GAME THREAD: NBA: CLEVELAND (9-10) at WASHINGTON (8-9)

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">NBA CLEVELAND 83
WASHINGTON 98 2:25 LEFT, 4TH QTR</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">NBA CLEVELAND 86
WASHINGTON 105 FINAL</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">NBA FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL
--- --- --- --- -----
CLEVELAND 21 13 28 24 86
WASHINGTON 22 31 26 26 105 FINAL

HIGH SCORERS: CLE - DREW GOODEN 13, SHANNON BROWN 13, DANIEL
GIBSON 13
WAS - CARON BUTLER 27, ANTAWN JAMISON 17,
BRENDAN HAYWOOD 17</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
NBA
CLEVELAND 86
WASHINGTON 105 FINAL</div>

 

WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- The Cleveland Cavaliers could take somepointers from the Washington Wizards on playing without asuperstar.


Caron Butler scored 27 points and Brendan Haywood added 17 and10 rebounds as the Wizards pounded the shorthanded Cavaliers,105-86, on Wednesday.


Antawn Jamison chipped 17 points and 12 rebounds and rookie NickYoung scored 14 for the Wizards, who shot 52 percent (43-of-82)from the floor.


Washington improved to 6-4 without All-Star guard GilbertArenas, who is out the next three months after having surgery onhis left knee for the second time.


Meanwhile, the Cavaliers struggled once again without theleague's leading scorer, LeBron James. James sat out a fourthstraight game due to a sprained left index finger and watched instreet clothes as Cleveland remained winless without him.

Daniel Gibson, Drew Gooden and Shannon Brown scored 13 pointsapiece for Cleveland, which shot 44 percent (24-of-54) from thefloor.


The Cavaliers have been painful to watch without James, havinglost every game by at least nine points and entered this oneaveraging just 76.3 points without the three-time All-Star.

While Cleveland has struggled without its best player,Washington is showing it can get by without Arenas, largelybecause of Butler. On Saturday, he scored 29 points on 10-of-18shooting with seven assists in a 101-97 win over Toronto.

In this one, the six-year veteran scored 12 of his 27 points inthe first half and helped the Wizards outscore the Cavaliers,31-13, in the second quarter en route to a 53-34 lead at thebreak.


Butler then scored seven points during a 11-2 third-quarter runthat helped Washington take a 64-36 lead with 8:46 left in thethird. The Wizards led 69-52 after three periods.

Cleveland used a 14-7 run in the final period to cut into its28-point deficit, but it could not get closer then eight pointsat 88-79 with 5:41 left.


The Wizards responded to the run as Haywood made a layup andJamison added another to make it 92-79 with 4:50 remaining, andthe Wizards led by double digits the rest of the way.

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (86) AT WASHINGTON (105)

CLEVELAND

REBOUNDS
PLAYER POS MIN FGM-FGA FTM-FTA OFF-DEF-TOT AST PF ST TO PTS
====== === === ======= ======= =========== === == == == ===

D GIBSON G 43:51 4-9 2-2 0 0 0 8 2 0 4 13
S PAVLOVIC G 21:00 1-7 0-0 0 2 2 0 1 1 1 3
D GOODEN F 35:17 5-14 3-5 1 5 6 0 2 0 2 13
S BROWN 26:41 6-14 0-0 1 2 3 3 1 1 2 13
Z ILGAUSKAS C 23:28 5-7 2-2 3 7 10 0 3 0 0 12
DA JONES 23:40 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 4 0 0 1 8
D BROWN F 24:25 3-8 2-2 0 1 1 3 4 1 1 9
I NEWBLE 23:03 4-8 1-1 0 5 5 0 3 2 1 11
DW JONES 11:04 1-2 2-2 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 4
E SNOW 7:31 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0

TOTALS 240:00 32-74 12-14 6 23 29 19 17 5 14 86
(.432) (.857) TEAM REBS: 4 TOTAL TO: 15 (0 PTS)

