Game Preview – Monday January 25, 2010 – Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat

Game Preview – Monday January 25, 2010 – Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat

This will be the 3rd straight game of superstar vs. superstar for the Cavaliers. So far, so good, as LeBron & company were able to outlast Kobe & Kevin Durant. Now it’s back on the road to face Dwyane Wade & the Miami Heat.

The Cavaliers are coming off of a hard fought win at home vs. Oklahoma City. LeBron led the way with 37 points, 9 rebounds, and 12 assists & Boobie Gibson hit the game winning 3 with 8 seconds left to give the Cavaliers their 4th win in a row & their 6th in the last 7 games. Shaq added 22 points on 8-10 shooting in his best game offensively as a Cavalier.

The Heat are coming off a 115-84 thrashing of the Kings at home. Miami was led by Wade, who finished with 27 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 blocks in just 30 minutes. Michael Beasley added 21 points & 13 rebounds, his 8th double double this season & 3rd this month. Since Beasley’s unfulfilled guarantee, in which Charlotte shocked & crushed Miami 104-65, Miami is 2-0 and has outscored their opponents (even though it was Washington & Sacramento) 227-172.

Monday January 25, 2010

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat

7:30 PM EST

FSN Ohio/NBA TV/WTAM 1100

Probable Starters:

Cleveland:

Daniel Gibson

Anthony Parker

LeBron James

J.J Hickson

Shaquille O’Neal

Miami:

Rafer Alston

Dwayne Wade

Quentin Richardson

Michael Beasley

Jermaine O’Neal

All-Time Series:

• Overall: Cleveland 36 (92.2 PPG) – Miami 42 (91.9 PPG)

• LeBron era: Cleveland 12 (93.3 PPG) – Miami 11 (93.4 PPG)

• The Cavaliers have won 7 of the last 8 meetings (and 8 of the last 10), including 3 of the last 4 in Miami.

Last Meeting:

November 12, 2009: Cleveland 111 – Miami 104.

It was all about the offense until the 4th quarter in November. Wade & LeBron put on a show, combining for 70 points in the Cavaliers 7 point win. Even thought they went just 17-41 from the field, they went a combined 31-39 from the foul line, which went towards almost half of their point total. Mo Williams added 25 on 10-15 shooting for the Cavaliers, while Beasley contributed 24 & 6 rebounds for Miami in a losing effort.

Are the Cavs responsible?:

The Cavaliers were visiting Miami in November when Miami was at 6-1, averaging 97.3 points per game, giving up just 88.6. Since then, they are 17-19, averaging 97.6 points per game, giving up 98.6.

Cleveland’s Highlight Performance:

April 1, 2006: Cleveland 106 – Miami 99.

LeBron James: 18-36 FG; 2-6 3s; 13-14 FT; 47 Pts; 12 Rebs; 9 Assists; 2 Steals; 4 Turnovers

Miami’s Highlight Performance:

March 12, 2006: Miami 98 – Cleveland 92.

Dwyane Wade: 11-26 FG; 13-18 FT; 35 Pts; 9 Rebs; 7 Assists; 2 Steals; 1 Block; 2 Turnovers

Is 90 enough?:

Miami is 9-20 when allowing 90+ points.

Cleveland career stats vs. Heat:

Player	Games	Minutes	Points	Rebounds	Assists	FG%	FT%	3pt%
Daniel Gibson	12	23.1	7.8	1.4	0.8	36.5%	78.6%	41.7%
LeBron James	23	41.7	28.5	5.8	7.5	46.9%	75.8%	37.0%
Shaquille O’Neal	30	35.1	23.6	10.6	2.4	55.6%	51.9%	0.0%
Anthony Parker	12	29.0	12.7	3.5	2.7	53.7%	78.6%	54.3%

Miami career stats vs. Cavaliers:

Player	Games	Minutes	Points	Rebounds	Assists	FG%	FT%	3pt%
Rafer Alston	28	25.2	11.1	3.0	4.1	45.1%	82.3%	44.0%
Jermaine O’Neal	31	31.6	18.0	7.7	2.1	50.2%	73.8%	66.7%
Quentin Richardson	21	30.9	13.6	4.9	1.6	44.3%	72.0%	41.0%
Dwyane Wade	20	38.6	27.6	5.4	6.7	46.0%	77.6%	27.3%

Who’s Hot:

Player	Time Period	Points	Rebounds/Assists	FG%	Misc.
Michael Beasley	10 games	18.3	7.0 RPG	49.0%	42.9% 3pt
James Jones	Has appeared in last 2 games, after not playing in 13 straight
Jamaal Magloire	Has appeared in 4 of past 5 games, averaging 8.0 MPG
Jermaine O’Neal	7 games	13.4	7.4 RPG	58.3%	1.6 BPG
Dwyane Wade	13 games	28.8	6.5 APG	52.9%	37.5% 3pt
Dorell Wright	4 games	11.0	3.0 APG	44.7%	50.0% 3pt

Who’s Not:

Player	Time Period	Points	Rebounds/Assists	FG%	Misc.
Rafer Alston	5 games	6.6	3.8 APG	36.7%	27.6 MPG
Joel Anthony	6 games	2.2	2.2 RPG	37.5%	15.5 MPG
Carlos Arroyo	0 minutes in 5 of last 10 games
Mario Chalmers	8 games	4.6	2.9 APG	43.3%	17.0 MPG
Daequan Cook	6 for last 26 from 3’s
Yakhouba Diawara	Has only appeared in 3 games
Udonis Haslem	9 games	7.1	6.1 RPG	39.1%	23.0 MPG
Quentin Richardson	5 games	4.8	3.4 RPG	38.1%	38.5% 3pt

Match-up to Watch:

Shaquille O’Neal vs. Miami centers.

Shaq could have another big game against the trio of Miami centers consisting of Jermaine O’Neal, Joel Anthony & Jamaal Magloire. There are zero 7 footers in that group & Magloire is probably the biggest @ around 255-260.

Rotation to Watch:

Arroyo-Wade-Richardson-Beasley-O’Neal.

With the recent acquisition of Rafer Alston, this fivesome hasn’t seen much time together lately. However, it is still their 2nd most used lineup, and their most successful, averaging 1.15 points per possession, while allowing only 0.91, and having a +/- of +50.

What to Watch:

• Turnovers. Miami averages the 3rd lowest turnovers per game in the NBA, at just 12.9. They also force the 9th (tied) most in the league, with their opponents averaging just under 15 turnovers per game. The Cavaliers, who are prone to turnovers, need to take care of the basketball & not be their own worst enemy.

• Rebounding. Miami averages just 40.5 rebounds per game, tied for 23rd in the NBA. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, allow just 37.9 rebounds per game, 2nd in the NBA. The Cavaliers should have no problem winning the battle of the boards.

• Wade vs. LeBron. They put on a show whenever they do battle (see “last meeting” and “highlight performances.”), and this one should be no different.

• The supporting casts. Mo Williams will miss his 3rd straight game for the Cavaliers, which will obviously leave them short their #2 option. Miami is just 11-12 when Beasley shoots less than 12 shots per game and just 7-9 when he scores less than 15 points.

• Shaq. Don’t look now, but Shaq’s been on a tear of late, and could continue it against another mis-matched opponent. In the last 10 games, Shaq has averaged 12.8 points on 66.2% shooting.

Game Preview – Monday January 25, 2010 – Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat

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