Feb 2, 2013; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving (2) sinks a shot over Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka (9) in the fourth quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

In the last matchup between these two teams, Kyrie Irving hit a game winner with one second left on the clock to give the Charlotte Bobcats a loss on their home court. Irving played his best in the fourth quarter – like he usually does – scoring 16 points. The Bobcats are led by their guards – who consist of Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson, Ramon Sessions, and Ben Gordon – who account for 62 percent of the team’s scoring. Only a hand full of times do the Cavs outrank their opponents in stats, and tonight is one of those nights. Shutting down their backcourt will be the main priority heading into the game; along with getting the ball down low to Tristan Thompson and Marreese Speights so they can score in the paint.

Statistics

Advanced Statistics

Four Factors

Players to Watch:

Cavaliers – Tristan Thompson

1. 11.1 points per game

2. 9.3 rebounds per game

3. 50% field goal percentage

Opponent – Ben Gordon

1. 13.3 points per game

2. 44.1% field goal percentage

3. 42% 3-point percentage

Key Matchup: Kyrie Irving vs. Kemba Walker

Both of these point guards are in their second year. In the last meeting, Irving got the better of Walker when he scored 33 points to go along with his six assists. Walker has taken a big step from last season to this season and has been performing at a high level averaging nearly 18 points and six assists. If you can recall from his college days at UConn, Walker has the ability to take any defender off the dribble and take over a game. 

Feb 1, 2013; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard C.J. Miles (0) drives to the basket against Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond (1) during the second quarter at The Palace. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

Head coach Byron Scott sent a message to his starters, who combined for 45 points tonight, by not playing them at all in the fourth quarter.

The whole game the Cavs (13-34) couldn’t get in a rhythm offensively and fell to the Detroit Pistons (18-29).

Tristan Thompson was the Cavaliers’ leading scoring tonight with 19 points and 9 rebounds.  First-round picks Tyler Zeller and Dion Waiters combined for 8 points tonight on a combined 3 of 12 shooting.

Defensively the Cavs were pitiful.  The Pistons, who shot 53 percent from the field, dominated the Cavs in the paint scoring 62 points.

The game got out of hand in the third quarter when the Pistons went on a run in the last seven minutes of the quarter.

Kyrie Irving faced off with Brandon Knight, fellow draft classmate, and was dominated by him giving by 20 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds to the point guard.

Offensively the Cavs shot 39 percent from the field, far less from the Pistons’ 53 percent.

The Pistons were without their new acquisition, Jose Calderon.

In his fourth game with the Cavs Marreese Speights led the Cavs’ bench with 17 points and 8 rebounds.  He went on a hot streak early in the fourth quarter but it wasn’t enough to spark a comeback.

Thompson and Speights were the lone bright spots with their near double-doubles for the Cavs tonight.

This game won’t sit well with Coach Scott and will not have too much time to assess it as they head home to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (35-11) tomorrow night.  The Thunder come into the game with the second-best record in the NBA; only trailing the San Antonio Spurs.  Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Jan 7, 2013; Rosemont, IL, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving (2) shoots the ball against the Chicago Bulls during the first quarter at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports

Update: Kyrie Irving is questionable to play tonight due to being sick. He was not present for shootaround earlier in the day.

Tip off  time – 9:00 PM ET

Pepsi Center, Denver, CO

The Cleveland Cavaliers (9-28) are coming off of one of their best games of the season. They beat a pretty good Atlanta Hawks team by 16 points. In that game the Cavaliers got great performances from their two young big men, Tristan Thompson and Tyler Zeller, and another out-of-this world performance from Kyrie Irving.

They will need similar performances from all three again on Friday.

The Wine and Gold head to the Mile High City knowing they will be without Anderson Varejao for at least six to eight weeks. While it is obvious that he will be missed, no game may show it more that against the Denver Nuggets (21-16), who come into the game as the second-best rebounding team in the Association.

Aside from being a great rebounding team led by big man Kenneth Fried, they have a very efficient and balanced offensive attack that is currently ranked seventh in the NBA in points and fifth in field-goal percentage. They are also winners of four of their last five, and have only lost twice at home this year.

Suffice to say the Cavaliers will have their hands full. Let’s take a closer look at the stats:

Offense

Cavaliers: 94.6 PPG (24th) — .418 FG Percentage (29th) — 29th in assist-to-turnover ratio

Nuggets: 102.1 PPG (7th) — .465 FG Percentage (5th) — 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio

Defense

Cavaliers: 99.8 (24th) – .472 FG Percentage (Dead Last) — 41.9 RPG (18th)

Nuggets: 99.5 (23rd) — .432 FG Percentage (6th) — 46.2 RPG (2nd)

Looking at the stats, the obvious glaring difference is in offensive production. The Nuggets are better in every facet of offense than the Cavaliers and their numbers get even better when they are at home. The Cavaliers lack of defense, especially on the road, may be too tough of a task to overcome.

Matchups to Watch

 The rebounding edge:

The Nuggets are one of the most balanced rebounding teams, with six players averaging over five rebounds per game. The Cavaliers have only three and one (Varejao) is not going to play. So the two youngsters Zeller and Thompson are going to have to show up in a big way for the Cavaliers to have a chance on the glass.

Kyrie vs. Lawson and Miller

On most nights the Cavaliers have the advantage at the point guard spot. And make no mistake Irving will be the best player on the court. However, the combination of Lawson, who is a high-energy offensive player and an above average defender, and Miller, a time-tested veteran, may add up to a tough day for Irving.

The Bottom Line – The Cavaliers are 12-point underdogs for a reason. With all the injuries, they just don’t seem to have the horses to stay with the Nuggets. However,there is one important thing about the Cavaliers; as long as No. 2 is suiting up, you can never count them out