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Wednesday, Dec. 8 7:30pm ET
Sura's 28 sinks unidentifia-Bulls | |||||
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 GAME FLOW
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Bob Sura didn't want to show up the Bulls. Anyway, he already had. Dribbling out the clock near midcourt, Sura knew he needed two points to set a career-high. But the Cavs guard chose not to drive to the basket and cradled the ball in his arms as the final horn sounded. Sura scored 24 of his 29 points in the first half and the Cleveland Cavaliers handed Chicago its 10th straight loss Wednesday night with a 107-93 win over the Bulls. "I've been feeling all year that I was going to break out at some point with a big game," said Sura. "I guess I carried us a little. I've been on a roll like that before. The basket feels as big as the ocean." Chicago, playing without leading scorer Elton Brand, dropped to 1-15 and matched the worst start in franchise history. Chicago last began a season this poorly in 1967-68. The Bulls, who placed Toni Kukoc on the injured list Wednesday, hadn't lost 10 in a row since the 1976-77 season, when they dropped a team-record 13 straight. "It is disappointing not to be able to get a full unit out there," said Randy Brown, one of the few recognizable names left on Chicago's roster. "You just can't compete for 48 minutes, especially on the road." Sura made a career-high five 3-pointers and added seven rebounds and six assists for the Cavaliers, who have beaten Chicago five straight times. Shawn Kemp scored 21 points and Brevin Knight 18 for Cleveland. Andrew DeClercq added 12 rebounds. Sura is completely recovered from ankle injury and is playing with confidence for the time in two seasons. He's thriving under first-year coach Randy Wittman's uptempo offense, and even the opposition has noticed a change in Sura. "He's a totally different Bob Sura than last year," said Brown. Sura went 10-of-14 from the floor in the first half and scored 10 points in a 19-5 run to close the half after the Bulls had pulled within two. "Bobby had a big spurt there for us in the first half and that gave us a big cushion," said Wittman. Corey Benjamin had 15 points for Chicago, which had to scratch Brand before the game because of a hip pointer and placed Toni Kukoc on the injured list Wednesday with back spasms. The Bulls were once the Cavs' biggest nemesis as Michael Jordan twice eliminated Cleveland from the NBA playoffs with buzzer-beating shots. But these aren't Jordan's Bulls. Even Magic Johnson, who was at the game, didn't recognize most of the players in the familiar red and black uniforms. "I looked out and was like, 'Wow, I don't know anybody but (Will) Perdue and B.J. (Armstrong),'" Johnson said at halftime. Wittman, too, played against some of those Chicago teams and is still shocked not to see Jordan, Pippen, Rodman and Co. on the Bulls bench. "Yeah, the red uniform," he said. "And it wasn't too long ago that they were the team everyone was trying to be. Especially without Kukoc not out there, they don't have anybody your used to seeing. It's different." Cleveland built an early 10-point lead and looked like it might have a rare easy night. But after missing their first six shots, the Bulls pulled even at 27-27. Knight's two free throws put Cleveland up 37-35, and Sura followed with a steal and layup. Kemp then finally hit a jumper to start a 9-0 run that included Sura hitting a 3-pointer, making a nice pass to Knight and stripping Dedric Willoughby at midcourt and going in for a layup. Cleveland opened a 20-point lead in the third quarter on Knight's 21-foot jumper and was able to maintain a double-digit lead throughout the fourth quarter. Game notesSura set his career-high of 30 last year against Milwaukee. ... Chicago's lone win came on Nov. 13 against Boston. ... Kemp entered the game shooting just 38 percent from the field and was only 24-of-81 in his last five games. ... Johnson, in Cleveland this week to open another one of his movie theater complexes, said its strange to see the Bulls struggle after so many years of domination. "You never thought their run would end," he said. ... Johnson, who still plays ball nearly every morning at UCLA, said he impressed with Cleveland rookie guard Andre Miller. Johnson played summer ball with Miller. ... Cavs starting forward Lamond Murray sat out with the flu. ... Chicago guard Hersey Hawkins strained a calf muscle in the first half and did not return. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Chicago Clubhouse Cleveland Clubhouse Magic holds court at Cavs game, says NBA not the same
RECAPS Boston 115 Denver 90
Cleveland 107
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