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One-upmanship game goes into 2 overtimes, finishes with Cavs win
By Brian Windhorst
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Published on Saturday, Jan 12, 2008
CLEVELAND: Over the course of any NBA season, there are going to be a handful of games that turn into epics.
The Cavaliers and Bobcats acted one out Friday, slugging for 58 minutes over regulation and two overtimes, hitting dagger shots and diving for loose balls all over the court.
In the end, it wasn't that the Cavs seemed to be better. They merely seemed to have a bit more energy in crawling to the finish line for a 113-106 victory.
Looking at it from the long view, it was the Cavs' fifth win in their past six games and they are now 9-4 over the last month (and 19-18 overall). But this particular contest had little to do with streaks and more to do with one-upsmanship basketball.
Statistics were preposterous and record-setting. Just take a moment to drink in LeBron James' line: 31 points on 10-of-20 shooting, a career-high 19 rebounds, eight assists, four steals, three blocked shots and eight turnovers. According to the number crunchers at Elias Sports Bureau, no one in the recorded history of the NBA has had 31 points, 19 rebounds, four steals and three blocks in the same game.
James also won a jump ball at the end of regulation that looked for a moment like it might win the Cavs the game, and it certainly kept them in it. More on that in a moment, but understand that's not even recorded in the box score.
Anderson Varejao, playing with his entire left leg wrapped in padding and support hose after suffering knee and Achilles injuries Wednesday, had a season-high 16 points and tied a career high with 18 rebounds. It was the first time in Cavs history two players had 18 rebounds or more in the same game.
Daniel Gibson came off the bench to score 14 points, and Damon Jones hit two huge 3-pointers in overtime that directly affected the outcome.
''It wasn't just me. Everybody made plays,'' James said. ''I'm the leader, so it looks like I make the most plays, but tonight, everybody else was, too.''
Though there were many different swings of momentum and pivotal plays, the game really came down to three moments.
After the Cavs had taken a three-point lead with five seconds left in regulation — after the aforementioned jump ball when referees couldn't decide who touched a loose ball last — the Bobcats looked cooked. But Raymond Felton hit a rainbow 3-pointer just before the horn to force overtime.
Memory No. 2 came in the first overtime, when the Bobcats had a three-point lead and the ball with just over a minute to play. Gerald Wallace, who played a terrific game with 27 points and 12 rebounds, had just secured a rebound off a missed 3-pointer by Jones. But Gibson sneaked in and knocked it free to get the Cavs an extra possession. Seconds later, Jones got another chance from the same spot in the right corner and made a 3-pointer to tie the game.
''The miss really wasn't in my head,'' Jones said. ''I've missed a lot of shots in my career and I've made a lot, too. I'll take my chances on making 50 percent.''
Fast-forward a few more minutes and Jones splashed another 3-pointer that gave the Cavs a seven-point lead in the second overtime to finish it off, the last big basket of the night. James got the assist on the play and also scored eight of his points in the second overtime to carry the Cavs home.
The Bobcats were simply out of juice. Three players logged more than 50 minutes.
Nazr Mohammed, who had 21 points and 15 rebounds, fouled out. Jason Richardson, who made six of his first seven shots, went 1-of-19 afterward. Adding injury, Felton had to leave the game after badly spraining his ankle in the second overtime.
''We were just outmanned and we ran out of gas at the end,'' Wallace said.
Brian Windhorst can be reached at bwindhor@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/cavs/.
CLEVELAND: Over the course of any NBA season, there are going to be a handful of games that turn into epics.
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