Warriors Take Care of Struggling Cavs
Whether or not you believe that the Cleveland Cavaliers' struggles are cause for concern, their struggles against the Golden State Warriors, whom they may see in the Finals again, have to be troubling to watch. After leading for most of the first half, the Warriors used an impressive second half run to take their second game of the year from the Cavs, 118-108, in Cleveland on Monday night. Kevin Durant had 32 points, while Steph Curry added 23 in what was Golden State's 13th straight road win and 20th victory away from home overall. Durant scored 16 points in the third quarter alone, as Golden State outscored Cleveland by 17 after halftime. LeBron James had 32 points of his own and Kevin Love added 13 for the Cavaliers, whose 13-game home win streak came to an end. Isaiah Thomas got the most playing time since his return with 32 minutes and finished with 19 points in his fifth game back from injury. The Cavaliers have now dropped eight of 10 overall, including four in a row, and missed 17 of their first 19 shots of the fourth quarter to help the Warriors pull away. Cleveland looks to put an end to this rough stretch when they host the Orlando Magic, who have already earned a win in Cleveland this year, on Thursday night. The Warriors stay on the road to visit the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
Clippers Top Rockets in Paul's Chippy Return to L.A.
The Chris Paul return to Los Angeles took a turn that nobody saw coming near the end of the game and after the game on Monday night. First, during the game, Lou Williams kept his All-Star type season going with 31 points to lead a 113-102 Los Angeles Clippers' win over the Houston Rockets. The win is the fifth in a row for the Clippers, who got 29 points from Blake Griffin, and that was before he got into it with his former teammate. Paul had 19 points, six rebounds, and seven assists, but was involved in a mini-altercation with Griffin near the end of the fourth. Multiple ejections took place as Clippers coach Mike D'Antoni, Trevor Ariza, Austin Rivers, and Griffin were all ejected for separate altercations. That included Griffin bumping in to D'Antoni, who yelled and cursed in Griffin's direction. Reports then say that after the game, a group of Rockets, led by Paul, went to the Clippers' locker room, looking for an altercation. Clint Capela was reportedly the distraction by knocking on the front door, while Paul led the group of players through a back way to the locker room. Reports also say that nothing fully escalated, as the situation quickly died down. Best part of this situation for the fans is that if the playoffs were to start today, these two teams would go at it in the first round.
Duke, Kansas Rally for Conference Road Wins
Two teams that have had rare struggles in conference play as of late needed a comeback to earn impressive wins on the road. First, the Duke Blue Devils ended the game on a 30-9 run for an 83-75 win over No. 25 Miami. That big run included 18 consecutive points and helped them finish at 55 percent shooting, which was led by Gary Trent Jr.'s season-high 30 points. That helped the fifth-ranked Blue Devils overcome a 13-point, second half deficit. The win comes despite a season-high 19 turnovers for Duke, but they committed none in the final 10 minutes of play. They will return home on Saturday to play host to Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, it took clutch play from one star for the Kansas Jayhawks to earn a top-10 win over No. 6 West Virginia, 71-66, on Monday night. Svi Mykhailiuk had 17 points, including 12 in the final seven minutes, to help the 10th-ranked Jayhawks overcome a 13-point halftime deficit. Devonte Graham also played a big role in the comeback by combining for 20 of Kansas's final 26 points in the win. The Mountaineers have now lost consecutive games for the first time this season. The Jayhawks will be back at home on Saturday night to play host to Baylor.
Whether or not you believe that the Cleveland Cavaliers' struggles are cause for concern, their struggles against the Golden State Warriors, whom they may see in the Finals again, have to be troubling to watch. After leading for most of the first half, the Warriors used an impressive second half run to take their second game of the year from the Cavs, 118-108, in Cleveland on Monday night. Kevin Durant had 32 points, while Steph Curry added 23 in what was Golden State's 13th straight road win and 20th victory away from home overall. Durant scored 16 points in the third quarter alone, as Golden State outscored Cleveland by 17 after halftime. LeBron James had 32 points of his own and Kevin Love added 13 for the Cavaliers, whose 13-game home win streak came to an end. Isaiah Thomas got the most playing time since his return with 32 minutes and finished with 19 points in his fifth game back from injury. The Cavaliers have now dropped eight of 10 overall, including four in a row, and missed 17 of their first 19 shots of the fourth quarter to help the Warriors pull away. Cleveland looks to put an end to this rough stretch when they host the Orlando Magic, who have already earned a win in Cleveland this year, on Thursday night. The Warriors stay on the road to visit the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
Clippers Top Rockets in Paul's Chippy Return to L.A.
The Chris Paul return to Los Angeles took a turn that nobody saw coming near the end of the game and after the game on Monday night. First, during the game, Lou Williams kept his All-Star type season going with 31 points to lead a 113-102 Los Angeles Clippers' win over the Houston Rockets. The win is the fifth in a row for the Clippers, who got 29 points from Blake Griffin, and that was before he got into it with his former teammate. Paul had 19 points, six rebounds, and seven assists, but was involved in a mini-altercation with Griffin near the end of the fourth. Multiple ejections took place as Clippers coach Mike D'Antoni, Trevor Ariza, Austin Rivers, and Griffin were all ejected for separate altercations. That included Griffin bumping in to D'Antoni, who yelled and cursed in Griffin's direction. Reports then say that after the game, a group of Rockets, led by Paul, went to the Clippers' locker room, looking for an altercation. Clint Capela was reportedly the distraction by knocking on the front door, while Paul led the group of players through a back way to the locker room. Reports also say that nothing fully escalated, as the situation quickly died down. Best part of this situation for the fans is that if the playoffs were to start today, these two teams would go at it in the first round.
Duke, Kansas Rally for Conference Road Wins
Two teams that have had rare struggles in conference play as of late needed a comeback to earn impressive wins on the road. First, the Duke Blue Devils ended the game on a 30-9 run for an 83-75 win over No. 25 Miami. That big run included 18 consecutive points and helped them finish at 55 percent shooting, which was led by Gary Trent Jr.'s season-high 30 points. That helped the fifth-ranked Blue Devils overcome a 13-point, second half deficit. The win comes despite a season-high 19 turnovers for Duke, but they committed none in the final 10 minutes of play. They will return home on Saturday to play host to Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, it took clutch play from one star for the Kansas Jayhawks to earn a top-10 win over No. 6 West Virginia, 71-66, on Monday night. Svi Mykhailiuk had 17 points, including 12 in the final seven minutes, to help the 10th-ranked Jayhawks overcome a 13-point halftime deficit. Devonte Graham also played a big role in the comeback by combining for 20 of Kansas's final 26 points in the win. The Mountaineers have now lost consecutive games for the first time this season. The Jayhawks will be back at home on Saturday night to play host to Baylor.
