Cavaliers return home and smack Nuggets 125-109 
​ BY STONE LEXINGTON
CAVALIERS BEAT WRITER
Prior to Saturday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers had played every team in the NBA this season, aside the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets were in Cleveland Saturday night for a matchup with the Cavs, which were seeking their fifth win in their last six games.

After a closely contested first half, the Cavs pulled away from Denver early in the third quarter en route to a convincing 125-109 victory.

“They got off to a good start in the first quarter,” Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue said. “They got out in transition early and they made some shots. Gary Harris kind of got them going early.”

The Cavs and Nuggets played to a virtual dead-heat in the first half. Cleveland led 59-55 at the half, but began to apply pressure on the Nuggets in the first few minutes of the third quarter. The Cavs opened the second half with an 18-0 run, highlighted by three Kyrie Irving three-pointers. By the time the Cavs run ended, they led 77-55 less than five minutes into the quarter. Denver never came within single digits the rest of the way.

Irving finished with 27 points, four rebounds and five assists, while LeBron James totaled 27 points, five rebounds and 12 assists. With his third rebound against the Nuggets, James passed Brad Daugherty (5,227) for 2nd place in Cavs franchise history.

Newest Cavalier Derrick Williams finished with seven points in 21 minutes.

“His size is big for us, being able to get to the free throw line,” Lue said of Williams. “Just plays with a lot of energy. Once we get him acclimated to what we’re doing, I think he can help us out a lot.”

The year after James left for Miami, the Cavs secured the No. 1 overall pick and selected Irving with it in the 2011 NBA Draft. At the time, there was speculation as to whether the Cavs should take Williams with the top pick instead of Irving. The Cavs, however, didn’t seem to have any hesitation taking Irving, who is pushing his way toward superstardom.

Meanwhile, the now 25-year-old Williams has played for five teams in not yet six full seasons, underperforming for where he was selected in the draft. He played 80 games for the New York Knicks last season, but Williams never found a home there. He’s hoping he can find that comfort in Cleveland.

“He’s a young guy, but he has a lot of NBA experience,” Lue said. “Being the No. 2 pick in the draft, that means a lot, especially in our league. To be the No. 2 pick in the draft, that’s a big accomplishment.

“He has experience, being a lottery pick; we know he can play. New York I thought would be his home. He played really well and I don’t know what happened there, but sometimes you just need opportunities to find a team that you fit.”

Quicken Loans Arena has been very kind to the Cavs since Cleveland’s ‘Big Three’ came together in 2014. The Cavs have won 43 straight games at The Q when shooting at least 50 percent from the field (12-0 this season) and hold a 76-7 record when scoring at least 100 points at home since March 25, 2014 (22-3 this season). Over their last six games (5-1 record), the Cavs are averaging 123.6 points per game.

Cleveland has also stacked up well against the Western Conference at The Q of late, winning 31 of their last 37 home games against the West (11-3 this season).

Cleveland and Denver meet again on March 22 in Denver.

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​POSTED 02/11/2017 22:39
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