There's something about the Toronto Raptors that really affects Kyrie Irving, who was virtually shut down in the first meeting between the two teams for the opener on Dec. 26. That was Irving's NBA debut, and he didn't fare well in his second meeting against them either, going just 1-for-7 from the field in the first half, and just 3-13 overall. Cleveland needed him to step it up as he has been in recent games, but wasn't able to, and Toronto took the 92-75 win.
It's Toronto's second win over the Cavs this season, in just six games. For the Cavaliers, it snapped a two-game winning streak, and for the Raptors, it snapped a losing streak. Antawn Jamison was the only player who performed well for Cleveland, with 19 points, six rebounds and a block, going 8-of-19 from the field.
A monster performance from Andrea Bargnani led the Raptors to the win. He had 31 points with seven rebounds, three assists and a block on the night. It was helped, of course, by sinking six of seven free throws, but he went 11-for-16 from the field and led the Raptors to the win, in much the same way he did in the first outing, when he scored 21 points along with DeMar DeRozan, who shot 9-for-18 from the field and 5-for-8 from range, putting together a great performance on his own.
Cleveland will next take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.
For more on the Cleveland Cavaliers, go to Fear The Sword. For an opposing point of view, check out Raptors HQ. You can also head over to SB Nation's main NBA hub at SBNation.com/NBA.