Article published November 03, 2009
LeBron, Shaq lead Cavs over Wizards
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CLEVELAND — LeBron James scored 27 points, Shaquille O’Neal added a season-high 21 while wearing out Washington’s big men and the Cleveland Cavaliers won their third straight, beating the Wizards 102-90 on Tuesday night.
The Cavs trailed by 18 in the second quarter before turning up their defense and relying on their superstar combo of James and O’Neal to win their sixth straight at home over the Wizards.
Mo Williams scored 15 and Daniel Gibson 14 for the Cavs, who made nine 3-pointers in the second half — four in the fourth quarter when James was out. Williams and Gibson were a combined 7-for-9 on 3s.
Caron Butler and Gilbert Arenas scored 22 apiece to lead the Wizards.
O’Neal’s integration into their offense has been a slow process for the Cavs, but they are starting to figure out how to best use the perennial All-Star center, who came over in a June trade from Phoenix.
O’Neal had easily his best game since coming to Cleveland. He made 7 of 9 field goals, 7 of 10 free throws, grabbed eight rebounds and put Washington’s frontline in foul trouble.
He also endeared himself to Cleveland fans by flattening Wizards guard DeShawn Stevenson on a drive in the first half. Stevenson has been a pest to the Cavs, engaging in a war of words with James in the playoffs two years ago.
The Cavs have been using the 7-foot-1 O’Neal and his 7-foot-3 backup, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, together with mixed results. But the pair are getting more comfortable and confident with every second they spend on the floor and have the potential to be a matchup nightmare for any team.
Cleveland only led 78-73 after three, but the Cavs pushed their lead to 94-79 by making four 3s as James rested on the bench. James only played four minutes in the fourth quarter.
Butler, back after missing one game with a bruised left knee, scored 17 in the first half but he and his teammates cooled off after halftime and fell into a bad habit of rushing shots.
Cleveland trailed by 39-21 with 9:19 to go in the second quarter and were still down 12 when James re-entered the game with 7:35 left before half. But with James scoring 10 points, Gibson hitting two 3-pointers and O’Neal scoring eight and drawing fouls inside, the Cavs were within 54-50 at halftime.
The Wizards had no answer for O’Neal and the Cavs used it to their advantage.
They slowed the game down and pounded the ball inside to their big man, forcing JaVale McGee, Andray Blatche and Brendan Haywood to hack or pay. McGee picked up four fouls in less than 10 minutes.
NOTES: James did not vote and wanted to stay out of any discussion on Issue 3, a proposal to allow casinos in Ohio that was strongly supported by Cavs owner Dan Gilbert. “I don’t want to get involved in that,” James said with a laugh. “That’s a sensitive subject in the NBA these days.” ... During a timeout, Butler walked to midcourt and hugged a young couple who got engaged while the teams were huddling. ... Cavs G Delonte West was indicted on additional weapons and traffic charges stemming from his Sept. 17 arrest in Maryland. He scored just four points in 20 minutes but was active at both ends.
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