Cavs look to continue home dominance against Portland

by John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) on Mar 19, 2009 8:00 AM CDT

The Cavaliers can almost taste it. Not quite, but almost. Sitting with a 4 game lead in the battle for the #1 seed in the East, with only 15 games to go(Boston only has 13 remaining), the Cavaliers are enjoying a heavy dose of home cooking. Only a trip to New Jersey on Sunday will disrupt a near two week stretch at The Q.

That continues tonight when Greg Oden, Brandon Roy and the Portland Trailblazers come to town tonight. The Blazers are in the midst of a 5-game road trip in which they have won the last two after dropping the opener. Last night, the Blazers went to Indiana and beat up on the Pacers 95-85, the 7th win in 10 games for Portland.

The Cavaliers beat Portland in their first match up of the season, 104-98, back in January in Portland. Like the Cavs, the Blazers are a dominant home team having only lost once at home since that game. The Blazers would love to return the favor to the Wine and Gold who are an impressive 30-1 at home.

If the Blazers are going to get it done they are going to need to have a huge game from Brandon Roy. Roy is averaging 23 points per game and can get red hot. The Blazers get 18 per game from LaMarcus Aldridge and PG Steve Blake adds nearly 10 per game. It is going to be important for the Cavs to defend the three point line because Portland has some sharp-shooters and teams that can hit the long-range shot has given the Cavaliers trouble as of late.

Portland also gets a boost from the return of Greg Oden, who played last night for the first time in a month. Oden has been suffering from a knee injury, though he was able to play 12 minutes against the Pacers scoring 4 points and grabbing 7 rebounds.

For the Cavs, with Wally Szczerbiak now out with a knee injury, Sasha Pavlovic will continue to get big minutes, with Tarence Kinsey likely to return to the rotation as well. We all know Daniel Gibson will be heard from again this season but you have to winder just how much confidence Mike Brown has in Boobie now that he has sat the bench the past two games.

Portland is a young, up and coming team that can beat anyone in the NBA. The Cavaliers are a dominant home team with an eye on the prize. You get the sense that LeBron James simply will not let this team lose right now, especially at home. Look for the Cavs to pull away in the 2nd half and to continue their winning ways.

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Comments

I agree.

that LeBron won’t let them lose…..they have worked hard to be in this position……although the injuries are starting to pyle up again and that is a concern.

Oh The People You Meet When Your Out of Ammo.........

by Juannieboy on Mar 19, 2009 10:40 AM CDT reply actions

A win here would just be gravy for Portland

The Blazers will likely be missing Aldridge tonight after suffering a concussion against Indiana last night, and our starting SF Nicolas Batum rolled his ankle near the end of the game and is questionable. We haven’t had many games we expected to lose this season, but given the circumstances and the opponent, I’ll be happy with keeping the game competitive. Good luck and here’s to no more injuries on either side.

A three-pointer is not a "triple." A triple is a hit in baseball.

by GustyJ on Mar 19, 2009 11:17 AM CDT reply actions

Thanks.

Besides the being a Cavs fan, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Blazers. Especially when Sabonis, ’Sheed, and Mighty Mouse were running the show. However, I am very impressed with the direction the team is going and they are on their way to up.

by ilamuku on Mar 19, 2009 5:39 PM CDT up reply actions

No Aldridge is huge

The Cavs have REALLY been struggling with interior D since Big Ben went down, espeically whenever Andyman’s not in the game. LMA may have given the Cavs some trouble. Cleveland has been flirting with a loss in its last 5-6 games, but Portland should be hard pressed to put up too much of a fight if Channing Frye has to play a major role.

Here’s hoping Big Ben comes back healthy and ready to roll for the playoffs.

Q: Is Greg favoring his knee?
Frye: He favors dunking on your head, that's what he favors.

by KP Corleone on Mar 19, 2009 12:09 PM CDT reply actions

No Batum doesn't help either

Not that LBJ can be contained, least of all by a stringbean like Nic, but Batum at least works hard at ball denial. If LBJ draws fouls as he is capable of doing, being shorthanded at the 3 could become a real problem.

Enjoy the game Cav fans. And beat the Celtics

"its tough to play with one eye, unless you're a pirate." Delonte West
"una canasta a Pau en la cara" Rudy

by Honka Playboy on Mar 19, 2009 12:16 PM CDT up reply actions

Hell yeah!

Man, I hate the Celtics. Too cocky!

by ilamuku on Mar 19, 2009 5:40 PM CDT up reply actions

aldridge updated to questionable, batum out

for those who care

by appel82 on Mar 19, 2009 1:12 PM CDT reply actions

Need help

I don’t know why the Cav’s didn’t try to get some more help for their run to the playoffs? Szczerbiak hasn’t had a decent game since…i really can’t remember? Pavlovic is no help, and Gibson has been throwing up bricks all season. Ilgauskas is the only other consistant player other than Lebron.

by Deejay on Mar 19, 2009 6:37 PM CDT reply actions