Love's historical night leads Cavs over Blazers
CLEVELAND -- Kevin Love scored 34 points in the first quarter, the second-most points in a quarter in NBA history, in the Cleveland Cavaliers' 137-125 victory against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.
Love made eight 3-pointers in the quarter, setting franchise records for points in a quarter and 3s in a quarter, and finished with a season-high 40 points. It was his first 40-point game in Cleveland after making his first seven shots, including six 3-pointers. LeBron James had 31 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds for his 44th career-triple double.
Damian Lillard scored 40 points, passed for 11 assists and grabbed seven rebounds for the Trail Blazers, but was overshadowed by Love's finest performance as a Cavalier.
Love's first-quarter outburst trails only the 37 points scored by the Warriors' Klay Thompson in the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings two seasons ago. It allowed the Cavs to set the NBA record for most 3-pointers in a half (16) and while the team tied franchise records for points in a quarter (46) and 3-pointers in a regular season game (21).
James held the previous team mark for points in a quarter with 24, which he set on three different occasions. Love had surpassed his season-high of 27 points about eight minutes into the game, although he still fell shy of his career-high of 51.
Wednesday marked the Cavs' first game in five days, although they showed no rust despite the long layoff. They made their first nine shots as a team Wednesday and never trailed. They led by double digits 3 1/2 minutes into the game, thanks to Love, and the Blazers never threatened despite Lillard's best effort. Twenty-five of his 40 came in the second half.
Mason Plumlee scored 19 points and Evan Turner scored 17 points off the bench for the Blazers, who fell under .500 (8-9) for the second time this season despite carrying the league's second-highest payroll.
NOTES: The digital media company Dose made a musical based on Cavs F LeBron James' life and set to the title song of the Broadway hit "Hamilton." James watched the five-minute video, released Monday, and loved it. "It's great. It's unbelievable, actually," James said. "It was basically the whole journey, up until this point. Obviously they've done their homework and they were pretty much spot on." ... Ohio State players have been given a version of James' basketball shoe to wear Saturday in its college football rivalry game against Michigan. "It's been something that's been in the works for years now," James said. "We finally was able to put together a shoe and work with the Nike football lab to put a cleat on there. It's always a hard process when you turn a basketball shoe into a cleat." ... James sat for nine hours Tuesday giving his deposition in Billy Hunter's wrongful termination lawsuit as executive director of the players' union. ... Portland coach Terry Stotts began the night with 190 victories, tying him for fourth with Mike Dunleavy Sr. on the Blazers' career list. ... Blazers G C.J. McCollum grew up in nearby Canton, Ohio, and attended GlenOak High School.