Dudley and Nash spark the Suns to 108-100 win over the short-handed Cavaliers
There is absolutely no doubt; the Cleveland Cavaliers are having it tough without LeBron James this season.
Having lost 19 of their last 20 games, and 15 straight on the road heading into the showdown against the Phoenix Suns, the Cavs hit a new low on Sunday night.
Jared Dudley came off the bench to score 21 points and seven rebounds, while Steve Nash hammered 20 points and 15 assists, as the Suns outclassed the Cavaliers 108-100 at the US Airways Centre.
The Cavaliers had their noses in front throughout the first half, but didn’t have the depth or the experience to hold tough down the stretch, as they went crashing to their 10th consecutive loss.
The injury-plagued Cavaliers received more bad news on Sunday, when they learnt that starting centre Anderson Varejao was out for the season, with a complete tear of his right ankle. With Joey Graham, Daniel Gibson, Leon Powe and Anthony Parker already unavailable,
the odds were always heavily pitched against the Wine and the Gold.
However, the Cavs showcased an exhilarating display of offensive basketball in the first three quarters of play, as they stormed into an early 12-4 run to stamp their authority on the match. The Suns though countered to level the scores at 26 apiece, by
the end of the first quarter.
The Cavaliers didn’t hold back in the second quarter though, as they continued to beat the Suns at their own game in the first half. Rookie Manny Harris and J.J. Hickson led the assault; as they outscored Phoenix 18-3 on the fast break points, thrashed them
38-24 in the paint and cleaned the offensive glass with 10 rebounds.
Phoenix's two big men - Channing Frye and Brook Lopez - answered fire with fire from the other end, as they combined for 25 points to keep their team within striking distance at 51-52 at half time.
The Suns finally surged ahead in the third quarter, building an eight-point advantage at 79-71, after Jared Dudley scorched the court with eight consecutive points. Dudley’s efforts were nullified soon though, as the Suns failed to hit a field goal in the
final 2:40, and Cleveland rallied to tie it at 81 at the end of the period. The topsy-turvy trend continued into the final period, and the score was tied at 90-all going into the last seven minutes of play.
With over six minutes left on the clock, the Suns finally managed to break away as Steve Nash found the ring from long range to kick-start a 16-6 surge. The blow-out spurt completely knocked the steam out of the Cavaliers ranks, as Nash slipped two from
the charity stripe to end the game at 108-100.
The win for the home team snapped a three-match losing streak, and also marked the first time in five games that the Suns have managed to score 100 points against an opponent.
For the Cavaliers though, the downward slide appears to be never ending. With most of their star cast on the bench, Manny Harris led with a season-high 27 points while J.J. Hickson chipped in with 23 points and a season-high 17 rebounds. Antawn Jamison also
ended up with 23.
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