INDIANA PACERS (3-0) 98, CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (1-2) 91, OT
at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis
Friday
RADIO/TV: WTAM/Fox Sports Ohio

WHAT HAPPENED: The Pacers outscored the Cavs, 14-7, in the extra session to win the Central Division battle on Friday.

But the Cavs had a golden opportunity to put the game away at the end of regulation. Rookie point guard Kyrie Irving had his best game as a pro, but missed a wide-open layup at the buzzer.

His miss left the score tied at 84 entering overtime.

Irving had 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Pacers forward Danny Granger was quiet during regulation, but smelled the victory in OT. He had nine of his game-high 22 points in overtime.

Anderson Varejao stepped up for the Cavs with 14 points and 13 rebounds. He took a hard fall on his back in the game when Pacers forward David West was slapped with a flagrant foul. Varejao will likely be sore on Saturday.

Small forward Omri Casspi continues to lose minutes and possibly standing to Alonzo Gee. Casspi had just four points and five rebounds. He's averaging 4.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in the first three games. That's not what the Cavs had in mind when they traded J.J. Hickson for him.

UP NEXT: Cavs host New Jersey at 6 p.m. Sunday at Quicken Loans Arena.

STARTERS
SF Omri Casspi (6-9, 225) vs. Danny Granger (6-9, 228)
PF Antawn Jamison (6-9, 235) vs. David West (6-9, 240)
C Anderson Varejao (6-11, 260) vs. Roy Hibbert (7-2, 260)
SG Anthony Parker (6-6, 210) vs. Paul George (6-8, 215)
PG Kyrie Irving (6-3, 191) vs. Darren Collison (6-0, 170)
INACTIVE LIST
Cavs – G Mychel Thompson, C Semih Erden
Pacers - F/C Jeff Foster, F/C Jeff Pendergraph
OFFICIALS
Bill Spooner, David Guthrie, Josh Tiven

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (1-1) 103, DETROIT PISTONS (0-2) 89
at The Palace of Auburn Hills
RADIO/TV: WTAM/Fox Sports Ohio

WHAT HAPPENED: The Cavs played inspired defense, a stark contrast to Monday's loss to Toronto.

When Coach Byron Scott went to his second unit, they made a major impact on the game. Instead of letting the lead dissipate, they built on it. Point guard Ramon Sessions is playing as well as I've seen him play.

Not only is he running the team, he's defending and shooting the 3-pointer with confidence. I don't know if it's a competitive thing with Kyrie Irving now on board, but Sessions is giving the Cavs great minutes.

Let's see if he can continue that on Friday against a good Indiana team.

Many are down on forward Antawn Jamison. But he proved he's not ready for the glue factory just yet. He made 6 of 9 shots from the field on Wednesday for 15 points.

Irving played just 19 minutes, 50 seconds, but wasn't needed any further. Scott never went back to his starters late in the game, which proved to be the right decision.

The Pistons played without suspended forward Charlie Villanueva, who is being penalized for his fight with Cavs center Ryan Hollins at the end of last season. Villanueva might have helped a bit on the boards, but the Pistons were throttled in the rebounding department, 40-26.

Other than rookie guard Brandon Knight, who I really like, the Pistons got nothing off the bench. Vernon Macklin's two points were the only points they got off the bench, other than Knight's 23 points.

STARTERS
SF Omri Casspi (6-9, 225) vs. Tayshaun Prince (6-9, 215)
PF Antawn Jamison (6-9, 235) vs. Jonas Jerebko (6-10, 251)
C Anderson Varejao (6-11, 260) vs. Greg Monroe (6-11, 250)
SG Anthony Parker (6-6, 210) vs. Ben Gordon (6-3, 200)
PG Kyrie Irving (6-3, 191) vs. Rodney Stuckey (6-5, 205)
INACTIVE LIST
Cavs – G Mychel Thompson, C Semih Erden
Pistons - none
OFFICIALS
Derrick Stafford, Brent Barnaky, Michael Smith

TORONTO RAPTORS (1-0) 104, CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (0-1) 96
at Quicken Loans Arena
RADIO/TV: WTAM/Fox Sports Ohio

WHAT HAPPENED: The Kyrie Irving era began on Monday. He didn't shoot the ball well at all, as he made just 2 of 12 shots. That will have to change if he wants to make a run for the Rookie of the Year award.

Irving, 19, was the No. 1 pick in the 2011 draft. He finished with six points, seven assists and three rebounds. One thing he did well was just one turnover in 26 minutes.

It was his backup, Ramon Sessions, that pulled the Cavs back in the game. Coach Byron Scott was asked after the game if he regretted that move. He didn't.

He did say that he almost went with Sessions down the stretch to try to win the game. It probably would have given them the best chance to win. But this whole season is about Irving and Tristan Thompson. So, it was Irving who went back in the game. He didn't play much better than he did earlier.

Veteran forward Antawn Jamison is trying to shoot himself out of his slump. It didn't work, as he made just 6 of 20 from the field.

On this particular night, I would have stayed with Thompson a bit longer, since he was very active around the basket en route to his 12 points and five rebounds.

The other starting forward, Omri Casspi, was almost invisible. He had just two points and was 0 of 4 from the field. He'll need to make some impact.