WASHINGTON

REBOUNDS
PLAYER POS MIN FGM-FGA FTM-FTA OFF-DEF-TOT AST PF ST TO PTS
====== === === ======= ======= =========== === == == == ===

A DANIELS G 40:12 5-11 0-0 2 3 5 9 0 0 2 10
D STEVENSON G 19:06 0-3 0-0 0 2 2 2 1 1 4 0
A JAMISON F 37:51 7-15 0-2 2 10 12 2 1 0 1 17
C BUTLER F 40:52 13-23 1-1 4 3 7 2 2 4 2 27
B HAYWOOD C 28:49 7-8 3-4 1 9 10 0 2 0 1 17
R MASON JR 19:47 3-6 1-1 0 1 1 3 0 0 0 8
N YOUNG 18:51 5-7 4-4 1 1 2 2 0 0 1 14
D SONGAILA 16:35 2-4 0-0 0 2 2 2 2 1 0 4
A BLATCHE 16:34 2-6 4-4 3 1 4 0 4 1 1 8
D MCGUIRE 1:23 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

TOTALS 240:00 44-83 13-16 13 32 45 23 12 7 12 105
(.530) (.813) TEAM REBS: 8 TOTAL TO: 12 (0 PTS)

CLEVELAND 21 13 28 24 - 86
WASHINGTON 22 31 26 26 - 105

BLOCKED SHOTS: CLEVELAND - Z ILGAUSKAS, D GIBSON. WASHINGTON - B HAYWOOD 5,
A JAMISON 2, A BLATCHE 2, C BUTLER.
3-PT. FIELD GOALS: CLEVELAND 10-20 (.500), D GIBSON 3-5, S PAVLOVIC 1-
2, S BROWN 1-4, DA JONES 2-3, D BROWN 1-3, I NEWBLE 2-3. WASHINGTON 4-
12 (.333), D STEVENSON 0-3, A JAMISON 3-5, C BUTLER 0-2, R MASON JR 1-
2.
TECHNICAL FOULS: NONE.
FLAGRANT FOULS: NONE.
OFFICIALS: JACK NIES, JOE DEROSA, TOMMY NUNEZ.
A - 17,684. T - 2:00.</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (86)

fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
D Gibson 43:51 4-9 2-2 0-0 8 2 13
S Pavlovic 21:00 1-7 0-0 0-2 0 1 3
D Gooden 35:17 5-14 3-5 1-6 0 2 13
S Brown 26:41 6-14 0-0 1-3 3 1 13
Z Ilgauskas 23:28 5-7 2-2 3-10 0 3 12
Da Jones 23:40 3-4 0-0 0-1 4 0 8
D Brown 24:25 3-8 2-2 0-1 3 4 9
I Newble 23:03 4-8 1-1 0-5 0 3 11
Dw Jones 11:04 1-2 2-2 1-1 0 1 4
E Snow 7:31 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 0

______________________________________________________
TOTALS 240:00 32-74 12-14 6-29 19 17 86
______________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.432, FT-.857. 3-Point Goals:
10-20, .500 (D Gibson 3-5, S Pavlovic 1-2, S
Brown 1-4, Da Jones 2-3, D Brown 1-3, I
Newble 2-3). Team Rebounds: 4. Blocked
Shots:2 (Z Ilgauskas, D Gibson). Turnovers:14
(D Gibson 4, D Gooden 2, S Brown 2, E Snow,
Da Jones, D Brown, S Pavlovic, I Newble, Dw
Jones). Steals: 5 (I Newble 2, D Brown, S
Pavlovic, S Brown).


