Written by Demetri Inembolidis

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In sports, there are occasions when one team plays hard but ultimately comes up short.  This was one of those nights for the Cavs.  The home team came into the game without Kyrie Irving and Anthony Parker and they unfortunate to lose Anderson Varejao to a sprained wrist during the third quarter.  The Milwaukee Bucks capitalized on the short-handed Cavs and came away with a 113-112 overtime win.

The good news is that Tristan Thompson made his return after recovering from a sprained left ankle.  With his 13 rebounds, Thompson had his best rebounding game as a professional.  His work on the glass will be overshadowed by the incredible block Thompson had with one minute left in the 4th quarter.  Although the Cavs eventually lost to the Milwaukee Bucks, that defensive play helped put Cleveland in a position where they could send the game to overtime.  

Given their personnel, the Bucks played a stereotypical game.  Brandon Jennings had a seemingly dominant performance if you ignore his field goal percentage.  Drew Gooden also appeared to be a difference-maker if you do not consider shot selection, defense and decision making.  Despite these facts, the Bucks were able to escape 31.1% shooting between Brandon Jennings, Carlos Delfino and Stephen Jackson and get the win against the Cavs.  

The Bucks head coach Scott Skiles appeared to intentionally get himself ejected during the third quarter.  The Bucks responded and erased an eight point Cavs lead in the 4th quarter with strong play from Shaun Livington and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.  Both Bucks players combined for 16 points on 85.7% shooting during that stretch.  

The main story of the 4th quarter wasn’t Scott Skiles’ ejection or Tristan Thompson’s rejection.  The defining sequence of the game was when Antawn Jamison missed two free throws with 3.7 seconds left in regulation.  Had he made either one of those, the Cavs would have had the lead and been in the driver’s seat.  Instead, the pressure got to him and he missed both shots.  It is difficult to blame Antawn Jamison for the loss considering that it was his strong play that put the shorthanded Cavs in a position to win in the first place.  Jamison had a career game with the Cavs.  He scored 34 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in 43 minutes for the Cavaliers.  

Not to be outdone by Antawn Jamison, Daniel Gibson had an un-clutch moment with 11.8 seconds left in the lone overtime period.  In an ironic twist, the Fox Sports Ohio broadcast team decided to play an interview with the Cavs guard where he discussed how much he relishes in taking potential game winning shots.  Immediately after that segment aired, Gibson was called for an offensive foul and the Cavs were forced to fould Brandon Jennings.  Once again, it is unfair to be overly critical of Daniel Gibson for that turnover because he played a strong game.  Gibson scored 17 points on only 12 shots, grabbed 6 rebounds and had 8 assists.  As is typical with Gibson, his perimeter defense was working quite well.  The Cavs really like Anthony Parker, but it may be time to start thinking about putting Daniel Gibson into the starting lineup.  He has certainly earned it.

Ever since being plugged into the starting lineup, Ramon Sessions has made a habit of getting his teammates involved at a higher rate and controlling the offense.  In Friday’s loss to the Bucks, Sessions had 16 assists.  The fact that he has notched 29 assists in the past 2 games in phenomenal.  

The Good: In an ideal world, the game ball would be split between Antawn Jamison and Ramon Sessions.  Jamison has been playing at a high level since the game against the Miami Heat on Tuesday and that has opened up the offense.  When Jamison is hitting his shots and Sessions is getting him the ball when he is open, the Cavs are a tough team to stop from scoring.

The Bad: The Cavs fan base is quite familiar with Drew Gooden.  He can fill up a box score and grab rebounds, but the decision making and lack of defense continues to be an issue.  For example, his foul on Antawn Jamison with 3.7 seconds left in the 4th quarter was a boneheaded move if I have ever seen one.  

The Ugly: The injury bug is starting to be a factor for the Cavs.  Cleveland is no longer in discussion for being the worst team in the league, but they cannot afford injuries to Kyrie Irving and Anderson Varejao if they would like to keep it that way.  Hopefully the Cavalier point guard and center can get back to the hardwood sooner than later.