STARTERS
SF Omri Casspi (6-9, 225) vs. Rasual Butler (6-7, 215)
PF Antawn Jamison (6-9, 235) vs. Andrei Bargnani (7-0, 256)
C Anderson Varejao (6-11, 260) vs. Amir Johnson (6-9, 210)
SG Anthony Parker (6-6, 210) vs. DeMarr DeRozan (6-7, 216)
PG Kyrie Irving (6-3, 191) vs. Jose Calderon (6-3, 211)
INACTIVE LIST
Cavs – G Mychel Thompson, C Semih Erden
Raptors - F Linas Kleiza, C Aaron Gray
OFFICIALS
Monty McCutchen, JT Orr, Violet Palmer

Cavs fans: Each Sunday I do an NBA notes column, as all three The News-Herald beat writers write in-depth notebooks on the teams that they cover. Of course, Jim Ingraham covers the Indians and Jeff Schudel covers the Browns.

I would like to run a question of the week from the fans. Please include your name, city and email address so I can confirm them.

Keep questions centered on the Cavs or the NBA. I'll pick the best one of the week and run it in my Sunday notes.

Please send questions to my email - RFinnan@News-Herald.com

Thanks, Bob

Cavs guard Baron Davis left Cleveland to get a second opinion on his back. His agent told ESPN Los Angeles that the fear is that Davis has a herniated disk.

* * *
Former Cavs guard and ex-Suns GM Steve Kerr appears to be tired of Cavs owner Dan Gilbert's rants. Kerr sounded off recently on Gilbert's letter to NBA commissioner David Stern about the possibility of Chris Paul going to the Lakers.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS 2011-12 ROSTER
NO. PLAYER COLLEGE POS HGT WGT BIRTHDATE YEARS PRO
X Omri Casspi Israel F 6-9 225 6/22/88 2
85 Baron Davis UCLA G 6-3 212 4/13/79 12
9 Semih Erden Turkey C 7-0 240 7/28/86 1
8 Christian Eyenga Congo G/F 6-7 210 6/22/89 1
33 Alonzo Gee Alabama G/F 6-6 219 5/29/87 2
1 Daniel Gibson Texas G 6-2 200 2/27/86 5
44 Luke Harangody Notre Dame F 6-8 246 1/2/88 1
6 Manny Harris Michigan G 6-5 185 9/21/89 1
5 Ryan Hollins UCLA C 7-0 240 10/10/84 5
2 Kyrie Irving Duke G 6-3 191 3/23/92 R
4 Antawn Jamison N. Carolina F 6-9 235 6/12/76 13
24 Samardo Samuels Louisville F/C 6-9 260 1/9/89 1
3 Ramon Sessions Nevada-Reno G 6-3 190 4/11/86 4
13 Tristan Thompson Texas F 6-9 227 3/13/91 R
17 Anderson Varejao Brazil F/C 6-11 260 9/28/82 7
TRAINING CAMP INVITES
31 Tyrell Biggs Pitt F 6-8 237 8/1/86 R
50 Kyle Goldcamp Gannon F 6-10 250 6/10/86 R
10 Kenny Hayes Miami (Oh) G 6-1 172 4/16/87 R
15 J.P. Prince Tennessee F 6-6 196 7/14/87 R
21 Mychel Thompson Pepperdine G 6-6 211 6/1/88 R
HEAD COACH: Byron Scott (Arizona State)
ASSISTANT COACHES: Paul Pressey (Tulsa)
Paul Pressey (Tulsa)
Jamahl Mosley (Colorado)
Joe Prunty (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo)
Nate Tibbetts (South Dakota)
ATHLETIC TRAINER: Max Benton (Colorado)
ASSISTANT COACH/STRENGTH & CONDITIONING COORDINATOR: Stan Kellers (Cleveland State)

Dear Fans,
On behalf of the entire NBA family, I want to thank you for your patience and support over the past several months. The new collective bargaining agreement is designed to provide more competitive balance for our league, reward strong performances by our players, and strengthen our game by improving its economics. We believe this agreement will benefit our teams, players, and most importantly, fans by making the NBA stronger.

In the days and weeks ahead, all of us hope you will enjoy the run-up to the start of the season: free agency, training camp, and preseason games. Each NBA team will be hosting special events for fans, so be sure to check your favorite team's website, Facebook page, or Twitter feed for details. This season we look forward to bringing you more of everything you love about NBA basketball: incredible competition, tremendous excitement, and unending hard work and dedication by the world's best athletes.

Thank you for being an NBA fan. I hope you enjoy the season, which promises to be a most exciting one.

Sincerely,

David J. Stern
NBA Commissioner

The following is a different look at the Cavaliers' 2011-12 schedule:
0: Appearances by the Lakers this year at Q
1: Back-to-back-to-back games (April 13-15)
2: Sunday matinee games (March 18 vs. Atlanta, March 25 vs. Phoenix)
3: Four-games-in-five nights this season
7: Road trip from Jan. 4-16 (longest since the 2006-07 season)
7: Seasons in the last 8 years the Cavs have opened at home
9: Homestand from Feb. 8-28 (longest in franchise history)
9 of 12: Games on road to start the season
10 of 13: Games at home in February
20: Back-to-back games
33: Home games for the Cavs
66: Total games, all on HD