Two nights after hanging with the best team in the Eastern Conference before falling at Miami, Cavaliers coach Byron Scott was asked if he was surprised that his young team was able to hang with the best team in the NBA before falling, 84-78, to the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night at Fed Ex Forum.
“Am I surprised? No,” Scott said as his team, playing without injured star point guard Kyrie Irving, dropped to 3-11 with its third straight loss on the road. “I think we’re heading in the right direction. Our guys are playing hard and competing. That’s what we need them to do on a night-to-night basis. We’ve just got to find a way in the fourth quarter to get over the hump.
“This time it wasn’t on the defensive end, it was on the offensive end. We’ve just got to keep competing like this. Sooner or later, being in this situation this many time, we’ll find a way to break through it.”
Anderson Varejao had 15 points and 22 rebounds, one short of his career high, to lead a spirited Cavaliers effort, and Dion Waiters added 15 points. But the Cavs made just 4 of 20 shots in the fourth quarter (20 percent), scored just nine points, went scoreless for more than five minutes and committed six turnovers. They certainly missed Irving, out another three weeks with a fractured left index finger.
“We got stagnant on the offensive end,” Scott said. “If we just keep putting ourselves in this position, we’ll get better. We’re doing a lot of real good things right now. We’re getting better on both ends of the floor. Our guys are focused and committed to what we’re trying to do. We just still have those lapses that most veteran teams don’t have, and that’s what’s killing us right now.”
Zach Randolph had 19 points and eight rebounds, and Marc Gasol added 19 points and six rebounds as the Grizzlies improved their league-leading record to 10-2. The Grizzlies are 6-1 at home, having beaten the New York Knicks, the Miami Heat and, most recently, the Los Angeles Lakers. Their only home loss came to Denver last Monday.
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