highplainsdrifter
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Cleveland Cavaliers(2-0) VS Charlotte Bobcats (0-2)
Sat, Nov 4th, 2006
7:00pm ET
TV: FSN Ohio, NBALP
Charlotte Bobcats Arena
Head Coaches
Mike Brown / Bernie Bickerstaff
Probable Starters
Eric Snow / Brevin Knight
Larry Hughes / Raymond Felton
LeBron James / Gerald Wallace
Drew Gooden / Sean May
Zydrunas Ilgauskas / Emeka Okafor
Cavaliers Bench
Damon Jones/Sasha Pavlovic/Anderson Varejao/Donyell Marshall/David Wesley
Bobcats Bench
Bernard Robinson/Matt Carroll/Jake Voskuhl/Othella Harrington/Adam Morrison
Preview from Yahoo:
By JEFF MEZYDLO, STATS Writer
One night after topping the 30-point mark for the first time in 2006-07, LeBron James faces a team he scored against at will last season.
James and the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers seek their best start in six years when they visit the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday.
James scored 35 points in Cleveland's 88-81 win at San Antonio on Friday night. He had 26 in the team's 97-94 win over Washington on Wednesday.
The Cavaliers (2-0) look to start 3-0 for the first time since they won four straight to open the 2000-01 season. They may have little trouble if this contest shapes up similarly to their previous meetings with the Bobcats.
The Cavaliers are 7-0 against the Bobcats since Charlotte regained an NBA franchise in 2004-05. James averaged 34.0 points in last season's three meetings, including a 37-point effort on March 22 -- a 120-118 overtime victory at Cleveland.
His Friday night performance helped the Cavs win in San Antonio for the first time since Dec. 8, 1988.
"I was four years old the last time we beat San Antonio (on the road)," said James, who also had 10 rebounds and four assists. "I think for us to become one of the powerhouses which we've been preaching, we've got to go out there and walk the walk."
Larry Hughes added 18 points and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 10 points and 11 rebounds for his 132nd career double-double.
The Bobcats (0-2) return home in search of their first win after losing 96-83 at Memphis on Friday. Charlotte, which has turned the ball over 41 times in its first two games, got outscored 36-13 by the Grizzlies in the fourth quarter.
The loss overshadowed an impressive game by Bobcats rookie Adam Morrison, who scored 21 points on 8-for-15 shooting. The third overall pick in last June's draft came off the bench for the second straight night, playing 30 minutes, but did not grab a rebound.
Morrison scored 14 points in Wednesday's 106-99 loss to Indiana.
"People need to realize that I need to go through a learning curve like any other rookie," said Morrison, who is five months older than James, Cleveland's four-year veteran All-Star. "I know the expectations others have for me, and it's flattering. I just need time to figure out what I can and can't get away with in this league."
The Cavaliers have averaged 103.4 points in their seven wins against the Bobcats, two of which went to overtime. Charlotte has reached the 100-point mark only once against Cleveland, the overtime defeat on March 22.
My Thoughts:
That SA win last night was one of the best Cavs games I have seen. Breaking the long drought against SA, esp now with their recent Championships, is proof to me that the Cavs are ready to contend for a title. LeBron was simply amazing. That posterization of Duncan was awesome!!!
Now we face the Bobcats, and we must avoid playing to the level of our opponent. If we play like last night, it will be a blowout. Fatigue may be a factor on a back-to-back, like it helped us against SA, but to me Charlotte is still not in the Cavaliers' class, and we should dominate.
Okafor is da man for Charlotte, so he must be a focus of the defense. Morrison has been coming off the bench and playing well, so Im curious how he will do. (P Brezec is out 2 weeks with exhaustion and dehydration )
And lets not forget Michael Jordan is now a part owner of the Bobcats, and will probably be in the house for this game.....and LeBron knows this for sure, and he will be great with the eyes of His Airness watching him...
I predict the Cavs win by 15+ and James goes for 40+!!!
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