Hot Grizzlies Ground Down by Cavs

The Cavs mopped the floor with the Grizzlies tonight, beating them 105-89. They held Zach Randolph to only 8 points and 4 rebounds, forcing him into 5 turnovers. The Cavs played OJ Mayo extremely well too. All night they forced him into the shot blockers, with Shaq blocking two and Lebron getting a chase down block, which he swatted off the glass. The Grizzlies are one of the better fast breaking teams in the league, but the Cavs held them on the break. Rudy Gay was the only guy who could score on the Cavs in the first half and they held him to just 3 points in the second half. Just an all around show of defensive prowess by the Cavs. Lebron even sounded like KG out there screaming at his bigs to force Zach Randolph, who likes to go left, to his right.

With 15 assists Lebron hit his career high with only 4 turnovers. He was setting people up with ease, hitting Varejao for a couple easy baskets in the lane and getting Shaq the ball with very deep position. Lebron didn't need to score much and he took advantage of the Memphis zone with his distribution skills. One thing I did like about his scoring tonight was how he took smaller defenders in the post. He got single coverage from Mike Conley Jr., backed him down in the post and hit a baby hook over him. He did the same on OJ Mayo and got even deeper position for another hook. It was positively Carmelo Anthony-esque the way he took the small guys on his back down low. I hope he continues to do this throughout the year as it only adds to his offensive efficiency.

Memphis is a great rebounding team, with the number one rebounding differetial in the league at 4.7 a game. The Cavs are one of the best too, with a 4.5 differential, and were able to out rebound the Grizzlies by 3. That is a testament to their work ethic as a team on the block. They kept one guy on Randolph the whole game and wouldn't let him control the glass. Varejao did some pesky blocking out on Randolph and frustrated him all night.

This was a real strong win for the Cavs and it puts them a game and a half up on the Lakers for the best record in the league. They also have the longest win streak in the league at 9 games. They are looking strong going into the allstar break.

I expected a better game from the Grizzlies after they beat the Lakers at home, but the Cavs won easy in a blowout. Cavs coach Mike Brown said this week that he wanted some games that weren't so easy so the team could learn to execute in a close game. It didn't happen tonight as Lebron sat for the last 5 minutes of the game. I am a little worried about his lack of 4th quarter minutes because it looked like he got worn down late in games last year in the playoffs. I hope Mike Brown adjusts his minutes as the year goes on so he can be used to playing a full 48 minutes despite the blowouts.