MIAMI: Ninety minutes before tipoff Saturday night, Tyronn Lue announced he was starting Timofey Mozgov at center against the Miami Heat’s small ball lineup. By the time the official lineup sheets were distributed 45 minutes later, Lue had changed his mind.
Mozgov was out, Iman Shumpert was in. The Cavs may have matched the Heat’s small lineup in stature, but they sure didn’t match their energy and intensity. Nor could they match the Heat’s incredible shot-making and rebounding.
The Heat blitzed the Cavs from the start Saturday and led by as many as 31 on their way to an easy 122-101 victory at AmericanAirlines Arena, the Cavs’ 11th consecutive defeat in this building.