Werbung » (125.0), 24th in passing yards allowed (247.3) and tied for 20th

Cleveland, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Kyrie Irving started ice cold, missing his first seven shots. Hours later, his coach was asked to describe a performance he said was unlike anything hed ever seen. We just ran some stuff for our hot player, said David Blatt, and he delivered. Irving piled up a career-high 55 points with an injured LeBron James cheering from the sideline and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Portland Trail Blazers 99-94 on Wednesday night for their eighth consecutive win. Irving electrified Quicken Loans Arena by making a team-record 11 3-pointers, the last of them coming with 6.4 seconds left to give the Cavaliers the lead for good. His 55 points were the most ever scored by a Cavaliers player at home and one shy of James franchise-record 56 in a game in Toronto on March 20, 2005. The fourth-year point guard almost single-handedly extended Clevelands winning streak. Timofey Mozgov added 12 points, including two key free throws late in the game, but Kevin Love went scoreless after getting 10 in the first quarter and J.R. Smith was the only other Cavs player in double digits with 11. All of it came with James on the sideline because of a sprained right wrist he suffered Tuesday against Detroit, which could keep him sidelined for at least one more game. The Cavs improved to 2-8 this season without the four-time NBA MVP in the lineup. Irving went 17-of-29 after missing his first seven shots over the opening 10 1/2 minutes of the game. He scored 28 points in the first half and had 16 in the fourth quarter to keep the Cavs from giving away a game they led by 14. Ive seen a lot of great performances, but something quite like that? No, Blatt said. Ive never seen that. And Ive been coaching a long time. LaMarcus Aldridge had 38 points to lead Portland, including two free throws that tied the score with 27.6 seconds remaining. Following a timeout, Irving buried his final shot over 6-foot-8 Nicolas Batum to give Cleveland the lead and break C.J. Miles franchise record for 3s in a game. I tried to contest it, but he made a big shot, said Batum. He had a big night and that was a big shot. Irving then grabbed the rebound after Damian Lillard was short on a 3 from the right corner at the other end and made two foul shots for the last of his 55 points. His previous career high was 44 points in an overtime loss to Charlotte on April 5 last year. Miles Cavaliers record lasted barely a year. He made 10 against Philadelphia on Jan. 7, 2014. I feel like the pace that Im playing with right now is getting me a lot of open looks, especially in transition and pulling up for the 3-point shot, said Irving. Cleveland has won eight in a row for the first time since an eight-game streak March 8-24, 2010, which was James last season with Cleveland before he left to play for Miami. Portland had an extra day off after Mondays scheduled game in Brooklyn was postponed Monday night because of a snow storm. The Blazers hadnt played since a 103-96 win over Washington on Saturday night, when Aldridge scored 26 points after deciding to put off having surgery on a torn ligament in his left thumb, an injury that was expected to sideline the star big man between six and eight weeks. Batum returned after missing a game with a wrist injury and scored seven points. Lillard had 14, Wesley Matthews scored 11 and Chris Kaman had a game- high 13 rebounds for Portland. Game Notes The Cavs recalled guard Joe Harris from Canton of the NBA Development League but he didnt play ... Love was 3-for-15 but pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds ... The Cavs lost in Portland on Nov. 4. Wednesdays win was just their second in the last nine meetings ... The Blazers face Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta on Friday ... The Cavs host Sacramento on Friday. Wholesale Dolphins Jerseys Authentic . After Mariota was pushed around by Stanford on Thursday, finishing 20/34 with 250 yards and two touchdowns in Oregons Title hope-crushing defeat, hes going to need a poor performance or two from the remaining frontrunners to have a shot at the most coveted individual trophy in college sports. Cheap Dolphins Jerseys . -- Having already fallen behind because of the NFL lockout, Blaine Gabbert couldnt afford a lengthy holdout. http://www.dolphinscheapjerseys.com/ . -- Arizona came out of its last meeting with California a bit discombobulated, hurting from its first loss and the loss of forward Brandon Ashley for the rest of the season. Discount Dolphins Jerseys Online . Bibeau, Torontos sixth-round pick at No. 172 overall in last years draft, was named the outstanding goaltender of the 2014 MasterCard Memorial Cup.GREEN BAY, Wis. - Ted Thompson is happy to have Julius Peppers in the fold. But the Packers general manager insisted Thursday that landing the eight-time Pro Bowl defensive end from the rival Chicago Bears wont have an effect on what Green Bay does with its nine selections in next weeks NFL draft. In his first public comments since Peppers surprising signing on March 15, Thompson said he believes the 34-year-old lineman has plenty left in the tank and that he expects him to have an impact on the Packers up-and-down defence. "Theres no evidence of any decline in his play, in our opinion," Thompson said Thursday. "He still has the same athletic traits that he had coming out (of college). Hes had a remarkable history in the NFL in terms of durability. Were looking forward to it. I think he is, too." The 6-foot-7, 287-pound Peppers certainly has been durable, playing in 186 of a possible 192 games. Hes also been productive, registering the second-most sacks (118.5) in the NFL and forcing the fifth-most fumbles (39) since he entered the league. He leads all NFL defensive linemen with nine interceptions over that span. But playing 855 snaps for the Bears last season, Peppers managed only 7.5 sacks, the third-lowest total of his 12-year NFL career. The Packers envision him as a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker in their 3-4 defence, and their hope is that by playing him fewer snaps, they will not only increase his production but give opposing offences another pass-rushing threat to worry about opposite four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Clay Matthews. Matthews, who missed six games last season with a twice-broken thumb, is expected to be fully healthy for training camp. "When I view him as a football player, hes an individual youd like to create targeting problems," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said of Peppers in March. "He has the ability to pplay from the two-point stance, has the ability to play on the move.dddddddddddd" In 10 career games against the Packers with Carolina and Chicago, Peppers has recorded 9.5 sacks, his fourth-highest total against a specific opponent. The Packers finished tied for eighth in the 32-team NFL last season in sacks with 44 despite Matthews absence. Their hope is that Peppers, who reported for the first day of the off-season program last week, will have an impact on more than just that one category. Last season, the Packers finished tied for 24th in scoring defence (26.8 points per game), 25th in yards allowed (372.3), 25th in rushing yards allowed (125.0), 24th in passing yards allowed (247.3) and tied for 20th in takeaways (22). "Its fun to see Julius. Hes a specimen. He looks great," Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said last week. "Itll be fun to get him really into the fold and get him feeling like hes part of the team, encouraging him to be a leader for us. I think he brings a lot to the table -- on the field and in the locker room. Im just excited about not having to run away from him anymore." As hopeful as the Packers are of Peppers contributions, Thompson insisted that he wont approach the No. 21 overall pick - or any of his other picks - differently with Peppers on board. "We talked about this before. I might sound like a broken record, but we feel that the draft is a long-term investment," said Thompson, whose teams most immediate needs appear to be at safety, linebacker, tight end, offensive line and cornerback. "We dont get too carried away with what our perceived needs are at the moment. We think thats good business. If you can marry those things up thats fine but if you stretch to try to fill quote unquote need somewhere then you end up messing up a couple of spots, so we try to stick to the best player available." ' ' '