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Tuesday, Nov. 30 7:30pm ET
Kemp scores 25, comes through from line | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
CLEVELAND (AP) -- The Cavaliers couldn't help but feel overconfident. Not with the scoreboard showing them up by 21 points, and Dallas' bench full of more guys wearing suits than sneakers. But despite losing its big lead, Cleveland didn't lose the game. Shawn Kemp made six straight free throws in the final 2:08 and scored 25 points as the Cavaliers survived a late shooting spree by Hubert Davis for a 106-99 win over the Mavericks on Tuesday night. Cleveland, which led by 21 points in the first quarter, 16 in the third and 10 with two minutes left, held off the undermanned Mavericks, who dressed just nine players but got a huge performance from Davis. "Well, we made that one interesting," Cavs coach Randy Wittman said. "It's always a little scary when you jump out to a big lead early in the game like that." Davis and Michael Finley, forced to play point guard, put quite a fright in the Cavs. Davis scored 27 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter, as the Mavs battled back. Davis made four of his six 3-pointers in the final period. The Cavs led 101-91 with 2:08 left on Kemp's two free throws before Shawn Bradley scored on a putback and Davis made two straight 3s, bringing the Mavs within 101-99 with 49 seconds left. Kemp was fouled and hit two free throws, and after Davis missed a long jumper, Kemp made two more to put the Cavs ahead 105-99 with 23 seconds remaining. After Michael Finley's missed 3, Lamond Murray closed the scoring for Cleveland with a free throw. "I didn't really do anything different in the fourth," said Davis, whose point total was his highest since the 1995-96 season with New York. "Our guys made some nice penetration runs and I happened to be the guy to get the ball." Andrew DeClercq added 17 points and 14 rebounds, and Brevin Knight had 16 points and 10 assists for the Cavs. Wesley Person made a crucial 3 to slow Dallas down in the fourth and finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds in 21 minutes. Finley had a triple-double with 14 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists but was just 6-of-24 from the field and missed his first 10 shots. Dirk Nowitzki added 20 points for the Mavs, who were blown out in New York on Monday night. "It looked like a terrible night in the first quarter, and yes, it's nice to win games," said Dallas coach Don Nelson. "But it's nice to be competitive enough to have a chance to win. I'll take this one over New York every time." Finley, who played all 48 minutes, and Sacramento's Chris Webber have the only triple-doubles in the league this season. Finley was forced to handle the majority of the ballhandling because of Steve Nash's injured ankle. "He's so athletic and talented," Davis said of his teammate. "Mike can play three of four positions. He's an All-Star." Dressing nine players, Dallas was down to eight as Nash was limited to just seven minutes with a strained tendon in his right ankle. Trailing by 14 at halftime, Dallas opened the second half with a 12-2 spurt to close within 59-55 on Finley's jumper and Cleveland called a timeout. Although his team had fought back, Nelson wasn't impressed with the quality of play. As the teams came back on the floor, Nelson turned to the one of the NBA scouts and said, "Is this ugly or what?" Soon after, the Cavs went on a 13-0 run to open a 16-point lead and looked like they would pull away only to see Davis shoot Dallas back in it. "We made a lot mistakes _ leaving Davis open like we did late," said Wittman. "We were asleep a little bit, but we hung in there." While the Mavs, especially Finley, continually misfired in the first quarter, the Cavs made 15 of 19 shots from the field to take a 38-19 lead after one. Game notesThe crowd of 11,033 was the smallest in the six-year history of Gund Arena. ... Dallas has lost four straight road games. ... Kemp grabbed 11 rebounds as Cleveland outrebounded Dallas 55-40. ... The Cavs placed rookie guard Trajan Langdon on the injured list with bruised cartilage in his right knee and activated rookie forward A.J. Bramlett. ... Cleveland's Bob Sura, whose numbers are up across the board, could be a candidate for the league's Most Improved Player award this season. "It's not something I've thought about," he said, "but I guess I'm probably in the lead right now." ... Nash played only 17 minutes on Monday in New York. ... Cleveland has won six of its last seven at home against Dallas. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Dallas Clubhouse Cleveland Clubhouse RECAPS Atlanta 107 Toronto 89
Cleveland 106
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