Comeback Cavs get their eight straight win

(Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

Thanks to a strong defensive effort in the fourth quarter and a team showing no signs of quit, the Cleveland Cavaliers (13-7) overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half to defeat the Toronto Raptors for the second time in five days, 105-101.

It didn't start out pretty for the Cavaliers. For the first three quarters, they looked like a team that was playing the second night of a back-to-back, letting the Raptors have their way on the offensive end, allowing them to score 88 points and shoot 58.0 percent from the field. Jonas Valanciunas looked like an All-Star in that span, scoring 18 points and grabbing 14 rebounds, while getting everything he put up to go in.

Despite those numbers, the Cavaliers only trailed by seven heading into the final quarter. The defense, which looked sluggish in the first three quarters, turned on a switch and played like the defense we had seen over the last seven games. In that final period, the Cavaliers held the Raptors to 13 points and 30.0 percent from the field and didn't allow them to shoot a free throw all period.

With that increase in their defensive intensity, the Cavaliers were able to tie the game at 97 with 3:50 left in the game after Kyrie Irving found Kevin Love for a 3-pointer. Each team would score again to keep the score tied at 99 with just under two minutes left in the game.

The defense, which brought them back in the game, came up in the final moments to bring them over the top. Irving, who has shown much improvement in his defense this year, forced a steal on Terrance Ross, leading to a LeBron 3-pointer on the other end to give the Cavaliers a 102-99 lead with 48.1 seconds left on the clock. Then, on the next defensive possession, Tristan Thompson was switched onto Kyle Lowry, a mis-match for Thompson by all means. However, Thompson was hearing none of that, sticking with Lowry as he drove baseline, forcing him to fire up a shot that would hit the top of the backboard, giving the Cavaliers the ball back.

Free throws would ice the game for the Cavaliers, giving them their eight straight win, the most they've had since LeBron's first stint in Cleveland, when they won eight straight in March 2010.

Three Things:

1. Gotta love the fight in this team.

Through three quarters, everything was going Toronto's and was looking like the Cavaliers might lose for the first time in two weeks. But, despite trailing by as many as 13 in the second half, there was never a time where LeBron or anyone else showed signs of frustration, with every Toronto run being matched by Cleveland, a reason they only trailed by seven heading into the fourth. After watching four years of teams quit after being down by double-digits, it was good to finally see a team fight back and never think this game was over.

2. Dion Waiters, Part II.

Waiters is known for being very inconsistent, rarely putting back-to-back quality games together, especially this year. So, how did he respond after putting up his best game of the year against the Nets? Well, he put up 18 points on a very efficient 7-of-10 shooting while only turning over the ball one time. No one is asking Waiters to be an All-NBA player, but the production he has put up over the last two games is the player the Cavaliers need him to be, and for him to put up back-to-back very good performances, it's a great sign for Cleveland.

3. Let's talk about the defense.

If you didn't happen to catch the fourth quarter, it's understandable to yell and scream about the Cavaliers defense, because it was bad. But unlike the previous games in which the defense looked as bad as tonight, this time they didn't let it carry into the final quarter. I don't know what was said in the huddle after the third period, but it worked. All those easy buckets that the Raptors were getting in first three quarters vanquished in the final 12 minutes. Although three-fourths of the Cavaliers defense tonight was putrid, it's at least something promising that it was only 36 minutes instead of 48.

Statline of the night:

LeBron James: 35 points, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 12-of-21 shooting.

What makes LeBron the greatest player in the league is that he does whatever it takes to get his team the win. If his team needs him to be the point guard and find open teammates, he'll do that as he's done over the last seven games. If his team needs him to score, he can do that, as he did tonight. He went into scorer-mode tonight, wielding the Cavaliers to their eight straight win.

What's next:

Dec. 11, on the road against the Oklahoma City Thunder, 8 p.m.

Game 17 preview: Cleveland Cavaliers - Toronto Raptors

(Photo by Dave Sandford/NBAE via Getty Images)

Toronto Raptors

Record: 16-5, first in the Eastern Conference

Offense: 111.7 offensive rating (2nd)

Defense: 103.8 defensive rating (17th)

Net rating: 7.8 (5th)

Probable Starters	PPG	RPG	APG
Kyle Lowry	20.3	4.8	7.2
Greivis Vasquez	9.5	2.5	3.2
Terrance Ross	11.6	3.0	0.8
Amir Johnson	10.3	5.2	1.7
Jonas Valanciunas	11.9	8.3	0.5

The Last Result(s)

Nov. 22: Toronto 110, Cleveland 93

Dec. 5: Cleveland 105, Toronto 91

The Match-up to Watch

Cleveland's bench vs. Toronto's bench

In both of the match-ups between these two, it was the bench that loomed large for each victory. Lou Williams put up a career-high 34 points off the bench in the first game, part of a 51-19 effort the Raptor's bench put over the Cavalier's. In the second game, it was Tristan Thompson's monster effort (21 points, 14 rebounds) that sparked the Cavaliers to their win in Toronto. Cleveland is coming off of it's best performance by the second unit, when the bench scored a season-high 59 points in a blowout win over the Brooklyn Nets.

