Looking for Some Respect, Cavaliers Defeat Jazz, 99-92

The unheralded Cleveland Cavaliers hustled their way to a sixth consecutive victory Saturday night.

With Andre Miller scoring 22 points and Clarence Weatherspoon getting 15 points and 12 rebounds at Gund Arena in Cleveland, the Cavaliers (15-7) might also have finally gained some respect and recognition with a 99-92 victory over the Utah Jazz.

“Yeah, we got some respect from them,” Miller said. “But we got a long, long way to go before we can even think that we’ve accomplished something.”

Reserve Chris Gatling, who scored 11 points for Cleveland, was more outspoken.

“Everybody says we are this, we are that,” Gatling said. “How much more do we have to do? I think a lot of people now know we are for real.”

Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan thought so.

“They did a great job,” he said of the Cavaliers. “It’s good for basketball to see a team try to do it the right way.”

That “way” started with tenacious defense.

Utah’s Karl Malone, hounded all night by Weatherspoon, scored only 13 points and made four 17 from the field. John Stockton led the Jazz with 18 points.

“It’s the same old story,” Malone said. “When I play good, we have an opportunity to win. When I don’t, our chances go down.

“I had some chances, but they played with a lot of fire. They were more aggressive.”

Weatherspoon’s play at both ends of the court midway through the final quarter carried Cleveland. He scored on a layup and seconds later made one of two free throws to give the Cavaliers an 82-77 lead.

He then blocked a shot by Malone. Seconds later, Weatherspoon tipped away a pass intended for the perennial All-Star. That led to an uncontested layup by Matt Harpring and an 84-77 lead.

Minnesota 113, Indiana 110--Terrell Brandon missed two chances to win the game in regulation. He made up for it in overtime.

Brandon, who missed all six of his shots in the fourth quarter, made a 15-foot jumper with 2:08 left in the extra period to tie the game and two free throws with 18.6 seconds left to clinch the victory at Minneapolis.

Jalen Rose, who had all of the Pacers’ nine points in overtime and 31 for the game, missed a three-pointer at the final buzzer.

Brandon missed a jump shot with 28 seconds left in regulation and came up short again as the buzzer sounded. He said the second shot sparked memories of former teammate Malik Sealy, who was killed in May in an auto accident. Sealy’s three-point basket in overtime beat the Pacers last January.

“That’s why I was hoping to get the last shot,” Brandon said. “It was the same situation, the same spot on the floor. I was disappointed, but we won the game, so I can’t get too emotional about it.”

Philadelphia 99, Chicago 91--Allen Iverson scored eight of his 33 points in the last 6:12 as the 76ers survived a rally by the Bulls at Chicago.

And, he picked up the slack in Eric Snow’s absence, handing out eight assists.

“I’m asking him to do a lot of other things,” 76er Coach Larry Brown said. “Allen is handling a lot of responsibility. He is getting better every day. This was not his best game, but it is a typical game.”

With the Jazz losing to Cleveland, the 76ers (18-6) have the best record in the league to themselves. And the Bulls are still the NBA’s worst team at 3-21.

But at least they made the 76ers work for the victory. Ron Artest led the Bulls with a career-high 29 points, including 15 during a third-quarter rally.

The 76ers reeled off 14 in a row midway through the fourth quarter, including the eight by Iverson, to preserve the win.

“We don’t have any easy games,” Iverson said. “We know guys are going to come out and they want to beat us. We have the best record in the East, so obviously teams want to get up for those games.”

“We’re not trying to get moral victories, we’re trying to get real victories,” the Bulls’ Elton Brand said. “We thought we had a chance at this one.”

San Antonio 90, Phoenix 82--The Spurs took the lead for good when David Robinson and Terry Porter combined for 10 consecutive points to make it 82-74 with 6:54 left at San Antonio.

In the fourth quarter, Jason Kidd missed all eight of his shots and Rodney Rogers made two of nine from the field as Phoenix scored only two points over a span of nine minutes.

Denver 102, Houston 100--Nick Van Exel scored 17 of his 26 points in the second half and Antonio McDyess added 17 points and 20 rebounds at Houston as the Nuggets ended the Rockets’ three-game winning streak.

Cutino Mobley made two free throws to make the score 102-100 with 1:04 left. Houston had a chance to tie the game, but Mobley missed a 12-footer as time expired.

New Jersey 89, Atlanta 83--Rookie Kenyon Martin’s dunk off a missed layup by Stephon Marbury with 30.3 seconds left gave the Nets the victory at Atlanta.

It was the third win in four games for the Nets, who had previously lost nine in a row. It also was New Jersey’s first win at Atlanta since Jan. 21, 1994, ending a string of 10 losses there.

Charlotte 99, Boston 87--The victory was the Hornets’ eighth in a row at home and it prevented Rick Pitino from getting his 100th win with the Celtics.

Boston has lost three in a row, five of its last six, and is 1-7 on the road this season.

Miami 93, Golden State 85--Brian Grant had 23 points and 14 rebounds as the Heat wrapped up a five-game West Coast road trip.

Playing its third game in four nights, the Heat rebounded from an 18-point loss at Seattle on Friday night and won for the eighth time in 11 games. The Warriors lost their fifth in a row.

Both teams have been plagued by injuries, but Miami needed only seven players to win. A.C. Green and Anthony Carter were the only reserves used by Coach Pat Riley.