The Cavaliers strolled into Phoenix last night having last won a game there 10 years ago (check out some of the names in that box score). They needed a win badly just to keep pace with the Lakers, who won earlier in the night, and to stretch their lead a bit on Boston who was idle. In a season full of meaningful road wins, the Cavs were able to notch another one as they exited with a hard-fought 119-111 win (highlights). In the process, the team established a new franchise record for road wins in a season with their 23rd in 34 tries. Not too shabby.
And oh by they way, LeBron was stellar again, notching his third consecutive triple-double with a sparkling 34/10/13 line. And the King had some big help from some of his buddies. Mo Williams was again outstanding, chipping in 30 points on 10-of-23 shooting (including 6-for-10 from 3-point range). And Mike Brown even dusted the cobwebs off of Sasha Pavlovic who responded with 16 much-needed points off the bench, including 3-5 from deep in the US Airways Center (in my best AC voice - I hate TNT games). Sasha was needed because Delonte West again went down hard on a drive to the basket and ended up with what the team is describing as "back spasms." Let's hope for the best for Delonte, who has already had a tough road trip.
Brother Red took another hard fall on Thursday nightIt wasn't a pretty win by any stretch of the imagination. The Cavs interior defense was shredded again in the absence of Ben Wallace. There were a lot of unnecessary turnovers. They had to fight back from behind on the road again in the 4th quarter. But in the end they got the job done with some timely clutch shooting (again). LeBron had to log heavy minutes (again) and it seems to be showing as he missed two more dunks, which adds up to 4 in his last 3 games by my count. He seems to have some tired legs... but then again, not too tired to make three dazzling blocks, including a tremendous chase-down of a Jason Richardson 360 attempt. In the end, I'll take it. Especially given this was their 9th game in the last 15 days.
The road trip finally comes to an end tonight in Sacramento. This might be a good opportunity to rest Delonte's ailing back. And hopefully the team can jump out to a lead and rest some of the starters. One thing's for certain - we can all finally get back to a normal sleep schedule after tonight. These West coast trips during the week are just brutal. Go Cavs.
