Damian Lillard may very well wind up the NBA’s Rookie of the Year this season, but he ain’t got nothin’ on his predecessor. In the first meeting between Lillard and 2012 ROY Kyrie Irving, the masked man ran roughshod over the frosh, as the Cavs held on for a 93-88 win over the Blazers at the Rose Garden.
This rarest of NBA rarities—a Cavalier road triumph—ended a four-game losing streak for the Wine and Gold and earned them a measure of revenge for perhaps their most heartbreaking loss of the season. Back on December 1, Portland’s Nicolas Batum hit a buzzer-beating three in double-OT to lift the Blazers over the Cavs at the Q. Lillard was electric that night, too, with 24 points, but he didn’t have Irving to contend with, as Cleveland’s most marketable athlete was out with a broken finger. This time around, Kyrie was primed to make a serious statement. For all the attention Lillard has received, Irving is still the flagship of the new point guard generation, as tonight’s 31 point, 5 assist, 4 steal performance displayed quite convincingly.
Irving didn’t waste any time proving his point, either, draining 6-of-9 shots for 15 points in the first quarter alone, as Cleveland (10-31) jumped out to a 26-21 edge. That lead grew to as much as 19 in the second quarter, as Irving found Tristan Thompson for an emphatic dunk to make it 51-32 with 2:51 left in the half. Portland’s miserable first half shooting (34%) indicated the possibility of tired legs from an OT scrum in the thin air of Denver the previous night. Lillard, in particular, looked a bit lethargic, shooting just 0-for-3 in the first half, as the Cavs took a 53-36 advantage into the break.
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