WASHINGTON (105)

fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
A Daniels 40:12 5-11 0-0 2-5 9 0 10
D Stevenson 19:06 0-3 0-0 0-2 2 1 0
A Jamison 37:51 7-15 0-2 2-12 2 1 17
C Butler 40:52 13-23 1-1 4-7 2 2 27
B Haywood 28:49 7-8 3-4 1-10 0 2 17
R Mason Jr 19:47 3-6 1-1 0-1 3 0 8
N Young 18:51 5-7 4-4 1-2 2 0 14
D Songaila 16:35 2-4 0-0 0-2 2 2 4
A Blatche 16:34 2-6 4-4 3-4 0 4 8
D McGuire 1:23 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0

______________________________________________________
TOTALS 240:00 44-83 13-16 13-45 23 12 105
______________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.530, FT-.813. 3-Point Goals:
4-12, .333 (D Stevenson 0-3, A Jamison 3-5, C
Butler 0-2, R Mason Jr 1-2). Team Rebounds:
8. Blocked Shots:10 (B Haywood 5, A Jamison
2, A Blatche 2, C Butler). Turnovers:12 (D
Stevenson 4, A Daniels 2, C Butler 2, A
Jamison, B Haywood, N Young, A Blatche).
Steals: 7 (C Butler 4, D Stevenson, A
Blatche, D Songaila).

-------------------------------------------
CLEVELAND 21 13 28 24 - 86
WASHINGTON 22 31 26 26 - 105
-------------------------------------------

Technical fouls: None.
Flagrant fouls: None. A: 17,684. T: 2:00.
Officials: Jack Nies, Joe Derosa, Tommy Nunez.</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (86) AT WASHINGTON (105)

CLEVELAND

REBOUNDS
PLAYER POS MIN FGM-FGA FTM-FTA OFF-DEF-TOT AST PF ST TO PTS
====== === === ======= ======= =========== === == == == ===

D GIBSON G 43:51 4-9 2-2 0 0 0 8 2 0 4 13
S PAVLOVIC G 21:00 1-7 0-0 0 2 2 0 1 1 1 3
D GOODEN F 35:17 5-14 3-5 1 5 6 0 2 0 2 13
S BROWN 26:41 6-14 0-0 1 2 3 3 1 1 2 13
Z ILGAUSKAS C 23:28 5-7 2-2 3 7 10 0 3 0 0 12
DA JONES 23:40 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 4 0 0 1 8
D BROWN F 24:25 3-8 2-2 0 1 1 3 4 1 1 9
I NEWBLE 23:03 4-8 1-1 0 5 5 0 3 2 1 11
DW JONES 11:04 1-2 2-2 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 4
E SNOW 7:31 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0
A VAREJAO DNP - NOT WITH TEAM
L JAMES DNP - FINGER INJURY

TOTALS 240:00 32-74 12-14 6 23 29 19 17 5 14 86
(.432) (.857) TEAM REBS: 4 TOTAL TO: 15 (15 PTS)

WASHINGTON

REBOUNDS
PLAYER POS MIN FGM-FGA FTM-FTA OFF-DEF-TOT AST PF ST TO PTS
====== === === ======= ======= =========== === == == == ===

A DANIELS G 40:12 5-11 0-0 2 3 5 9 0 0 2 10
D STEVENSON G 19:06 0-3 0-0 0 2 2 2 1 1 4 0
A JAMISON F 37:51 7-15 0-2 2 10 12 2 1 0 1 17
C BUTLER F 40:52 13-23 1-1 4 3 7 2 2 4 2 27
B HAYWOOD C 28:49 7-8 3-4 1 9 10 0 2 0 1 17
R MASON JR 19:47 3-6 1-1 0 1 1 3 0 0 0 8
N YOUNG 18:51 5-7 4-4 1 1 2 2 0 0 1 14
D SONGAILA 16:35 2-4 0-0 0 2 2 2 2 1 0 4
A BLATCHE 16:34 2-6 4-4 3 1 4 0 4 1 1 8
D MCGUIRE 1:23 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
G ARENAS DNP - KNEE SURGERY
O PECHEROV DNP - RIGHT ANKLE

TOTALS 240:00 44-83 13-16 13 32 45 23 12 7 12 105
(.530) (.813) TEAM REBS: 8 TOTAL TO: 12 (8 PTS)

