Thanks in large part to their defensive pressure, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers were able to walk out of Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday night with a 115-112 victory over the Chicago Bulls, extending their streak of games won at home to 12.
Thursday night’s game was a tight one. In fact, there were over 15 lead changes. However, when Dwyane Wade led the Cavs on a defensive stand during the fourth quarter, his teammates were quick to respond.
In his 24 minutes of playing time off the bench, Wade turned in 10 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field, four assists, three rebounds, three steals, and two significant blocks.
During his post-game media availability, LeBron James spoke to Fox Sports Ohio’s Fred McLeod with regards to the Cavs’ defensive intensity in the fourth quarter, which held the Bulls scoreless for seven minutes.
“It was perfection,” James said following Thursday night’s game. “It was defensive perfection. From the tips to the strips, everybody was just locking down defensively. D-Wade had his hands going tonight, and they got us that ten-point lead. We needed it because that team has been playing extremely well as of late. Defensively, we’re just in tune.”
James and the Cavs, winners in 19 of their last 21 games, will be back in action on Christmas Day (Monday) with a nationally-televised game against the Golden State Warriors inside Oracle Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. EST with ABC having live broadcast coverage.