averaging 15.5 points on 60 percent shooting in the previous four games before cooling off in Cleveland.

With the Big Three watching Wednesday’s affair from Cleveland, the Cavaliers will depend on their reserves if they hope to extend their recent win streak.

James Jones will be in the starting lineup and, as usual, the savvy veteran has been the model of consistency this year. In terms of cashing in on opportunity, the man aptly-nicknamed “Champ” has gone 11-for-14 (.786) from the three-point range so far this season.

Channing Frye has gotten more opportunities from long-range, and he’s been deadly as well – currently second in the Eastern Conference at .467. The 12-year veteran returned to action to finish with eight points in Tuesday night’s win, and his production will be key on Wednesday at the Grindhouse.

Richard Jefferson, who’s shot 53 percent from deep over the last eight games, will be called to contribute a little more, as will youngsters Jordan McRae and Kay Felder.

With Gasol back in the starting lineup for Memphis, that likely means Zach Randolph – now the Grizzlies’ top reserve – will come off the bench. Z-Bo was very good in his first start of the season on Tuesday, finishing with 18 points on 9-for-15 shooting to go with five boards, two steals and a blocked shot.

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KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers at Grizzlies

The Cavaliers will wrap up a home-and-home back-to-back with the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night at FedEx Forum. Tipoff is at 8:00 p.m. (ET).

The Cavs, who own the Eastern Conference's best home record at 18-5, will look to extend their five-game winning streak.

CAVS TO DON WINE JERSEYS
        From where to catch all the action to Wednesday's game notes, Cavs.com has you covered.

Get into the conversation with other die-hards.

The Wine and Gold are 4-1 against the Western Conference in 2016-17. Over the last 50 regular season games versus the West, the Cavs are 40-10, including Tuesday night's 103-86 victory over the Grizzlies.

In the win, Kevin Love continued to make his early case for the Eastern Conference All-Star squad – leading both teams with 29 points and 13 boards, going 9-for-17 from the floor and 8-of-8 from the stripe to go with three assists and a pair of steals.

J.R. Smith snapped out of a recent funk with 23 points – drilling four of his first five three-pointers before cooling off in the second stanza. Overall, Swish went 6-of-10 from long-range.

LeBron James, was the only other Cavalier in double-figures – finishing with 23 points on 8-for-17 shooting, leading both teams with eight assists and the Cavaliers with three steals.

Head coach Tyronn Lue announced at last night's press conference that James, Love and Kyrie Irving will rest on Wednesday and not make the trip to Memphis.

This means that Swish, along with Tristan Thompson and the rest of Cavaliers reserves are going to have to step up if the Wine and Gold are going to continue their dominance over the Grizzlies as the Cavs have won four of their last five contests against Memphis.

For the Grizzlies, the reigning Western Conference player of the week, Marc Gasol, is expected to play on Wednesday after sitting out to rest on Tuesday at The Q. On the season, Gasol is averaging 19.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

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.

Status Update: (Cavs) - Mo Williams, (NWT), Kyrie Irving, (Rest, Out), Kevin Love, (Rest, Out), LeBron James, (Rest, Out)

Status Update: (Grizzlies) - Mike Conley, (Lower Back, Out), James Ennis III, (Right Calf, Out), Chandler Parsons, (Left Knee, Out), Brandan Wright, (Left Ankle, Out)

Over the last five games versus Memphis, the Cavs have outscored the Grizzlies by an average of 16 points (105.6-89.6).

The Cavs have won by at least 14 points in four of the five contests.

Tuesday's matchup will be the final meeting between the Conference foes this season.

The Cavaliers return home to face off against Luke Walton’s new-look L.A. Lakers on Saturday night before another road-and-home, back-to-back next week – traveling to Milwaukee for a Tuesday night matchup before welcoming the Bucks to The Q on Wednesday. Two nights later, the Cavs host the Brooklyn Nets in Cleveland for their final tune-up before the Golden State Warriors roll in for the big Christmas Day NBA Finals rematch. GET TICKETS | VIEW FULL SCHEDULE

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#CavsGrizzlies Game Preview - December 14, 2016

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12‑14‑16 at Grizzlies

Grizzlies Drop Shorthanded Cavs, Snap Streak at Five

#CavsGrizzlies Game Photos - December 14, 2016

KeyBank Five Keys: Cavaliers at Grizzlies

#CavsGrizzlies Game Preview - December 14, 2016