Cavaliers try to take commanding 3-0 lead in Washington

In Game 1, Larry Hughes scored 27 points and pulled down seven rebounds as Cleveland downed Washington, 97-82, in the opener of the series at Quicken Loans Arena. Superstar LeBron James finished with 23 points, nine boards and seven assists in the victory.

On Wednesday, James scored 18 of his 27 points in the second half and also collected eight rebounds and seven assists to lead the Cavaliers to a 2-0 series lead over the Wizards with a 109-102 win at Quicken Loans Arena.

James leads the Cavaliers in scoring (25.0 ppg) and assists (7.0 apg) in the first two games against Washington, while Hughes is averaging 23.0 points and Drew Gooden has pulled down a team-best 10.0 rebounds per game.

Antawn Jamison has been the injury-riddled Wizards best player in the playoffs. He leads Washington in scoring (29.5 ppg) and rebounding (12.0 rpg), while Jarvis Hayes is second on the club in scoring at just 11.5 points per game.

Washington does not have All-Stars Gilbert Arenas (knee) and Caron Butler (hand) for the entire playoffs after both were lost for the season due to injury. Arenas lead the Wizards in scoring (28.4 ppg) and assists (6.0 apg) during the regular season, while Butler averaged 19.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists.

This is a best-of-seven series. Game 4 is scheduled for Monday at the Verizon Center.

Cleveland has won three straight Game 3s in the postseason, while Washington has lost two straight Games 3s.

The Cavaliers eliminated Washington in six games in the first round of last year’s conference playoffs. Cleveland was then ousted by Detroit in the next round.

The Wizards are in the postseason for a third consecutive year and are meeting Cleveland in the playoffs for the fourth time. The only time Washington defeated the Cavaliers in the postseason was when it took two of three games in the first round of the 1977 NBA Playoffs.

The Cavs lead the all-time playoff series with Washington by an 11-7 count.