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The Nets arrive in Cleveland for a rematch of Wednesday’s 109-99 loss in Brooklyn. Things will be a little different this time - the Cavs will be at home, they’ve had three days rest, and they’ll be getting Allen and Markkanen back.
The Nets have had two days off. Joe Harris is still out along with Kyrie Irving, of course. So the Nets are missing both starting guards. Harris shoots 46.6% on 3’s so that helps the Cavs.
The Cavs put up a good fight last week, trailing by 7 points with under five minutes remaining, but James Harden took over, scoring four field goals and dishing out an assist to close out the win. That was similar to Stephan Curry scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter the following night to give the W’s a win after they trailed by 13 points after three quarters.
If tonight’s game is competitive into the 4th quarter I expect Durant or Harden or both will simply take over the game. That’s what guys like Harden, Durant, Curry and LeBron do.
Last year against the Nets Collin Sexton scored 15 points in the second overtime to win it, but the Cavs don’t have anybody who can do that at the moment.
Last week the Cavs lost mainly because they missed an astounding 33 shots from the three-point line. After the game they had to replace the rims (just kidding). The other reason was LaMarcus Aldridge and Patty Mills combined to score 45 points. Mills was 6-for-12 from deep. He’s hitting 48% of his 3’s this year. The Cavs need to defend him better this time.
The 36-year-old Aldridge had 24 points, making eleven 2-point shots. He was hitting uncontested jumpers from the elbow after Harden bulled his way into the lane, drew the defense, and then kicked it back to Aldridge. The Cavs need a better plan to defend that play.
With Allen and Markkanen back the Cavs should have better rim protection and may be able to defend Aldridge better. However, Allen has not played in nine days due to illness and may be limited in minutes as well as being rusty. Markkanen has not played in three weeks. I doubt he will be a factor and will probably play just enough to get his feet wet.
So we’ll see if Allen and Mark can give the Cavs‘ defense a little boost and if the home venue will result in better long range shooting. Garland and Rubio combined to go 6-for-23 from deep in the Cavs loss in Brooklyn. I’m hoping that having three days of rest in addition to playing at home will increase that percentage dramatically.
However, the Nets are among the leaders in defending the 3-point shot, holding their opponents to only 31%. The Cavs shot 25% in Brooklyn. They need to at least get into the 30’s to have a chance tonight. Kevin Love is coming off a very strong game against the Warriors. We could use another 17-point, 9-rebound game from him along with better long range shooting from DG and Rubio.
The Nets have had two days off. Joe Harris is still out along with Kyrie Irving, of course. So the Nets are missing both starting guards. Harris shoots 46.6% on 3’s so that helps the Cavs.
The Cavs put up a good fight last week, trailing by 7 points with under five minutes remaining, but James Harden took over, scoring four field goals and dishing out an assist to close out the win. That was similar to Stephan Curry scoring 20 points in the fourth quarter the following night to give the W’s a win after they trailed by 13 points after three quarters.
If tonight’s game is competitive into the 4th quarter I expect Durant or Harden or both will simply take over the game. That’s what guys like Harden, Durant, Curry and LeBron do.
Last year against the Nets Collin Sexton scored 15 points in the second overtime to win it, but the Cavs don’t have anybody who can do that at the moment.
Last week the Cavs lost mainly because they missed an astounding 33 shots from the three-point line. After the game they had to replace the rims (just kidding). The other reason was LaMarcus Aldridge and Patty Mills combined to score 45 points. Mills was 6-for-12 from deep. He’s hitting 48% of his 3’s this year. The Cavs need to defend him better this time.
The 36-year-old Aldridge had 24 points, making eleven 2-point shots. He was hitting uncontested jumpers from the elbow after Harden bulled his way into the lane, drew the defense, and then kicked it back to Aldridge. The Cavs need a better plan to defend that play.
With Allen and Markkanen back the Cavs should have better rim protection and may be able to defend Aldridge better. However, Allen has not played in nine days due to illness and may be limited in minutes as well as being rusty. Markkanen has not played in three weeks. I doubt he will be a factor and will probably play just enough to get his feet wet.
So we’ll see if Allen and Mark can give the Cavs‘ defense a little boost and if the home venue will result in better long range shooting. Garland and Rubio combined to go 6-for-23 from deep in the Cavs loss in Brooklyn. I’m hoping that having three days of rest in addition to playing at home will increase that percentage dramatically.
However, the Nets are among the leaders in defending the 3-point shot, holding their opponents to only 31%. The Cavs shot 25% in Brooklyn. They need to at least get into the 30’s to have a chance tonight. Kevin Love is coming off a very strong game against the Warriors. We could use another 17-point, 9-rebound game from him along with better long range shooting from DG and Rubio.
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