I hate to sound like a broken record, but the Cavs were firing on all cylinders again last night as they cruised to another easy 114-94 victory (highlights) over the Raptors. It was a night of broken records as LeBron got his record-breaking steal out of the way early, Z got his record-breaking rebound (perhaps the most non-descript rebound of his career) out of the way in the 2nd quarter, and the Cavs became the first team in NBA history to win nine straight games by at least 12 points. The latest win brings them to 18-3 on the year and coupled with another ugly Pistons' loss puts the Cavaliers now 6-1/2 games in first place in the Central Division.
Records fell at the Q on Tuesday nightIt was more of the same inside the Q as the Cavs seemed to turn up the defensive intensity whenever they wanted to. They held Chris Bosh to just 9 points, tying a season low the 24.9 ppg scorer, and only one Raptor starter (PG Jose Calderon) even reached double figures. For the season the Cavs have only surrendered 100 points 3 times in 21 games and are holding their opponents to a league-low 90.4 average.
Offensively the Cavs also seemed to get whatever they wanted. LeBron had an amazing 7 dunks on the night by my own unofficial count. And Mo Williams is just incredible to watch, especially in person. He takes so much pressure off of LeBron. The Cavs again shot well overall from the floor (49.4%) and from long-distance (8-for-22). And they continued their stellar play at the Q, raising their home record to a perfect 12-0, now the only undefeated team at home in the league. The only downer was Boobie Gibson's toe injury. Let's hope that doesn't linger for too long.
The Cavaliers are again in action tonight in Philadelphia to face the Sixers at 8:00pm. This will be a good road test, especially if we are shorthanded without Boobie in the rotation. Do yourselves a favor when watching this one if you can - turn down the volume on the ESPN broadcast and flip on Joe Tait for the call. If you're watching the best team in the NBA, you might as well listen to the best play-by-play man in the NBA, right?
Tribe Update: The Indians are reportedly close to signing Cubs closer Kerry Wood to a two-year deal. This is the type of low-risk/high-reward type of signing by GM Mark Shapiro that we have grown accustomed to over the years with the current set up of Major League Baseball (don't get me started on Sabathia and the Yankees). But I actually think this one will pay off well for the Tribe if it goes down. If healthy, Wood can be the dominant type of closer that we've been craving here in Cleveland since the good old days of Jose Mesa (pre-World Series Game 7 meltdown) and Mike Jackson. But I hope the Tribe isn't done with just this signing. The second base/shortstop situation needs to be addressed. I don't think I'll be able to handle another spring with hopeful Cleveland newspaper articles about Josh Barfield's re-emergence...
