The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to bounce back after being handed their fifth home loss this season on Monday night, as the Charlotte Hornets travel to the Quicken Loans Arena to face the Cavaliers for the third time this season. The current season series is tied at one a piece as the two teams look to face off for the first time in Cleveland.
The Hornets, who currently sit a 29-26 and have pushed their way to the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference, are looking to claim their sixth win in a row, while the Cavaliers aim to recover after having their five-game win streak broken by the Detroit Pistons at home.
Charlotte is amongst the seven teams currently in the mix for contending for the three seed in the East, being less than three games behind the spot. The Hornets are also looking to notch their second victory against Cleveland this season, hoping to further advance their position in a tight playoff race. Kemba Walker has stepped up his game as of late and will be coming off of a 28-point outing in a win against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.
Last Meetings
Both of the prior meetings between these teams this season were played at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, however, Cleveland will look to obtain win number 41 on the season at home as Charlotte comes to Northeast Ohio to play in one of the toughest arena’s in the league.
The Cavaliers won the first of the two meetings 95-90 in their November 27th matchup against the Hornets. Cleveland mounted a fourth quarter comeback, aided by two huge shots by J.R. Smith, while holding Charlotte to a mere 14 points as they fought their way to an early season victory. LeBron James led the Cavaliers with a double-double, scoring 25 points and 13 rebounds. Kevin Love also added a double-double of his own, scoring 18 points while grabbing 18 boards.
On the February 3rd meeting just a few weeks ago, the Hornets made their own second half push to further their status as a contender in the East, earning a 106-97 victory over the Cavaliers. Without leading point guard, Walker who sat out with injury, Charlotte was driven by Jeremy Lin’s 24 points on seven of 13 shooting from the field. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist added 11 points and 13 rebounds to help the Hornets win the game. Kyrie Irving, who did not play in the first meeting, scored 26 points on 10 of 17 shooting for Cleveland in the loss.
James, although unable to claim a road win, moved past the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Kevin Garnett for 16th on the All-Time scoring list, ending this meeting with 23 points. James has since moved to 26,250 All-Time points and sits at 15th, as he closes in on Tim Duncan.
Player Status
Iman Shumpert, who has sat out the past few games for Cleveland, is currently listed as day-to-day and his status for Wednesday’s game is currently unknown.
The game will tip off at 7 P.M. ET Wednesday evening and will air on League Pass.