Re: Utah Jazz @ Cleveland Cavaliers
Utah (11-13) at Cleveland (13-9)
Game Info: 7:00 pm EST Tue Dec 20, 2005
TV: KJZZ, FxOh
LeBron James looks to continue his strong play in December and lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to their third straight victory when they host the Utah Jazz.
James is averaging a league-high 35.5 points per game this month, and he's scored 40 or more in two of his last four contests.
James had 52 points in a loss at Milwaukee on Dec. 10 before scoring 39 in a defeat to Atlanta last Tuesday. He then had 26 points as Cleveland snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Denver on Thursday, and scored 41 in Saturday's 115-107 victory over Miami.
Against the Heat, James had a run of 13 consecutive points in the fourth quarter.
"Once I start feeling like that, I feel unstoppable," he said.
James added 10 assists and five rebounds, impressing Miami coach Pat Riley.
"A guy like that gets it going, what are you going to do?" Riley said. "I've seen too many players like him. At times, you're helpless. He's like a freight train with Dwyane Wade's speed."
Donyell Marshall added 25 points and 13 rebounds against Miami, both season highs, as the Cavs won consecutive games for the first time since an eight-game streak from Nov. 7-22.
The win, however, was costly for Cleveland as two starters suffered injuries. Drew Gooden reaggravated a sprained left ankle, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas sustained a mild concussion in the game's final minute.
Ilgauskas didn't practice on Monday and is questionable for this game, while Gooden said he hopes to play.
"I'm going to try to go," Gooden said. "It was really tender, but I've got a couple days' rest and hopefully I'll be able to recover. I hate to miss games, it comes from Roy Williams (his college coach at Kansas) because he used to say you can never replace a game and I've become addicted to that."
The Jazz should be healthy for this game after having Matt Harpring miss Saturday night's 88-80 victory at Milwaukee and Andrei Kirilenko leaving the game in the second quarter with a back injury.
Kirilenko and Harpring, who didn't play after receiving a cortisone shot in his knee following Friday's loss at Indiana, are both expected to return against Cleveland.
Gordan Giricek scored 14 points, Mehmet Okur had 14 points and 14 rebounds for his fourth consecutive double-double, and Deron Williams also scored 14 for Utah on Saturday.
Williams and Robert Whaley were fined by the Jazz Monday, and Whaley was suspended for one game after being cited for lying to police after a bar fight.
Neither player was charged in the fight early on Dec. 11, but police said both gave false names at the scene -- apparently not wanting their identities to leak.
Utah has won three of its last four and is 1-1 on its season-high five-game trip. With a 6-5 record away from the Delta Center and a 5-8 mark at home, the Jazz join the Los Angeles Lakers as the NBA's only clubs with winning road records and losing home records.
Cleveland swept last season's series with Utah and has won four of the last five meetings between the teams.
STANDINGS (through Dec. 18): Jazz - 3rd place, 2 GB, Northwest Division. Cavaliers - 3rd place (tied), 5 1/2 GB, Central Division.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Jazz - F Kirilenko, F Okur, C Jarron Collins, G Giricek, G Williams. Cavaliers - F James, F Gooden or Marshall, C Ilgauskas or Alan Henderson, G Eric Snow, G Larry Hughes.
TEAM LEADERS: Jazz - Okur, 17.9 ppg and 8.7 rpg; Williams, 4.9 apg. Cavaliers - James, 31.0 ppg and 5.4 apg; Gooden, 8.7 rpg.
2004-05 SEASON SERIES: Cavaliers, 2-0.
LAST MEETING: March 15; Cavaliers, 92-73. At Cleveland, James scored 36 points on 11-for-15 shooting, and the Jazz scored only nine points in the second quarter.
ROAD/HOME RECORDS: Jazz - 6-5 on the road; Cavaliers - 9-3 at home.
Utah : 11-13, 3rd Northwest / 11th West 87.8-89.9
Cleveland : 13-9, 4th Central / 6th East 101.9-98.4
Utah Notes
Dec 18 F Andrei Kirilenko scored just five points on 2-of-6 shot. ... Gs Deron Williams and Andre Owens, both rookies were huge down the stretch combining to score 20 points. ... The Jazz shot 3-of-10 from the 3-point range but committed 16 turnovers. ... Milt Palacio had eight points, five assists and three rebounds off the bench. ... After losing their first game of a five-game East Coast swing, Utah is 1-1 with tonight's win.
Cleveland Notes
Dec 18 F Drew Gooden suffered what appeared to be a badly sprained left ankle Saturday. With four minutes left in the second quarter, Gooden flipped in a hook shot but landed awkwardly and went to the floor. He stayed there for a minute or two before being helped to the locker room and did not return. ... C Zydrunas Ilgauskas also was injured. With 55 seconds remaining, Ilgauskas dove for a loose ball that was picked up by Miami G Dwyane Wade, who inadvertently kicked the 7-3 center in the head. Ilgauskas also remained on the floor for several minutes before leaving under his own power. ... F Donyell Marshall scored a season-high 25 points and F LeBron James tied a season high with 10 assiss.
Courtesy of Yahoo