Cavs Choke Away Double-Digit Halftime Lead At Home Again; Nets Win 95-87

Calling it the same injury he had the in preseason, just on the other side, Mo Williams hoped he would be able to go when the Cavaliers return to action Saturday night against the Indiana Pacers.

“That’s the goal. These injuries are tricky. You never know how your body will react to it. We will tackle it the right way, do the right things and I look forward to playing on Saturday.”

Williams was injured sometime in the 2nd half against the Nets and was unable to play in the 4th quarter. Williams scored 9 points on 4-11 shooting in 22 minutes before leaving the game.

Anderson Varejao was also knicked up in the game, suffering bruised ribs in the first half. While in obvious pain, Varejao was able to finish the contest.

Cavaliers head coach Byron Scott credits New Jersey for doing what it takes to win, but knows his team didn’t give premium effort in the second half in their 95-87 loss to the Nets Wednesday night:

I thought for the first time that we were the tired team tonight in the fourth quarter. Losing Mo hurt, but I thought they (Nets) just outworked us. You have to give them a lot of credit…anytime you give up 15 offensive rebounds or send a team to the free throw line 35 times, it’s going to be tough to win. Having a young team, I think we’re going to learn from back-to-back nights of having to face the same team. Again, this is a learning process for us. It’s the eighth game of the season, so we have a long way to go.

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Devin Harris scored a season-high 31 points and handed out nine assists to lead New Jersey to a 95-87 win over Cleveland at Quicken Loans Arena.

Anthony Morrow added 21 points, including knocking down 5-of-8 from three- point territory, and Kris Humphries chipped in with 13 points and 18 rebounds for the Nets, who gained a split of the home-and-set.

J.J. Hickson scored 15 points while Antawn Jamison supplied 14 points and nine boards off the bench for the Cavaliers, who had a three-game win streak halted.

The Cavaliers have four in double figures after three quarters while the Nets have only two in doubles. Unfortunately for Cleveland, Devin Harris, with 24, has more than twice as many points as any Cavalier, and Harris’s exploits have New Jersey right in the game after three periods, with the Cleveland lead cut to 69-67.

Cleveland’s leading scorers at the half, J.J. Hickson and Ryan Hollins, were both shut out in the third quarter, as New Jersey closed the gap with a three right before the third-quarter buzzer.

Twenty-four minutes from having the same record as the Miami Heat.

Can you tell that that would give me a real charge about 10% of the way through the season?

Behind Ryan Hollins and J.J. Hickson — each with eleven points — and another solid night for the bench so far with 23 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, the Cavaliers lead the New Jersey Nets at the intermission 52-42.

After outscoring the Nets in the first quarter by seven, Cleveland tacked three more points onto their lead by halftime as they try for their fourth win in a row and their second straight against the Nets, who are led by Devin Harris, who has gone off for 18 first-half points.

Behind seven points from J.J. Hickson and five each from Mo Williams and Ryan Hollins, the Cavaliers have jumped to a 25-16 lead over the New Jersey Nets in the second game of a home-and-home set at the Q.

The Cavaliers, who would be tied with the Miami Heat with a win tonight and who are going for their fourth straight win, broke away from a 14-all tie with an 11-4 burst to end the quarter.