A win is a win, right? Cavs beat Blazers in OT 97-92

by John Bena (aka CavsBlogger) on Mar 20, 2009 7:18 AM CDT

The Family Photo is becoming a favorite at The Q
(David Liam Kyle/Getty Images)

Mama always said there would be games like this. It was ugly at times, unwatchable at others, but the Cavaliers once again found a way, though just in the nick of time, to get a win at The Q, beating a beat up Portland Trailblazers team 97-92 in Overtime.

For the Cavs, the recipe for the win followed many others during their current 7 game winning streak - sleep walk through large portions of the game, keep it close, take control in the 4th quarter. This time, however, the Blazers, behind 24 points from Brandon Roy, kept on coming back, including 4 straight points in the final 25 seconds of regulation to force the OT.

LeBron James, who seemed to take much of the 1st half off, got into the game late and ended up with his 7th Triple-Double of the season(24th of his career). He also made three straight plays in the OT that sealed the deal for the Cavs. Leading by 2, James hit a running 5 foot hook shot, LeBron blocked a Travis Outlaw 3, then went inside again drilling an 8-foot hook shot for a 6-point lead and a Blazer timeout.

Relying on jump shots, the Cavs looked sluggish for much of the first half. Shooting 19%(4-21) in the 1st, the Cavs only scored 12 points and fell behind by 11 early in the 2nd. That is when the Cavs made an effort to get to the rim. In the 3rd quarter, the Cavaliers decided the paint was the place to go and stayed there. The team scored just 8 points in the paint in the first half, then 34 points in the paint in the 2nd half and overtime. It was definitely the difference.

This is not a game the Cavaliers will put on any type of highlight reel but it is a win and right now that is all that matters.

Next up for Cleveland is another team riding a 7-game winning streak, the Atlanta Hawks, Saturday at The Q.

GO CAVS!

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Worst shooting performance of the year....

against an above average team and they still pull out the win. Championship teams win at crunch time! The Cavs and LeBron seem to be on a roll that may not end until they hoist the big trophy.

If Ben and Wally come back strong and Boobie regains his touch for the playoffs we could be the favorites this year!

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

by Juannieboy on Mar 20, 2009 9:57 AM CDT reply actions

The Cavs had a better FG% than the Blazers

Who were without 2 starters and on a back to back.

Karma

by Sabonis4Ever on Mar 20, 2009 1:31 PM CDT up reply actions

The Blazers are a team on the rise

unfortunately, I fear they’ll always be haunted by not taking Durant in the draft over Abraham Lincoln.

Still looking for 1985 Regular Season games on DVD/VHS

by Hardcore Legend on Mar 20, 2009 1:36 PM CDT up reply actions

If you say so

Karma

by Sabonis4Ever on Mar 20, 2009 2:03 PM CDT up reply actions

Do you honestly believe that Oden

is going to be anything more than a waste pick? He’s playing 1/3rd of the teams games since he’s been drafted and for a giant, he gets destroyed by lesser players.

The Trailblazers are so ridiculously talented that it is scary to think that if they had taken the best player in the draft (Durant), they’d probably be a #3 seed in the West.

Still looking for 1985 Regular Season games on DVD/VHS

by Hardcore Legend on Mar 20, 2009 2:41 PM CDT up reply actions

Look up his stats some time, per 36 minutes and what not.

I’m not going in depth about this on a Cavs blog. Only time will tell.

Karma

by Sabonis4Ever on Mar 20, 2009 2:54 PM CDT up reply actions

So the #1 overall pick

should be used to draft a backup center?

You don’t have to debate it. He’s never going to be nearly the player Kevin Durant will be.

Still looking for 1985 Regular Season games on DVD/VHS

by Hardcore Legend on Mar 20, 2009 3:00 PM CDT up reply actions

First time at this SB blog

First, let me just say: AWESOME NAME.

Second, this is how Oden will pan out:

He’s starting to be forgotten by nationwide media, which is perfect for the Blazers, cause he just flat out couldn’t handle the attention. The book will close and everyone will say Durant was the pick and we screwed up. Oden will come off the bench next year, slowly and steadily improving his game. By 2010/2011 he’ll be hitting his stride and the whole discussion will blow back open while the Thunder struggle as an entire franchise and the Blazers position for deep playoff runs.

Not to bad-mouth your God, but the treatment Greg dished out to LeBron will become more common place. The dude is so tired of not playing, the injuries, the talk that I don’t think the reputation as the clown-prince of centers will stick. He will be the hard foul machine coming off the bench.

As for RIGHT NOW, Kevin Durant is a much better player. But we’re logjammed at the SF (remeber Martell Webster? The guy who scored 24 points in a quarter last season? He hasn’t played for us all year. And you didn’t get to see Mr. Fantastic Nic Batum play in your yard either) so there wasn’t a need for him.

Life is hilarious.

by SolGoode on Mar 21, 2009 2:13 PM CDT up reply actions

I know Blazers fans have to keep telling themselves that Oden

isn’t a bust, but after reading through the thread over on the Blazers SN blog, It’s almost gotten to Baghdad Bob levels of clinging to tiny bits of hope to ignore the obvious.

As far as this:

Not to bad-mouth your God, but the treatment Greg dished out to LeBron will become more common place. The dude is so tired of not playing, the injuries, the talk that I don’t think the reputation as the clown-prince of centers will stick. He will be the hard foul machine coming off the bench.

Was this a really big deal for Blazers fans? They mentioned it quite a few times in said thread. Lebron gets hard fouls every game by second stringers trying to make a name for themselves. If this was some grand coming out for the new Greg Oden, congratulations to a taller Ronnie Turiaf.

The Blazers are a great, deep team. Their window has started and they’ve got 4 years to get to championship levels of play before their depth starts leaving for contracts. Hopefully they can get their in spite of Oden.

Still looking for 1985 Regular Season games on DVD/VHS

by Hardcore Legend on Mar 21, 2009 2:27 PM CDT up reply actions

Nobody is leaving a Paul Allen team for bigger contracts

We have the money to resign every single player (remember cap space does not affect your ability to resign players, only to sign new ones. Paul Allen has shown he will pay luxury tax for a wining team. Greg Oden has never been 100% healthy in the past 3 years, you can say that is a reason he is a bust. Unlike other number 1 picks who have been busts, it’s not like Greg sucks, he has just been hurt. Write him off if you want, it will just make you look stupid in 2 years when he is an all-star.

Karma

by Sabonis4Ever on Mar 23, 2009 12:47 PM CDT up reply actions