CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Cavaliers’ head coach J.B. Bickerstaff wants his team to focus on the details.
Rebounding and limiting turnovers are at the top of that list.
Friday night at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, the Cavaliers were outpaced in both categories as the Charlotte Hornets rode a 19-2 run to open the fourth quarter to a 123-112 win.
“We’ve just we got to take care of the ball,” Bickerstaff said. “In Memphis, we came out, it was a four-point game and (we) turned it over four times. Tonight, we turned it over six times. You can’t survive those.”
The Cavs fought tooth and nail with the Hornets for three quarters, a team they’d like to emulate in the form of a play-in contender this season. For much of the evening, it looked like they could play the part.
It all evaporated in a matter of minutes to start the fourth quarter.
“They’re live ball turnovers. It's not like they're shot clock violations or the ball is going out of bounds,” Bickerstaff said. “We’re turning it over and giving it to them, to a team that wants to play fast and can get up the floor quickly.”
The Wine and Gold trailed by just a point entering the final frame but committed six turnovers in their first eight fourth-quarter possessions. On the night, the Cavs surrendered the ball 19 times and allowed 34 points off giveaways.
“We just need to be more solid with the basketball and take the play that's in front of us instead of trying to make the play,” Bickerstaff continued. “I think that's what happens is, you know, we find ourselves in tight basketball games and now we're trying to press and make the play instead of letting the game come to us like it did through the first three quarters.”
Ricky Rubio was guilty of six miscues, but he also handed out 10 assists and scored 15 points.
“We were having a really good game and started on me the last turnover in the third quarter,” Rubio said. “It was a snowball from there that we weren’t going to stop.”
As Rubio continues to adapt into the offense, Bickerstaff knows there will be some bumps in the road as they feel out Rubio and vice versa. The pros have outweighed the cons at this point.
“I trust Ricky Rubio with the basketball in his hands,” Bickerstaff said. “There's too much history there, you know, too much experience that we've seen playing against him and watching tape. We’ve just got to make sure we're solid with the basketball.”
While Bickerstaff was more diplomatic with his assessment, Rubio put the blame squarely on himself. As a veteran, Rubio feels it’s his responsibility to put the Cavs in position to win and it starts with taking care of the basketball.
“It was bad passes. There’s nothing to blame on them (teammates), it’s all on me,” Rubio said. “I take that blame and take this loss because it's something that as a veteran, I have to lead the way in knowing that if there's one or two turnovers, the next play you can't like really rush it.
“I pushed it maybe too much and that’s something I will learn, and it won’t happen again.”
What is perhaps most concerning through these first two games, aside from the turnovers, is that games have seemingly gotten away from the Cavaliers in the fourth quarter.
“I think in Memphis it was more defensive mistakes. Tonight, it was more offensive mistakes,” Rubio said. “But there's something that we have to really focus on, and it's concentration. Fourth quarter the momentum, it's hard to change when they start 8-0.”
Again, the details.
In the rebounding department, the Cavaliers were also on the short end for the second straight game. Despite a handful of seven-footers in the lineup at any given moment, Cleveland was outclassed on the glass 46-36.
The Hornets dumped in 16 second-chance points.
“It's everybody. You know, you think about Memphis, Jarett is battling Steven Adams, so he does his job and keeps him off the glass and other people got to come and protect him and up with those rebounds
“Same thing tonight with (Mason) Plumlee and (P.J.) Washington and (Miles) Bridges. Those guys are going hard to your offensive glass. We've got to fight those fights and then we've got to help one another. You know, sometimes it takes two people to put a body on a guy. We all have to be better in that area. We can't just put it on our big.”
Bridges and Kelly Oubre Jr. each had huge nights for the Hornets with 30 and 25 points, respectively. Bridges notched the fourth 30-point performance of his career.
Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers with 33 points, his 13th 30-plus point performance of his career. Evan Mobley and Lauri Markkanen each added 13 points and five rebounds.
“We’ve got to bounce back and watch some film see where we can improve. But tomorrow is a new day, it's a new opportunity. You just go out there, play with a lot of confidence like we have been doing and be ready.
“This league doesn't stop. Doesn't feel sorry about you because you (two games in) and DG (Darius Garland) is out. Whatever it is, it’s going to keep going and could snowball if you don't want to stop it.”
NOTES—Darius Garland missed Friday night’s matchup with the Hornets because of an ankle injury he sustained in the season opener.