CHARLOTTE, N.C.: For a Cavaliers team that on Wednesday got its injury-plagued starting five back on the court together for the first time since Dec. 17, the scary moments just keep on coming.
J.R. Smith, Kevin Love and LeBron James survived a blindsiding pick, a rebound entanglement and an eye poke, respectively, as the defending champions fought and scrapped against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night in the Spectrum Center.
Although they found the effort they had been lacking in the previous game, the Cavs went down to the wire with the 11th-place team in the Eastern Conference before pulling out a 112-105 victory.
With the triumph, coupled with the Indiana Pacers’ 125-117 loss to the Denver Nuggets, the Cavs clinched the Central Division title for the third consecutive season and for the sixth time in franchise history.
James totaled 32 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists, including going 14-of-16 from the free-throw line. Kyrie Irving contributed 26 points and seven assists and Love added 15 points and 12 rebounds. James made 5-of-6 of his free-throw attempts in the final 1:56.
But there were times when Cavs coach Tyronn Lue had to be holding his breath in hopes that his team would leave Charlotte unscathed.
With 5:24 left in the second quarter, Smith was knocked down by a Cody Zeller pick that left Smith motionless on the court for a few seconds. But after Smith walked to the bench to be checked during a timeout, he remained in the game.
With 1:55 left in the third quarter, Love got his right shoulder and arm entangled with the arms of Marvin Williams as the two went for a rebound. Love went to the bench and remained there with a towel draped over the shoulder before returning in the fourth quarter. The play was reminiscent of the Celtics’ Kelly Olynyk’s yank on Love’s left shoulder during the 2015 playoffs.
With 31.2 seconds to go in the third quarter, James was poked in the eye by Jeremy Lamb as James drove for a layup and was fouled. James called a timeout and was attended to by a Hornets eye doctor before returning to make the free throw.
“If Coach decides to give me a game off it’s not because I’m resting,” James said. “I’m banged up.”
With 6:49 left in the game, James hit the deck again, this time on a foul by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
Before Friday’s shoot-around, Lue held a film session to point out the Cavs’ breakdowns in their loss Wednesday to the Nuggets. Lue said the Cavs were “ticked off,” and hoped they would channel some of that anger hours later.
A dramatic defensive improvement was one thing Lue sought, and the Cavs expended much more effort against the Hornets. After allowing their last three opponents to shoot over 51 percent from the field, the Cavs held the Hornets to 42.2 percent shooting, 26.3 percent from 3-point range.
But the Cavs showed why they need the remaining 11 games to develop rhythm and find the best rotations for the postseason. They will have to do it with a grueling schedule as Friday’s game was their first of three in four days. It also marked the end of a four-game, three-city road trip on which they went 2-2.
Fans weren’t crammed into the Spectrum Center, and those who stayed away missed a spectacular showdown of two of the league’s best point guards.
As a young boy held a sign reading “LeBron You Ain’t the King in Kemba’s Queen City,” Hornets star Kemba Walker hit his first three 3-point attempts in the opening five minutes. He turned that hot start into a 28-point night, hitting 10-of-20 from the field and 5-of-10 from long range.
Irving matched Walker’s show, pouring in 17 first-half points and hitting 11-of-22 for the game, 2-of-6 from 3-point range.
The Cavs took the season series with the Hornets 4-0 and won for the 10th time in the last 11 games against them.
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com.