Cavaliers at Nuggets
Two clubs chasing the eighth-place teams in their conferences square off Friday when the Denver Nuggets host the Cleveland Cavaliers. The streaky Nuggets, who are just two games behind eighth-place Dallas in the Western Conference, have won six of seven following a 123-116 victory at Golden State on Wednesday. Cleveland lost 108-96 at Portland the same night and is 2 1/2 games out of eighth in the Eastern Conference.
The Nuggets dropped eight straight from Dec. 17-Jan. 1 but have rediscovered their offensive prowess recently, averaging 117.7 points over their past seven contests. Denver has won four straight at home, where it is 11-8 overall and 5-2 against Eastern Conference teams. Cleveland has split its first four games since acquiring Luol Deng from Chicago, as the newest Cavalier has averaged 18.5 points and scored in double figures in each game with his new team.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, FSN Ohio (Cleveland), Altitude (Denver)
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (14-25): The addition of Deng (19 points, 6.5 rebounds) to complement Kyrie Irving (21.4 points, 6 assists) gives Cleveland a pair of dynamic offensive players that could lead it to the playoffs. Center Anderson Varejao has played well since Andrew Bynum fell out of favor and was subsequently traded; the Brazilian big man has grabbed 11 or more rebounds in nine of the last 10 games, averaging 14 boards over that stretch. Frontcourt mate Tristan Thompson also has been tough inside recently with double-doubles in five the past six contests and seven of the past 10.
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (20-18): Denver has been dinged with injuries all season but has a healthy core of six players averaging double-digit scoring. Point guard Ty Lawson (18 points, 8.7 assists) leads the way, and backcourt mate Randy Foye (10.5 points) has topped 20 points in three of the past five games and is averaging 17.1 points and shooting 47.2 percent from 3-point range this month. Forward J.J. Hickson (11.5 points, 9.1 rebounds) has recorded three straight double-doubles, including a 13-point, 24-rebound performance against the Warriors.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Cavaliers are 2-2 on their road trip, which wraps up Friday. They have not had a winning trip of more than one game since taking two of three away from home from Feb. 23-26 last year.
2. The Nuggets have made 12 or more 3-pointers in five of their last six games — all wins.
3. Denver has posted a winning record in January the past five years and is off to a 6-2 start this month.