The Cavs looked to bounce back after an embarrassing blowout loss over the weekend in Miami, taking on the Denver Nuggets back home in Cleveland on Monday night.
Although LeBron James caused a bit of controversy when it was revealed earlier in the day that he no longer follows the Cavs on Twitter and Instagram, King James led his team to a 124-91 victory over the Nuggets.
Kevin Love would not play in the game due to illness.
Aside from Love’s absence, it was all smiles on the home court early on, as the Cavs jumped out to a 32-13 lead in the first 11 minutes of action.
LeBron James scored 17 points in the first quarter to help Cleveland lead 38-23 after one.
The second quarter was a different story. As the Cavs seem to do on a regular basis, they blew a 19-point lead and found themselves trailing 43-41 with five minutes left in the half.
Will Barton was a catalyst for the Nuggets off the bench, scoring 16 points in the second quarter.
LeBron made sure that lead didn’t last long, scoring four quick points to get the lead back.
The rest of the team followed his lead and decided to join back in the action, to increase the margin to ten points with just under two minutes left in the first half.
The Cavs would lead 56-48 at the half, thanks to 21 points from LeBron, while Barton led the Nuggets with 18 in the half.
Cleveland started the second half on a good note, getting it up to a 16-point lead, with some Globetrotter-esque plays like this:
"Oh Saint Vincent-Saint Mary!" @CavsFredMcLeod on the @KingJames thump from @TheRealJRSmith! #CavsNuggets https://t.co/Cm94gVOfUe
— FOX Sports Ohio (@FOXSportsOH) March 22, 2016
The Cavs cruised the rest of the way, outscoring Denver 37-19 in the fourth quarter, en route to the 124-91 victory.
LeBron finished with 33 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists.
Channing Frye produced a solid effort, getting the start for Love, and scored 14 points.
J.R. Smith scored 15 points, grabbed four steals, and dished out five assists.
Kyrie Irving had a rough night, shooting just 4-of-12 from the field, but Matthew Dellavedova had a great night off the bench, scoring ten points to go with seven assists.
For the Nuggets, it was the Super Will show again, as the Sixth Man of the Year candidate, Barton scored 27 points off the bench.
The Cavs win their 50th game of the season, improving to 50-20 with 12 games remaining. The win also clinched the Central Division Title for the Cavs for the second-straight season. Their next game is Wednesday night at home against the Milwaukee Bucks.
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