Cleveland Cavaliers Team Report - February 12

(Basketball News) - The Cleveland Cavaliers were defeated by the New Jersey Nets, 105-85, on Wednesday at Gund Arena.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 13 points and 17 boards, while Eric Williams contributed 14 points to pace Cleveland. Rising stars LeBron James and Carlos Boozer each had a rough shooting night for the Cavs, who have lost four of five contests. James finished 2-of-13 from the floor for nine points, while Boozer was 4-of-15 for eight.

It was 40-40 at halftime, but the scoring really picked up in the early stages of the third quarter. A Kenyon Martin jump hook gave the Nets a 57-51 advantage five minutes in, but Cleveland then pulled within one point at 59-58 on a Williams basket.

However, the Nets closed the third on an 18-6 run, sparked by Kittles, who scored 11 during the burst.

Only a long Dajuan Wagner jumper with 0.3 seconds left kept the Cavs within 13 at 77-64 heading into the fourth. New Jersey scored 37 points in the third quarter after recording just 40 in the entire first half.

Kerry Kittles had 20 in the stanza, after going scoreless in the first half. He finished the game 4-of-5 from three-point range and 11-of-16 from the field overall.

The Cavs never got closer than 11 points in the fourth quarter, and a Martin free throw gave the Nets their first 20-point lead of the game at 88-68 less than five minutes into the final period.

Ilgauskas has scored in double digits in six straight games. He has averaged 15.7 points and 14.7 rebounds in his last three contests.

Cleveland is off until after the All-Star break. The Cavaliers host All-Star Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, February 18.