Cavs Top Atlanta at the Q

Happy Birthday LeBron!

The Cavaliers never led through the first three quarters and trailed by as much as 17 early in the second half.  After trimming their defecit to 2 with 4:35 left in the third, Atlanta pushed their lead back up to 11 before the end of the period.

Then Cleveland turned up the heat and outscored the visiting Hawks 29-16 to steal their 26th win, 106-101, on LeBron’s 25th birthday.

With the game knotted at 101 and the shot clock winding down, Anderson Varejao made a shot fake, took a dribble and then calmly canned the first three pointer of his career to propel the Cavs to victory.

James scored a season-high 48 points on 15 of 23 from the field while adding 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots in an impressive performance.  Mo Williams struggled from the floor but managed 14 points and a team-high 10 assists.  Shaquille O’Neal chipped in with 11 points and snagged 5 boards.

The Cavs will hit the road again as they take on the New Jersey Nets on Saturday afternoon.  They have won six straight and 11 of their last 12.