CLEVELAND 21 13 28 24 - 86
WASHINGTON 22 31 26 26 - 105

BLOCKED SHOTS: CLEVELAND - Z ILGAUSKAS, D GIBSON. WASHINGTON - B HAYWOOD 5,
A JAMISON 2, A BLATCHE 2, C BUTLER.
3-PT. FIELD GOALS: CLEVELAND 10-20 (.500), D GIBSON 3-5, S PAVLOVIC 1-
2, S BROWN 1-4, DA JONES 2-3, D BROWN 1-3, I NEWBLE 2-3. WASHINGTON 4-
12 (.333), D STEVENSON 0-3, A JAMISON 3-5, C BUTLER 0-2, R MASON JR 1-
2.
TECHNICAL FOULS: NONE.
FLAGRANT FOULS: NONE.
OFFICIALS: JACK NIES, JOE DEROSA, TOMMY NUNEZ.
A - 17,684. T - 2:00.</div>

 

NBA: CLEVELAND at WASHINGTON

<div class="pre">CLEVELAND (86)

fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
D Gibson 43:51 4-9 2-2 0-0 8 2 13
S Pavlovic 21:00 1-7 0-0 0-2 0 1 3
D Gooden 35:17 5-14 3-5 1-6 0 2 13
S Brown 26:41 6-14 0-0 1-3 3 1 13
Z Ilgauskas 23:28 5-7 2-2 3-10 0 3 12
Da Jones 23:40 3-4 0-0 0-1 4 0 8
D Brown 24:25 3-8 2-2 0-1 3 4 9
I Newble 23:03 4-8 1-1 0-5 0 3 11
Dw Jones 11:04 1-2 2-2 1-1 0 1 4
E Snow 7:31 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
A Varejao DNP - NOT WITH TEAM
L James DNP - FINGER INJURY

______________________________________________________
TOTALS 240:00 32-74 12-14 6-29 19 17 86
______________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.432, FT-.857. 3-Point Goals:
10-20, .500 (D Gibson 3-5, S Pavlovic 1-2, S
Brown 1-4, Da Jones 2-3, D Brown 1-3, I
Newble 2-3). Team Rebounds: 4. Blocked
Shots:2 (Z Ilgauskas, D Gibson). Turnovers:14
(D Gibson 4, D Gooden 2, S Brown 2, E Snow,
Da Jones, D Brown, S Pavlovic, I Newble, Dw
Jones). Steals: 5 (I Newble 2, D Brown, S
Pavlovic, S Brown).


WASHINGTON (105)

fg ft rb
min m-a m-a o-t a pf tp
A Daniels 40:12 5-11 0-0 2-5 9 0 10
D Stevenson 19:06 0-3 0-0 0-2 2 1 0
A Jamison 37:51 7-15 0-2 2-12 2 1 17
C Butler 40:52 13-23 1-1 4-7 2 2 27
B Haywood 28:49 7-8 3-4 1-10 0 2 17
R Mason Jr 19:47 3-6 1-1 0-1 3 0 8
N Young 18:51 5-7 4-4 1-2 2 0 14
D Songaila 16:35 2-4 0-0 0-2 2 2 4
A Blatche 16:34 2-6 4-4 3-4 0 4 8
D McGuire 1:23 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
G Arenas DNP - KNEE SURGERY
O Pecherov DNP - RIGHT ANKLE

______________________________________________________
TOTALS 240:00 44-83 13-16 13-45 23 12 105
______________________________________________________

Percentages: FG-.530, FT-.813. 3-Point Goals:
4-12, .333 (D Stevenson 0-3, A Jamison 3-5, C
Butler 0-2, R Mason Jr 1-2). Team Rebounds:
8. Blocked Shots:10 (B Haywood 5, A Jamison
2, A Blatche 2, C Butler). Turnovers:12 (D
Stevenson 4, A Daniels 2, C Butler 2, A
Jamison, B Haywood, N Young, A Blatche).
Steals: 7 (C Butler 4, D Stevenson, A
Blatche, D Songaila).

-------------------------------------------
CLEVELAND 21 13 28 24 - 86
WASHINGTON 22 31 26 26 - 105
-------------------------------------------

Technical fouls: None.
Flagrant fouls: None. A: 17,684. T: 2:00.
Officials: Jack Nies, Joe Derosa, Tommy Nunez.</div>

 

WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- The Cleveland Cavaliers could take somepointers from the Washington Wizards on playing without asuperstar.