The Number

96.6

That's the Cavalier's defensive rating during their current seven-game winning streak, which would rank third in the league over the course of the season. This current trend on defense has vaulted Cleveland from 27th to 14th in defensive rating. I don't see them getting into the top-five just yet, but it's progress that was desperately needed.

The Playlist

Why Cleveland will win:

It starts and ends with the bench. If the Cavaliers can get any type of bench production, they are virtually unbeatable. Just look at last night for example: the Big 3 scored their fewest combined points of the season (44), yet they still won 22 points. LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving will all have better nights, but it will be the bench that propels them to victory tonight.

Why Toronto will win:

Kyle Lowry has been on a tear ever since DeMar DeRozan went down with an injury, averaging 26.0 points and 9.6 assists per game. But if the Raptors want to win, they need more than just him to produce. Which brings us to their combination of big men: Jonas Valanciunas, Amir Johnson and Patrick Patterson. If all three of them can have big games, it will be hard for the Cavaliers to overcome that.

The Prediction

Cleveland 115, Toronto 99

Just because the Raptors have the best record in the Eastern Conference, doesn't necessarily mean they are the best team in the conference. After starting the season 13-2, Toronto has went 3-3 in their last six games and have looked more like the team I expected them to be. Combine that with a better game from the Big 3 and the bench continuing to look good, I expect the Cavaliers to cruise to their eight straight victory and inch closer to the No. 1 seed in the East.

Cleveland Cavaliers - Toronto Raptors preview

Toronto Raptors

Record: 15-4, first in the Eastern Conference

Offense: 112.4 offensive rating (2nd)

Defense: 103.5 defensive rating (15th)

Net rating: 8.9 (3rd)

Probable Starters	PPG	RPG	APG
Kyle Lowry	20.6	4.9	6.8
Greivis Vasquez	9.8	2.4	3.2
Terrance Ross	11.7	2.8	0.9
Amir Johnson	9.4	5.1	1.6
Jonas Valanciunas	11.8	8.4	0.6

The Last Result(s)

Nov. 22: Toronto 110, Cleveland 93

The Match-up to Watch

Kyrie Irving vs. Kyle Lowry

Irving has played incredible over the last four games, including a 37-point performance against the Knicks, while Lowry has stepped up his game since Demar DeRozan went down with an injury. Lowry was key in the Raptors in their first match-up, and whoever gets the upper hand between these two point guards, their team will come out on top as well.

The Number

50.0

That's the field goal percentage that LeBron needs to shoot. In games where he does do better than that, the Cavaliers are 6-1. When he doesn't, they're 4-6. If Cleveland wants to win, it all depends on how well LeBron plays.

The Playlist

Why Cleveland will win:

It's pretty simple: if LeBron and Kyrie both bring their A-games, the Cavaliers are virtually unbeatable. Throw in the fact that Kevin Love has looked better (scratch the Knicks game) since the first Raptors game, might as well pack up and go home. The real key for the Cavaliers will be their bench, which squandered a 18-point lead in the last meeting. If they get some production out of Dion Waiters, who has struggled mightily this season, that will be enough for the Cavaliers to take their sixth straight win.

Why Toronto will win:

Remember Lou Williams? If not, you'll be reminded of him again this game. Win or lose, the Raptors bench will in fact out-score the Cavaliers, and will be led by the guy scored a career-high in last meeting against the Cavaliers. The bench was what won the first game, and will again be the main reason why the Raptors will win tonight.

The Prediction

Cleveland 107, Toronto 101

Although DeRozan's absence will be big, I don't think he'll be the reason the Raptors lose tonight. The Cavaliers have won five straight games, and have done so in different ways. A night after Kyrie stole the spotlight (even though it was always on him after it was announced he would have his own signature shoe with Nike), it will the LeBron Show north of the border, where I expect him to dominate and lead the Cavaliers to their sixth straight victory.

Cavs look to get back on track against the East leading Raptors

(Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Just over a week ago, all looked well in The Land. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving were playing outstanding, Kevin Love wasn't too far behind and the offense was scoring points at a ridiculous rate. Since then, everything that could have went wrong, has went wrong. No one looks like they want to play with each other, the offense has went to shambles and the defense has been historically bad.

