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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| CAVALIERS | 35 | 31 | 22 | 14 | 102 |
| MAGIC | 28 | 23 | 17 | 25 | 93 |
Recap:
ORLANDO (NBA.com exclusive) -- LeBron James and Mo Williams combined for 64 points and the Cleveland Cavaliers finally put together the kind of game they wanted here 5 1/2 months ago in a convincing 102-93 victory over the Orlando Magic.
The Cavs led virtually throughout the nationally televised game, an early-season rematch of the Magic's 4-2 victory in the Eastern Conference finals.
Magic center Dwight Howard was a non-factor after being whistled for two fouls in the first three minutes while he was trying to defend Shaquille O'Neal. Howard finished with 11 points and seven rebounds.
"We were in attack mode the whole game and put pressure on their defense," said James, who scored a game-high 36 points. "Shaq put pressure on [Howard] and we were able to get him into some foul trouble."
Vince Carter led the Magic with 29 points.
The Cavaliers (5-3) had lost six straight in Orlando, including three games in a bitterly disappointing conference final. They also lost eight of their last 11 regular-season games against the Magic.
"We haven't had too much success in the past here," James said. "To get a road win early in a season like this in a hostile environment is a good win for us."
It was the Magic's first loss at home since Game 5 of the NBA Finals on June 14, and the margin was a little shocking. Cleveland led by 22 early in the fourth quarter.
"We've got a lot of work to do and it starts with understanding where we are right now," said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy. "And where we are right now is a bad basketball team."
The rematch element could be overstated, since James, Williams and Howard were the only starters Wednesday who also started in the Eastern final.
And the anticipated matchup between Howard and O'Neal fizzled because of foul trouble. Five fouls limited O'Neal to 20 minutes, 10 points and four rebounds.
"With those guys plagued with three [early] fouls, it made it a little tough for them to match up with each other," said Cleveland coach Mike Brown.
Orlando's only lead was 9-7 after a jumper by Brandon Bass with 8:59 left in the first quarter. Howard was already on the bench with two fouls and the first of Williams' 3-pointers then launched a 10-0 Cavaliers run that put them firmly in charge for the rest of the game.
"Mo came out on fire, and he carried us for most of the night," James said.
"The guy who was the difference in the game was Mo Williams," said Van Gundy. "As good as LeBron was, we can win with him having big game, we've done it before. But Mo Williams [shooting 9-for-9 and 4-for-4 3-pointers] at halftime, I don't know if we can live with that on top of what LeBron did."
Williams finished with 28 points. Two of his 3-pointers came at the outset of the second quarter with James on the bench, quickly expanding a seven-point lead to 13.
Three baskets by Carter cut the gap to eight, but James and J.J. Hickson shot eight free throws within a span of 35 seconds, and James' 3-pointer with one second left in the half put Cleveland up 66-51.
The Magic (6-3) never got the lead under 13 again until Carter nailed a 3-pointer with 1:16 left in the game.
Magic forward Ryan Anderson sat out a third straight game with a sprained right ankle, and Rashard Lewis has yet to play because of a 10-game league suspension that expires after Friday night.
James, who can become a free agent after the season, declared before the game that the subject is off-limits.
Asked for a second time within a few minutes to comment on whether he would like to play with Dwyane Wade in Miami next season, James said:
"Honestly, this free-agent talk is getting old. I think tonight is probably the last night I'll answer free-agent questions. It's getting old for me and my teammates and I don't want any distractions so this will be the last time I answer free-agent questions this year."
That resolution is likely to be tested Thursday night when the Cavs play at Miami.
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POSTGAME VIDEO:
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Live Baseline Blog:
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Preview:
STATS -- In a rematch of last season's Eastern Conference finals, perhaps the most intrigue surrounds two players that weren't even a part of the series.
Shaquille O'Neal and the Cleveland Cavaliers meet Vince Carter and the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night for the first time since the playoffs.
Cleveland (4-3) was the top seed in the Eastern Conference last season, but was ousted in six games by Orlando (6-2), which went on to fall in five games to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA finals.
Much of the blame for that surprise exit was placed on the Cavaliers' inability to defend Dwight Howard, who averaged 25.8 points and 13 rebounds in the series.
Looking to take care of that problem, Cleveland traded for O'Neal in June and he insisted the Cavaliers would no longer need to double-team Howard. While coach Mike Brown wasn't committing to O'Neal's game plan, he was hoping for a better outcome.
"They're a very good, well-coached team that presented problems for us (last year)," he said. "Hopefully it will be different this year."
O'Neal, then with Phoenix, and Howard faced each other once last season. Howard had 19 points in Orlando's 111-99 home win on March 3, but he was held to only seven rebounds - his second-lowest total.
"He's young, agile and active," O'Neal said, "but nothing I haven't seen before."
Howard guided the Magic to NBA finals for the first time since 1994-95 when they were led by a younger and much more dominant O'Neal. While Howard may be surpassing Shaq's legacy in Orlando, O'Neal was less than complimentary of the Magic star over the summer.
"I can't be impressed by something I invented," O'Neal said. "I mean, you look at what he is doing, I've been there and done that. Every street he is driving down in Orlando, I have been on that street. Every nightclub, every restaurant - I have been there and done that."
O'Neal has had some trouble fitting in with Cleveland's system, but the Cavaliers appear pleased with how it's working.
He played 19 minutes in a 100-91 victory over New York on Friday, finishing with seven points and four rebounds. Cleveland held a double-digit lead for most of that game, which may have contributed to his lack of playing time.
Reigning MVP LeBron James scored 33 points with eight rebounds and nine assists.
Despite the series loss to the Magic, James put up big numbers by averaging 38.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and eight assists. Including playoff games, however, the Cavaliers have lost six straight and eight of nine in Orlando.
After falling by 28 to Oklahoma City on Sunday, the Magic bounced back with a 93-81 victory at Charlotte on Tuesday. Howard finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds and six assists while Carter made a surprise return from a sore left ankle to finish with 15 points off the bench.
Carter - Orlando's big offseason acquisition - had missed four of the previous five games and didn't think he'd be able to play after not participating in the morning's shootaround. He was feeling better later in the day, however, and asked if he could come off the bench for only the eighth time in 781 career games.
"I got here and I was doing the (scouting) board and Vince came in and said he was going to give it a shot," coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I was totally surprised."
Carter averaged 19.0 points against the Cavaliers last season while with New Jersey, but shot only 37.5 percent in those games.
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Game Notes:
Nov. 11 vs. Cleveland: Orlando is 38-35 all-time vs. Cleveland (24-13 at home, 14-22 on the road) during the regular season…The Magic went 2-1 last season against the Cavs...Orlando is 4-2 vs. Cleveland in the playoffs (3-0 at home, 1-2 on the road, 2009 Eastern Conference Finals)...The Magic have won eight of the last 11 regular season matchups with the Cavaliers…Orlando has won 10 of the last 14 games played at home, and three of the last five at Cleveland...Anthony Johnson played 28 games with Cleveland in 2000-01…Assistant Coach Brendan Malone served as head coach of the Cavaliers for the final 18 games of the 2004-05 season, after serving as an assistant coach…His son, Michael, is currently an assistant coach for the Cavs.
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. CAVS: 41 pts., Tracy McGrady (@ Orlando, 12-25-03)
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. MAGIC: 43 pts., LeBron James (@ Cleveland, 3-17-09)
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