As if trying to stop LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love wasn't enough, Mike Miller has proven he still has something left in the tank for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Having to prepare for another potential scoring threat is unlikely to deter the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies try to bounce back from their first loss in two weeks when one of the Western Conference's best teams faces a power from the East on Sunday in Cleveland.
"We have to be physical with them, like we are every night," Grizzlies points guard Mike Conley said of the Cavaliers. "We can't let them lead the dance, we can't let them be comfortable and make the plays they're accustomed to making. We just have to make everything tougher and tougher on them as the game goes on. They have a great team, and they play very well at home."
The Cavaliers (15-10) won for the seventh time in eight home games Friday, beating Brooklyn 95-91 thanks to surprising performance from Miller in his return to action after missing seven games with a concussion.
Making his first start of the season, Miller, who averaged 1.5 points in his first 13 games, finished with 21 points while shooting 7 of 8 from 3-point range.
"He's a professional guy. You know you can always count on him, even when he's doesn't make shots. We needed him. He kept us afloat," James said of Miller, who spent last season in Memphis. "His ability to shoot the ball gives us so much more of a dynamic out there."
Miller's performance proved especially key as Cleveland's other four starters shot 15 of 50. James and Irving combined for 38 points while Love finished with six - his lowest total in two years - on 1 of 10 from the floor.
However, the Cavaliers, who won Friday for only the third time in 11 games when failing to score 100, could again have trouble finding their shot against defensive-minded Memphis.
The Southwest Division-leading Grizzlies (21-5) were allowing a league-low 94.0 points per game before a slew overtimes caused that number to rise a bit. Two nights after a 117-116 triple-OT victory at San Antonio, Memphis lost to Chicago 103-97 on Friday for its first defeat in seven games. Conley scored 21 but Marc Gasol was held to 13 on 5-of-15 shooting for the Grizzlies, who shot a season worst-tying 2 of 13 from beyond the arc.
"We didn't have enough effort due in large part to very tired legs," coach Dave Joerger said of his team, which had played a combined six overtimes in its previous four games. "The minutes have added up on us. ... That's going to happen. I'm not down about the loss, I just think we had a tough night."
Defensive specialist Tony Allen missed his second consecutive game with a corneal abrasion, leaving his status for Sunday unclear. Zach Randolph is also uncertain to be available due to swelling in his right knee.
The Grizzlies have won five of six against the Cavs with their loss coming in their last visit to Cleveland, 91-83 in overtime Feb. 9.
Irving had 28 points to lead all scorers and is averaging 26.3 in four meetings for his second-highest mark against any team. James scored 37 in his last game versus Memphis.
Gasol, averaging a career-high 19.6 points, has scored 22 in two of the last three games against Cleveland.
The Cavs are 7-0 at home when James scores more than 22 points compared to 2-5 when he doesn't.