With people using a jackhammer on the panic button, they might just break it tonight, as the Cleveland Cavaliers face the Eastern Conference leading Toronto Raptors at home. If you thought last night was ugly, tonight might make you want to roll up in a ball and tell yourself "I think we need Mike Brown back" (please don't do this).

Two obvious things will happen tonight: the Cavs will win, or the Cavs will lose. But it is more than just the win-loss record that's important; it's the reaction from everyone else that will be on two distant ends of the spectrum. If the Cavs win, people will discredit any comments they made over the last week, and if they lose, the barrel fire takes will be so hot it might burn down the internet.

Toronto Raptors

Record: 10-2, first in the Eastern Conference

Offense: 110.3 offensive rating (2nd)

Defense: 99.7 defensive rating (7th)

The Good

- The North hasn't seen a force this strong since the Starks of Winterfell, and judging by the landscape of things, there are no Lannisters to stop the Raptors from continuing their dominance in the Eastern Conference. Right now, the Raptors are one of two teams to be in the top seven of both offensive and defensive rating (Portland, a team the Cavs have already played, are the other). You won't see a more complete team in the Eastern Conference.

- Just like the Washington Wizards, the Raptors are one of the best teams at forcing turnovers, where they rank third in opponent's turnover percentage. They can also turn those turnovers into points, scoring 19.7 points per game off of turnovers, third best in the NBA. One thing that differentiates Toronto and Washington, is that the Raptors don't give the ball up as much on offense, ranking second in turnover percentage. If the Cavs repeat their performance from last night on offense, things will get ugly.

- For as much as we talked about backcourt duos this off-season, not many people were willing to bring up Kyle Lowry and Demar DeRozan. This year, they have combined to average 38.4 points per game, second among backcourts to the Splash Brothers. I personally did not think Toronto would be nearly as good as they were last year, considering Lowry only plays well in contract years, but they have proven me wrong so far. The outcome of tonight's game will be determined by the play of this Canadian combo.

The Bad

- With a record of 10-2, it's hard to find something that this team does wrong. However, when you look at some of the numbers they've put up, it's kind of surprising they have the record they do. Assists percentage is one of them, where they rank 29th in the league, assisting on only 51.0 percent of their field goals. We talk about how bad the Cavs are with assists, but the Raptors are just as worse. No one talks about Lowry only averaging 5.8 assists per game as their lead ball handler, but everyone on this side of the moon knows exactly how many assists Kyrie has, despite being the second ball handler on the team.

- Rebounding is another aspect that the Raptors struggle at, ranking 23rd in the rebounding percentage. Facing a Cavs team that has three extremely good rebounders, this could be a big advantage for Cleveland. The Raptors only have one guy averaging at least six rebounds per game, whereas the Cavs have four guys who have at least that many rebounds per game. If the Cavs are able to control the glass, the defensive woes will get slightly better.

The Matchup to Watch

LeBron James vs. Adversity

Kyrie versus Lowry would be the ideal matchup to look forward to, but this one seems to be the biggest of them all considering what has happened over the last week. LeBron saw this same scrutiny during his first season in Miami, but that was completely different situation. There's no Dwyane Wade or Pat Riley to fall back on; LeBron is the guy on the Cavs team. I've said it before and I'll say it again: if the Cavs want to get things rolling, it starts with the man who took on this challenge in the first place.

The Playlist

This is one of the most obvious picks we will see all year. Nobody, and I literally mean nobody, has had more on an impact on "The 6" than Aubrey Drake Graham. Not only does he make music while representing Toronto, but he also works for the Raptors. Outside of Hov, he's the only person in professional sports that can make that claim (NSFW):

Why Toronto will win

It's pretty simple for Toronto: if they play like they have, it's gonna be very hard for them to lose this game. Lowry, who has seemingly had a chip on his shoulder since last year, will recreate Wall's performance against Cleveland, and will get some help from DeRozan, who is no slouch himself. The defense will force turnovers and turn them into points on the other end, being the difference between victory and defeat.

Why Cleveland will win

It starts with LeBron's play on the court. If has a game like he did against Boston and Atlanta, there is no way the Cavs should lose; but, if he plays like he did against Portland and Washington, it's gonna be hard for Cleveland to overcome his play. Controlling the glass will also be key. If the Cavs are able to get second and third opportunities to score, this should help jump start their offense back to its form of a week ago.

The Prediction

Toronto 101, Cavs 93

I'm not completely sold that things will just change overnight for the Cavs, considering they are playing a red hot Raptors team that is coming off of a 41-point shellacking against the Milwaukee Bucks. Four straight losses is not something many expected, but with the way each team has played this season, that could be the case for Cavs tonight, who will again have the turnover bug in a loss to Toronto.