|
Photo: Gregory Smith/AP
In the first of a two-game set, it was the Cavaliers fourth quarter defense, the one element that has united all of their recent wins, and clutch baskets from Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Delonte West that gave the Cavaliers their 10th win in their last 11 games and put them on top of the Eastern Conference standings for the first time all season.
Cavalier killer extraordinaire: One player who licks his chops every single time he sees a wine and gold uniform is Jamal Crawford. Drafted by the Cavs and traded on draft day for center Chris Mihm, Crawford has held an apparent vendetta against the team who picked him then turned around and traded him. In stops with New York, Golden State, Chicago, and now Atlanta, one thing has been consistent, his lights-out shooting against the Cavaliers. In fact, in his last 17 games against the Cavaliers (from 2003-2004 season to present), Crawford is averaging 24.4 points per game against the Cavaliers, compared to his 15.3 career scoring average. That's absolutely stunning, and it's another reason why you better bet Crawford will be ready to do the same tomorrow night.
Mo's rapid-fire start to 2nd: Mo Williams continued his string of 20-point performances tonight, and it was fueled by a scorching start to the second quarter with LeBron on the pine. Mo had 10 points in the blink of an eye, including a pull-up trey without numbers that you just knew he would knock down. It wasn't all sunshine for Mo though; he did commit an unsightly 7 turnovers. Mo did finish shooting 7-of-15 for his 20 points, adding 3 boards and 5 dimes to the Cavalier cause.
More histor-Z: Z's been a man on a mission in the last two season in regards to setting Cavalier records. He is now the all-time franchise leader in rebounds, blocks, and games played. He's also the second leading Cavalier scorer all-time after tonight's 15 point performance, as Z passed center Brad Daugherty and his 10,390 points. Z now trails only LeBron, who is nearly at 14,000 points, so this is one record that Z will not attain. After a brutal start to the season, Z has shown strong confidence in his outside shot again, and the Cavaliers are even throwing him a few post feeds now and then. It has taken some time, but Z finally looks comfortable in the backup center slot.
Hot-Lanta's frozen fourth: The Cavaliers put the clamps on the Hawks for nearly nine minutes like they've done to no other team this year that late in the game. The Hawks did not score until the 3:12 mark of the third quarter. Unfortunately for Cleveland, the Cavalier offense was struggling as well and their lead was just nine after Smith scored the first two points on a dunk that caught the Cavs' D off guard. In that 8:48 stretch, the Hawks missed 10 shots in that stretch, and they even failed to convert three free throws. The Cavs' defensive effort was ferocious, and every time the Cavaliers pull off a fourth like this (they gave up just 10 points in all), that only fuels their confidence to put up another stopper performance in the game's final moments.
Highlight reel: There were so many plays to get excited about in this one that you could have nearly crafted a Sportscenter Top 10 from this game alone. Instead, I'll settle for just four that stick in my mind.
4. Only cows can jump over the Moon, Mo Evans!: As Maurice Evans looked to finish off a runout, Jamario Moon did his best LBJ on Jason Richardson impersonation and sent Evans away an unhappy camper, even grabbing the rebound off the rejection.
3. Z for 3 and the lead's SAFE!: Up by just five with under a minute to go, the Cavaliers were in danger of letting the Hawks back in the game, but Z's patented clutch corner three smashed any Atlanta comeback hope. Z, one rarely if ever to show off, gave a nice safe sign as he headed back up the court, saying in his own way, "I got this guys, the lead is SAFE!"
2. Moonball to LeBron for touchdown dunk: With 2.0 seconds left on the clock before half after a Jamal Crawford trey, Jamario Moon looked, looked again, then stepped back in the shotgun and fired a high-arcing pass to LeBron the tight end down the court. LeBron had just enough time to make it to the hoop for the slam as time expired, giving the Cavs a five point halftime advantage.
1. Delonte's throwdown over top of Josh Smith: It could be the best dunk of Delonte's career, which is saying something much more than it would for the average 6'3" guard. West after getting sent back by "J-Smoov", retaliated with a steal, beating Smith, and then high-flying right over top of him for the potent exclamation point. Delonte did go over the line by taunting him afterwards, but considering how Smith was acting (tossing his headband to the bench during game action and not receiving a tech along with whining constantly), I would call it a wash. It is Delonte's fifth tech, and the last thing the team needs is another game tacked on to what will be a several game suspension looming already. For now, we can enjoy the fact that Delonte has been a pretty consistent presence over the last 10 games.
 goes to: Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Delonte West. These guys were the late play-makers tonight with LBJ and Mo combining for just 5 final quarter points. Z's 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 5 rebounds in just 20 minutes were capped by his trey that put things out of reach for Atlanta. West scored 10 of his 17 in the final quarter, shooting 6-of-11 while nailing just his third three point make on the season. Delonte also added 5 boards, 2 assists, and 2 steals.
Team Grade: B
The Cavaliers were a victim of the Atlanta fastbreak since they turned the ball over 20 times. Atlanta turned that into 17 points, and they had 23 fastbreak points in the game. The Cavaliers, though, held Atlanta to only 5 offensive rebounds, outrebounded them 43-30, and had 50 points in the paint along with 35 bench points. If they can put forth this type of fourth quarter effort again, as long as the first three aren't a disaster, I see the Cavaliers making it a two-game sweep tomorrow night in the Q.
Gametime is 7 pm tomorrow night for Cavaliers-Hawks Part II, and CofC's own J.V. will be in attendance for his 24th birthday. Also, on a side note, it is LeBron's 25th birthday, and he has 33 and 38 point performances on past birthday games. It should be a fun one.
All for one. One for all.
Kirk
|
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 