LeBron, Cavs Desperate For A Win In Miami
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MIAMI (SportsDirect Inc.) -- The Cleveland Cavaliers have dropped their last 10 visits to Miami and attempt to halt that dubious streak when they visit the Heat on Saturday.
Cleveland's last victory in Miami occurred on Jan. 25, 2010 when LeBron James was still on his first tour of duty with the Cavaliers and hadn't yet joined the Heat as a free agent.
Cleveland is on a roll with eight victories in its last 10 games and Friday's 109-103 win in Orlando allowed the Cavaliers to become the first Eastern Conference team to clinch a playoff spot.
"We thought we were going to make the playoffs, so it wasn't really a big deal to clinch," Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue told reporters. "We have bigger things ahead of us. We have a bigger deal in front of us." The Heat have lost three of their last five games and are tied for fourth place in the East, a half-game behind the Atlanta Hawks.
Miami All-Star guard Dwyane Wade is just 13 away from becoming the 41st player in NBA history to reach 20,000 career points.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Ohio (Cleveland), FSN Sun (Miami)
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (49-19): Backup forward Channing Frye has averaged 14 points and made 7-of-11 3-point attempts over the past two games and has started to make an impact for Cleveland. Frye only reached double digits in one of his first seven appearances for the Cavaliers after being acquired from Orlando but has found his shooting stroke by making 26-of-39 shots - including 18-of-28 from 3-point range - while averaging 14.2 points over the last five contests. "This one's definitely for him," forward LeBron James told reporters after Frye made four 3-pointers and scored 14 points on Friday. "He showed up and showed why he's a valuable part of our team. He has the ability to shoot the ball."
ABOUT THE HEAT (39-29): Backup center Hassan Whiteside has been spectacular since returning from a one-game suspension and had a streak of 13 consecutive double-doubles end when he had 17 points and seven rebounds in Thursday's 109-106 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Whiteside is averaging 17.6 points, 13.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots during the stretch and his double-double streak matched an NBA record for a reserve, set by Boston's Paul Silas in 1975. "He's not caring about anything other than being dominant when he's on the basketball court," Wade told reporters. "He's playing like a monster out there. We would love to get that Hassan every night. We would be a very good team if we can continue to get that Hassan."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Heat are 37-13 all-time at home against the Cavaliers.
2. Cleveland backup C Tristan Thompson had 11 points and 15 rebounds against the Magic for his fourth double-double in six games.
3. Miami backup SG Josh Richardson is averaging 15.8 points and shooting 65.9 percent from the field over the past five games.
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