• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Thunder-Cavaliers Preview

Jan 23, 2010 - 6:08 AM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

Oklahoma City (24-18) at Cleveland (33-11), 7:30 p.m. EDT

Another victory over the defending NBA champions was a nice accomplishment, but the Cleveland Cavaliers aren't getting too excited - especially with another one of their guards injured.

The Eastern Conference-leading Cavaliers look to close out an undefeated homestand Saturday night when they face an Oklahoma City Thunder team trying to end its trip on a positive note.

Cleveland (33-11), which posted a 15-point victory in Los Angeles on Christmas Day, swept the season series with the Lakers on Thursday, winning 93-87.

"You don't want to look too far into beating one team twice," reigning league MVP LeBron James said after scoring 37 points with nine assists. "The championship still goes through L.A."

James and the Cavaliers haven't been to the NBA finals since 2007, but with a schedule that has them playing 22 of their final 38 games at Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland has a good chance to add to its 3 1/2-game East lead and make a strong push toward the playoffs.

While the Cavaliers have won the first two games of their current homestand and 18 of 22 overall, the reigning Central Division champions will have to find a way to continue their strong play without Mo Williams and Delonte West.

Williams, the team's second-leading scorer at 16.9 points per game, will be out for at least a month after spraining his left shoulder in Tuesday's 108-100 victory over Toronto. West broke his left ring finger against the Lakers, will not play Saturday, and his status beyond that is uncertain. Daniel Gibson, who hasn't started in two seasons, will be expected to help pick up the slack while the two guards are sidelined.

"The last couple weeks, I've been hoping to catch some minutes and it looks like now I got my wish," he said.

Gibson will face the Thunder (24-19) for the first time this season. He missed the Cavaliers' 102-89 victory in Oklahoma City on Dec. 13 with a sprained right pinkie finger.

James had 44 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals in that matchup as Cleveland improved to 3-0 versus the Thunder since that franchise relocated from Seattle.

One of the league's biggest surprises of 2009-10, Oklahoma City has already exceeded last season's victory total of 23 and is one-half game out of the West's eighth and final playoff spot. Despite Friday's 86-84 loss to Memphis, the Thunder are one of three teams in the West - along with the Lakers and Dallas - to boast a winning road record (12-10).

A victory Saturday would give the Oklahoma City franchise a 3-1 trip and its most wins away from home in a season since 2005-06, when the Seattle SuperSonics went 13-28.

Defense has been a major reason for the Thunder's resurgence. After giving up 103.1 points per game in 2008-09, Oklahoma City is now among the league's top defenses, allowing an average of 95.6.

Even with Williams and West out, the Thunder could face a significant challenge in slowing down the Cavaliers, who have averaged 103.3 points on 51.3 percent shooting while winning 14 of their last 15 home games.

Oklahoma City star Kevin Durant has reached 30 points in seven of his last eight games, including a 30-point effort Friday. Durant, who is third in the NBA with 29.2 points per game, had 29 in the Dec. 13 loss to the Cavaliers and is averaging 18.5 in two career visits to Cleveland.

The Cavaliers beat the Thunder in last season's matchup at Quicken Loans Arena, 117-82 on Nov. 26, 2008.