Cavaliers stay hot, dismantle shorthanded Wizards

LeBron James was right: the Cleveland Cavaliers are rounding into form.

The Cavaliers captured their 15th win in 17 games on Friday by demolishing the Washington Wizards 127-89.

As usual, the Cavaliers were led by the All-Star combination of Kyrie Irving and James, who combined for 53 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds and finished the night as a combined +50.

The Wizards simply had no answer for the Cavaliers' spread high pick-and-roll attack. Washington threw a number of looks against Cleveland, but the Cavaliers found a solution for every scheme. Cleveland shot 51.1 percent from the field, including 14-of-33 from deep.

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers' defense, anchored by Timofey Mozgov, was resolute. The Wizards were largely kept to the perimeter for long jumpers, as Cleveland did a great job of cutting off the paint. A cold shooting night from deep also didn't help as the Wizards shot just 1-for-16 on 3-pointers.

James and Irving were backed up by J.R. Smith, James Jones and Iman Shumpert, who all scored in double-digits. The Wizards were led by Nene Hilario and John Wall, who finished with 18 points apiece.

The win vaults Cleveland past Washington into a tie with the Chicago Bulls for third-place in the East.