Caron Butler scored 27 points while Brendan Haywood added 17 and10 rebounds as the Wizards pounded the shorthanded Cavaliers,105-86, on Wednesday.


Antawn Jamison chipped 17 points and 12 rebounds and rookie NickYoung scored 14 for the Wizards, who shot 52 percent (43-of-82)from the floor.


Washington improved to 6-4 without All-Star guard GilbertArenas, who is out the next three months after having surgery onhis left knee for the second time.


"We miss Gil in the worst way," Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said."We miss Etan (Thomas). We miss Oleksiy (Pecherov). We haveto hold on to something - Antawn and Caron's leadership and whatthey do on the floor. At the same time, guys are stepping up."

"We don't feel sorry for anybody," Haywood said. "We struggleto have enough players for practice. With Gilbert Arenas out,we have 30 points missing from our lineup. ... We're basicallyplaying nine guys. We can't feel sorry for anybody. We're justas shorthanded as anyone in the league. They miss theirsuperstar. Obviously, we miss ours as well."


The Wizards got a bit of revenge against the Cavaliers, whoswept them in the playoffs while Arenas and Butler were hurt.

"The win felt good," Butler said. "It felt good to get a winagainst Cleveland after they swept us in the playoffs - sittingon the sidelines with Agent Zero, going through that depressingstage. Whenever you see them, you're itching to play againstthem."


Meanwhile, the Cavaliers struggled once again without theleague's leading scorer, LeBron James. James sat out a fourthstraight game due to a sprained left index finger and watched instreet clothes as Cleveland remained winless without him.

"Obviously, with him, it's a lot easier (for the defense) outthere," said Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who got into early foul troubleand finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds. "More thananything, as a team, offensively, we've really been struggling,our shot selection, our decision-making - it's just not beengood."


"I've seen the guy (James) the last two playoffs," Jamison said."I didn't miss the guy at all. It actually felt pretty good.I'm good friends with him. I wish him a speedy recovery. I'mjust kind of glad it wasn't tonight."


Daniel Gibson, Drew Gooden and Shannon Brown scored 13 pointsapiece for Cleveland, which shot 44 percent (24-of-54) from thefloor.


The Cavaliers have been painful to watch without James, havinglost every game by at least nine points and entered this oneaveraging just 76.3 points without the three-time All-Star.

Cleveland also is without injured players Larry Hughes (bruisedleft leg), Donyell Marshall (sprained right wrist) and CedricSimmons (sprained left ankle).


"Every team goes through that at some point," Ilgauskas said."Nobody feels sorry for you, so we just have to do the best wecan with the guys that we have. Injuries happen, unfortunatelyand we got hit really early - and bad, too."


While Cleveland has struggled without its best player,Washington is showing it can get by without Arenas, largelybecause of Butler. On Saturday, he scored 29 points on 10-of-18shooting with seven assists in a 101-97 win over Toronto.

In this one, the six-year veteran scored 12 of his 27 points inthe first half and helped the Wizards outscore the Cavaliers,31-13, in the second quarter en route to a 53-34 lead at thebreak.


Butler then scored seven points during a 11-2 third-quarter runthat helped Washington take a 64-36 lead with 8:46 left in thethird. The Wizards led 69-52 after three periods.

"Early on, we couldn't score, but we couldn't stop anybody,either," Cavaliers forward Ira Newble said.


Cleveland used a 14-7 run in the final period to cut into its28-point deficit, but it could not get closer then eight pointsat 88-79 with 5:41 left.


The Wizards responded to the run as Haywood made a layup andJamison added another to make it 92-79 with 4:50 remaining, andthe Wizards led by double digits the rest of the way.

"When you spot a team that many points, especially on the road,it makes it next to impossible to win the game," Ilgauskas said."All it takes is for them to make a couple of small runs andthe game is out of reach."