Container Top
Homes   Jobs   Cars   Shopping
Search

Events Calendar

EVENT SEARCH:

In This Section


Most Read Stories


Blogs:


Pets:
Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens

The Heldenfiles:
Friday Night Notebook

Patrick McManamon:
For your Saturday entertainment …

Akron Zips:
Hitchens leads Zips in second-half comeback

Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster

Cleveland Browns:
Holmgren expresses interest in Browns position

Kent State Sports:
Kent State blown out in second half, loses to Temple 13-47

Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs vs. Philadelphia 76ers

Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad

Varsity Letters:
Four area football teams play tonight

All Da King's Men:
Headed For Disaster

Blog of Mass Destruction:
Will Health Care Reform Pass?

Akron Law Café:
Federal Judge Declares DOMA Unconstitutional

See Jane Style:
Vintage Chic

Car Chase:
TIME TO GET YOUR COLLECTOR CARS WINTERIZED

Let's Talk Real Estate:
Silverdome Potentially SOLD!

Ohio Travels with Betty:
George is looking for a Thanksgiving buffet in Akron.

Sound Check:
Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall

HRLite House:
Colloquium at University of Akron

Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go

Five keys to victory in Cavs series

By Brian Windhorst
Beacon Journal sportswriter

POSTED: 12:57 p.m. EDT, Apr 18, 2008

Control the tempo — The Wizards want to play fast and increase the number of possessions in the game. They only won nine games this season when they scored less than 100 points and only three when they scored less than 80. The Cavs are not a great offensive team; they want to push the ball off misses, and they want to keep it a defensive battle. The Cavs only won nine games this season when they gave up 100 points (in regulation).

Defensive rebounds — Both the Wizards and the Cavs are in the top five in the NBA in offensive rebounding. For the Cavs, getting putbacks is a significant percentage of their offense, and they rely on fastbreaks off defensive rebounds to get easy points. So whichever team is able to limit the other's offensive rebounds, that is what is better on the defensive end, will have an edge.

The LeBron Rules — The Wizards will likely attempt to double-team James on the outside to force him to give up the ball in crunch time. They have to make sure to do it with aggression and not allow him to split. James must be able to distribute the ball to beat the attack, and most important, his teammates must make open shots

Talking and listening — It is clear that the Wizards are a trash talking team, and they use it to build themselves up and throw off their opponent. It often works for them. The Cavs, on the other hand, have had their focus disrupted when they start talking during games this season, to both the opponents and the officials.

Protecting home — There has been much made of the Cavs' record after their big trade but here is something often overlooked: they were 12-4 at home after the deal. In the past two years, they are also 4-1 at the Verizon Center in Washington in the playoffs, and they have eight road playoff wins in the past two years. Taking care of business at home will be vital to both teams, the Cavs wanting to continue the trend, and the Wizards wanting to break it.

Brian Windhorst can be reached at bwindhor@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/cavs/

Control the tempo — The Wizards want to play fast and increase the number of possessions in the game. They only won nine games this season when they scored less than 100 points and only three when they scored less than 80. The Cavs are not a great offensive team; they want to push the ball off misses, and they want to keep it a defensive battle. The Cavs only won nine games this season when they gave up 100 points (in regulation).

Defensive rebounds — Both the Wizards and the Cavs are in the top five in the NBA in offensive rebounding. For the Cavs, getting putbacks is a significant percentage of their offense, and they rely on fastbreaks off defensive rebounds to get easy points. So whichever team is able to limit the other's offensive rebounds, that is what is better on the defensive end, will have an edge.

The LeBron Rules — The Wizards will likely attempt to double-team James on the outside to force him to give up the ball in crunch time. They have to make sure to do it with aggression and not allow him to split. James must be able to distribute the ball to beat the attack, and most important, his teammates must make open shots

Talking and listening — It is clear that the Wizards are a trash talking team, and they use it to build themselves up and throw off their opponent. It often works for them. The Cavs, on the other hand, have had their focus disrupted when they start talking during games this season, to both the opponents and the officials.

Protecting home — There has been much made of the Cavs' record after their big trade but here is something often overlooked: they were 12-4 at home after the deal. In the past two years, they are also 4-1 at the Verizon Center in Washington in the playoffs, and they have eight road playoff wins in the past two years. Taking care of business at home will be vital to both teams, the Cavs wanting to continue the trend, and the Wizards wanting to break it.

Brian Windhorst can be reached at bwindhor@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/cavs/



Story tools

Email  Email   Print  Print   Save  Save   Reprint  Reprint   Popular  Most Popular   Reprint  Subscribe

Share this story

AddThis Social Bookmark Button















Most Commented Stories