J.J. Hickson scores 28 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers dispatch the Toronto Raptors 104-96
The Cleveland Cavaliers grasped their 17th victory of the season by 104-96 on Wednesday night at the Air Canada Centre, as they resisted the late drive from the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors were missing leading bench
scorer Leandro Barbosa and two starters Andrea Bargnani and Amir Johnson, due to injuries. J.J. Hickson led the Cavaliers with 28 points and 10 boards.
The Cavaliers thumped the Raptors right from the tip-off, as they registered their dominance on the Raptors with a 10-2 blitz and advanced to a 23-12 lead. The Cavs went on capping the first quarter by 11 points, as 28-17 was the
closing score of the period. Hickson made eight points while Baron Davis provided eight assists for the Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers carried the momentum in the second quarter as well. The Cavs went on stretching the lead and at one stage they went 21 points ahead. At the end of the first half, the Cavaliers were sailing smoothly, as they led the
Raptors by 60-40. Hickson again remained the major contributor with 13 points, out of which seven came from the paint.
After the break, the Raptors came out charged and surprised the Cavs with their move, who were relaxing on their 20 point lead. The Raptors restricted the Cavaliers to 17 points, which was their lowest score during a quarter in
the entire game. The Raptors finished the third quarter proceedings by reducing the deficit to 13 points, making it 77-64. From the Raptors, Jerryd Bayless chipped in with nine points, including a ripper from the three point range.
The Cavaliers woke up in the fourth quarter and put up an improved endeavour as compared to the previous frame. But they failed to restrict the Raptors attack, who sneaked into their defences and marked 32 points in the quarter.
This was their highest score in the whole game. The Raptors tried hard to slash the lead down but reduced it max to six points 88-82. In the end the Raptors fell short, due to good foul play by the Cavs and couple of missed three-point shots by Bayless. The
Cavs won the game by eight points.
Davis ended up with another double-double for the Cavaliers; he scored 18 points and 12 dimes.
Cleveland coach Byron Scott said of the point guard Davis, "I thought [Davis] was big down the stretch. The last five or six minutes, he kind of took it upon himself to make some stops and get the lead back up to double digits.
That's what great players do."
Besides Davis and Hickson, point guard Ramon Sessions added 15 points off the bench for the Cavs. Ryan Hollins had 14, and Alonzo Gee made 10 points.
Bayless led the Raps with 28 points, the Raps are left with just four games in their below par season. DeMar DeRozan chipped in with 19 points, while Reggie Evans made his season-high 15 points and clutched 13 boards too. Weems
ended with 17 points.
Up next the Cavaliers will face the Chicago Bulls on Friday while the Raptors will meet the Philadelphia 76cers.
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