On the second night of a back-to-back that started with a disheartening loss against a shorthanded Wizards team, the Cavaliers started off sluggish and sloppy. Memphis hadn't won a game so far in February and was looking to take advantage of a tired team. And although they led by double digits early on, it was not fated to be their night.
After waking up in the second quarter, LeBron threw down a handful of thunderous dunks, and assisted on several to Nance as well. The beast was alive. While LeBron didn't go supernova in terms of scoring, he ended up with his 11th triple-double of the season, finishing with 18-14-11, and kept the pace at a high level.
George Hill played probably his best game as a Cavalier, notching 18 points and 3 blocks, and remained a steady presence when LeBron was off the floor.
The impact that Larry Nance, Jr. had on the defensive side cannot be understated. While his box score was great, 15 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks, he altered many other shots without fouling, leading to a stream of fastbreak points for the Cavs. Cleveland ended up with 32 fast break points, a pretty sure indicator of a win.
Jordan Clarkson took a shot to the face early, requiring 8 stitches, but he came back and hit several clutch 3 pointers to push the Cavs to a comfortable lead. Rod Hood and Kyle Korver came in off the bench for extended minutes, and added 10 and 9 points, respectively.
When this team runs and is active on defense, they are a blast to watch. Hopefully, they can get it to a more consistent level before the playoffs start.
