“Suns set on young Cavs, 108-100: Mary Schmitt Boyer's in-game blog”

Suns set on young Cavs, 108-100: Mary Schmitt Boyer's in-game blog

Posted: 09 Jan 2011 04:51 PM PST

Published: Sunday, January 09, 2011, 10:31 PM Updated: Monday, January 10, 2011, 12:00 AM

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Final observations from the Cavs' 108=100 loss to the Suns Sunday night at USAirways Center:

The evening started out on a total downer with the news that Anderson Varejao would miss the rest of the season with a torn tendon in his right foot. But five hours later, after an exciting display by the young Cavaliers, there actually seemed to be some light at the end of the tunnel.

Manny Harris is blossoming into a legitimate NBA player, and J.J. Hickson seems to have accepted the challenge of trying to replace Varejao at center.

There has been much talk about the learning process this season, and growing up, and Hickson took a big step in those directions behind closed doors.

After his stunning 23-point, career-high-17-rebound performance, Hickson owned up to some of his shortcomings to this point. Before the game, he admitted that he needed to change his attitude and the negative energy he was bringing to the team. After the game, reporters were asking about this apparently new-found rebounding ability. Earlier this season, when he couldn't seem to buy a board, he told reporters he was trying but he just couldn't seem to corral the loose balls. "I was making excuses,'' he said on Sunday.

There are those who think he's more suited for the center position, where his role is more defined than it was when he was playing power forward out on the wing, making poor decisions and launching jump shots.

But the growth he showed by admitting his failings and then trying to correct them will serve him well no matter which position he's playing.

Final: Suns 108, Cavs 100: The Phoenix Suns finally put away the short-handed Cavaliers, but if this is the future of pro basketball in Cleveland, it sure is going to be fun to watch.

Just hours after learning that they would be without Anderson Varejao for the rest of the season because of a torn tendon in his right foot, the young Cavs pulled themselves together and gave the Suns all they could handle for the better part of 48 minutes.

The Cavs trailed, 93-92, with just over six minutes left, but Phoenix held Cleveland without a field goal for almost six minutes. The Suns closed out the game on a 15-8 run to send the Cavs to their 10th straight loss, their 20th in 21 games.

Manny Harris had a career high 27 points and 11 rebounds, and J.J. Hickson, in his first start at center this season, had 23 points and a career-high 17 rebounds as the Cavs fell to 8-29. Antawn Jamison added 23 points, and Mo Williams had 12 assists.

Jared Dudley had 21 points, and Steve Nash added 20 points and 17 assists for the for the Suns, who improved to 15-20. The victory was the first in January for the struggling Suns, who came into the game with a three-game losing streak. They had averaged 93 points in their last four games, 12.8 under their season average. It was the first time since December 9-14, 2005, that the Suns had been held under 100 points in four straight games.

Third quarter update: Cavs 81, Suns 81. Suns pulled out to a 79-71 lead, but Cavs kiddie corps didn't know enough to fold, so they fought back and closed out the quarter with a 10-2 run, including six points from Alonzo Gee.

Not sure what's going to happen, but it's fun to watch.

Halftime update: Cavs 52, Suns 51. Young, energetic Cavs have held the lead the entire first half. Manny Harris has 15 points and 6 rebounds, while J.J. Hickson's return to center has paid dividends as he has 13 points and 7 boards. Mo Williams has 7 assists to go with 5 points. Channing Frye leads the Suns with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

First quarter update: Cavs 26, Suns 26. The Cavs tried to make the best of things in the wake of the devastating news that center Anderson Varejao, their defensive anchor, would be out for the rest of the season after tearing a tendon in his right foot.

Cavs coach Byron Scott juggled his starting lineup, inserting rookie Christian Eyenga at small forward in place of Anthony Parker, out with a bad back. Eyenga earned his first start after newcomer Alonzo Gee struggled a bit at Golden State.

Scott also started J.J. Hickson at center, giving him a second chance after being benched for missing a mandatory practice last week. Ryan Hollins started for Anderson Varejao on Friday at Golden State, but Scott thought Hickson deserved another look.

"He's definitely moving forward,'' Scott said of Hickson, who started 22 games at center last year and averaged 11.4 points per game. "The incident with missing a practice and talking about that ... he's changed the last few days, which is good. I think he understands that was a mistake. Hopefully it's something that won't happen again. We've all moved on from it. I thought this was a great opportunity to put him at the five spot. With Christian out there, we have some athleticism.''

Hickson called the start bittersweet because of the loss of Varejao, but admitted he'd changed.

"There's been a change in my behavior in my attitude toward the coaching staff and the team and I think it shows on the court,'' he said.

Manny Harris had 10 points to lead the Cavs in the first quarter, while Hickson had eight and Eyenga four.

Cavs starters: F Christian Eyenga, F Antawn Jamison, C J.J. Hickson, G Manny Harris, G Mo Williams.

Suns starters: F Grant Hill, F Channing Frye, C Robin Lopez, G Vince Carter, G Steve Nash.

Injuries: Daniel Gibson (sprained left ankle), Joey Graham (strained right quad), Anthony Parker (strained low back), Leon Powe (right knee surgery), Anderson Varejao (torn tendon right foot) out for Cavs. Gani Lawal (torn right ACL) out for Suns.

Inactives: Gibson, Graham, Powe for Cavs. Lawal, Garret Siler for Suns.

Officials: Dan Crawford, Matt Boland, Brian Forte.

Three things to watch

1. How will the Cavs respond after the devastating loss of Anderson Varejao for the rest of the season with a torn tendon in his right foot?

2. Will J.J. Hickson take advantage of his second chance in the starting lineup?

3. Neither of these teams plays any defense, so it will be interesting to see how high the score might go.

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