Wrap-Up — After 10 seasons in the Association, it wasn’t going to take Channing Frye long to get acclimated to the Wine and Gold’s style. And one game into his Cleveland career, Frye showed exactly why the Cavs dealt for him at the Deadline.
One game after making his debut, Frye came off Tyronn Lue’s bench to score 15 points in 17 minutes, helping get the Cavaliers back into the win column after an ugly outing two nights earlier – dropping the Hornets, 114-103, on Wednesday night at The Q.
In winning five straight before Monday’s loss to Detroit, the Cavaliers’ formula was to rope-a-dope through the first quarter, take the lead in the second and coast to the finish line by nursing a double-digit second-half lead. Cleveland exacted that plan to a tee on Wednesday night – holding a Hornets team that came in having won five straight completely in-check over the final three periods.
LeBron James and Kyrie Irving led the Cavaliers with 23 points apiece.
LeBron did all his work in the first three quarters, finishing 8-of-13 from the floor – including 2-of-4 from long-distance – to go with seven boards, seven assists and a pair of steals before taking the fourth quarter off.
Kyrie was efficient all night, going 9-of-13 from the field and adding four boards, two helpers, a steal and blocked shot.
J.R. Smith was the only other starter in double-figures, adding 16 points on 6-for-11 shooting. Tristan Thompson bounced back from a rough outing on Monday to lead the Wine and Gold with 10 boards.
Frye wasn’t the only contributor off Cleveland’s bench on Wednesday, but he definitely made the biggest splash. On the night, the veteran stretch-4 went 5-of-9 from the floor – including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc – to go with six boards and a steal.
Matthew Dellavedova added 10 points – going 3-of-6 from deep – to go with seven assists and Timofey Mozgov chipped in with nine boards and six points before fouling out late in the fourth.
The Cavaliers trailed by one, 24-23, after one period. But the offense woke up with a vengeance in the second quarter – when the Wine and Gold shot 70 percent from the floor and outscored the Hornets, 40-28, before hitting the halftime locker room.
Both squads scored 51 points apiece in the second stanza, but by then, the Cavaliers were focused on protecting their lead and locking up their 41st win of the season.
After being beat on the boards by 21 in their loss to in Charlotte earlier this month, the Cavaliers finished with a 47-43 edge on Wednesday night. Cleveland turned the ball over just nine times in the win while outscoring the Hornets in the paint, 48-38, on second-chance opportunities, 17-7, and, most glaringly, on the break – 28-7.
Turning Point — Wednesday’s turning point was pretty easy to spot – and almost recognizable as it was happening.
With just over eight minutes to play in the second quarter, Jeremy Lin’s layup got the Hornets to within three, 37-34. But after a quick back-and-forth between both squads, J.R. Smith and Delly drilled back-to-back triples halfway through the period to give Cleveland its first double-digit lead of the night.
Smith’s bomb was particularly impressive – catching a difficult pass while moving left, spinning blindly to the basket from beyond the arc and splashing home the 26-footer.
By the Numbers – 15 … games this season that the Cavaliers have scored at least 20 points off an opponent’s turnover – tallying 22 points off 14 Hornets’ miscues. Cleveland is a perfect 15-0 in those contests.
Quotable – Kyrie Irving, on the team’s advice for Channing Frye on the floor …
“We basically told him that if nobody is in your jersey, just let that thing go.”
Up Next – After getting back into the win column on Wednesday night at The Q, the Cavaliers get back on the road for a pair – including Friday night’s big showdown with the Raptors in Toronto. On Sunday, the Wine and Gold travel to the nation’s capital for a matinee against the Wizards. The Wine and Gold return home the next day to wrap up the back-to-back, welcoming the Pacers to Cleveland on Monday night to wrap up the month of February. After a nice three-day break, the Cavs play three straight at The Q – beginning with a back-to-back against Washington and Boston next Friday and Saturday.
