Photo: David J. Phillip/AP

The Cavaliers knew they were in for it tonight. After last night's unforgivable overtime loss to the Grizzlies, they had a date with an undersized, guard-oriented, yet tough and fast-breaking team in the Houston Rockets. The Rockets took off to an early 8-0 lead and had a 33-19 lead launched by the end of the first quarter. The Cavaliers battled, but they choked on those first quarter exhaust fumes the rest of the evening and got red-hot in several instances, logging five technical fouls, which led to their second straight loss in as many nights.

Moon landing in Houston: Reserve forward Jamario Moon returned after missing the past two games with a groin injury. The Cavaliers paid dearly last night without Moon, but his impact wasn't felt much tonight as he logged just 4 rebounds and 1 block in nearly 19 minutes.

The Cleveland Cavaliers came into Tuesday nights game undefeated against the Western Conference, and the Cavs looked to stretch that Western Conference win streak to 6 against the Memphis Grizzlies (13 in a row counting last season). Early on, LeBron and Mo led the Cavaliers to an 11 point half time lead; however the dreaded 3rd quarter Memphis blues grabbed a hold of Cleveland. The Memphis young guns gained confidence and used Cavalier turnovers to send this game into overtime, and in the extra period, the Cavs came up short. Cleveland was handed their first loss to a Western Conference foe this year.

1st Quarter Block Party- In the 1st quarter, Cleveland's defense was making life in the paint difficult for Memphis. Shaq alone had 3 blocked shots in the 1st. The Cavaliers had 5 blocked shots total in the 1st quarter.

• Hold the Mayo- LeBron had a blocked shot of his own and it was one of the chase down variety. O.J. Mayo is the newest victim on LeBron's chasedown list. Mayo gathered a long defensive rebound and got out in transition. Mayo went to lay in a coast to coat bucket but LBJ came from behind and sent Mayo's shot off the glass.

Photo: Morry Gash/AP

With 4:36 left in the first quarter, the Cavaliers trailed the Bucks 17-10 after originally trailing 11-0. That's when the Cavaliers decided to do a little deer hunting. The Cavaliers put a 29-0 spot on the stunned Bucks who trailed by 22 at the end of the run and never came close to recovering from it. The Cavaliers moved to 15-5 with another fantastic team effort and another sub-20 point effort from LeBron James.

Take a med-kit to the Moon: Jamario Moon missed today's game with a groin strain, and he is listed as day-to-day for the Cavaliers' next game on Tuesday in Memphis. The Bucks were without traditional Cavalier killer and Buckeye Michael Redd, who has been held to just five games so far this season.

Is it game time already?: With the odd 3:00 PM start (2:00 PM local), the Cavaliers looked a little stiff at first. They were scoreless for the first three minutes of the game, missing four shots before a Mo Williams jumper ended the drought. The Cavaliers were 4-for-11 from the field when the big run began. Meanwhile, Milwaukee made seven of its first nine shots, and the normally football-hungry Milwaukee fans were enjoying their Sunday afternoon early.

Photo: Joshua Gunter/Cleveland.com

Twenty-four minutes in, the Cavaliers were engaged in a dogfight with just a one-point lead at halftime. But, they tightened up their defense, committed zero turnovers the rest of the way, got significant contributions from their bench, and broke out the dance moves as they essentially put the Bulls away early in the fourth quarter.

Bandaged Bulls: Chicago was without backup point Kirk Hinrich and starting power forward Tyrus Thomas. Rookie Taj Gibson, who started the last time these two played as Thomas was returning from injury, got the start once again. Aaron Gray, whose participation was in doubt, got some playing time in the fourth quarter.

KYP: Know your personnel: Early on, both teams were shooting the ball very well, but it was the way the Cavaliers were guarding the Bulls that was aiding the hot start. Taj Gibson, who loves to shoot jump shots, was given the chance to do exactly that. Taj drained four of his five shot attempts as Hickson seemed content with giving him a cushion. The Bulls guards, Derrick Rose and John Salmons, are great at creating off the dribble, and the Cavaliers allowed them to slice into the paint early on. Salmons did more of the scoring, and Rose did more damage dishing. Rose shot just 3-of-10 in the first half, but he did hand out six assists, while Salmons led the Bulls in the first half with 12 points.

Photo: Joshua Gunter/Cleveland.com

93 percent.

It is the percentage of games that Zydrunas Ilgauskas has played since his fifth foot operation in the 2001-2002 season, which was preceded by a start to his career where he saw action in only 26 percent of the team's games. Since those sometimes overcast days for Ilgauskas, he's made two All-Star teams, four playoff appearances, and one NBA Finals trip. He's also becoming the franchise's all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots. Tonight, the 7'3" center added two more accomplishments in an all-too-improbable career resurrection. This was Z's night, but mixed in with that was one of the Cavaliers' best performances all season against a thus-far dynamic Phoenix Suns team. The Cavaliers had seven score in double figures and all ten rotation players contribute in a big way in their 17-point victory that was never in doubt after the first quarter.

Take a bow, Big Fella: With 3:50 to go in the first quarter, Mike Brown did the right thing. He sent Zydrunas Ilgauskas into the game and let him accomplish what should have been done four nights ago against Dallas. Ilgauskas moved past general manager Danny Ferry for sole possession of the all-time Cavalier games played mark with his 724th appearance in wine and gold (or, on this night, blue and orange). The Q gave him a standing ovation, and it continued until Z hit his first bucket and for each one thereafter. Z didn't disappoint either; in fact, he led the team with his 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting and with his 11th and 12th points passed Mr. Cavalier Austin Carr for 3rd on the all-time Cavalier scoring list. Big Z stands just 15-20 games away from passing the man he was brought in to replace for second in scoring, Brad Daugherty. For as concerned as Brown was with Z matching up against Dallas, the man in the middle did just fine against an even tougher matchup in Phoenix and covering Amar'e Stoudemire or Channing Frye. In fact, the blue and orange went on a 21-4 run when Z checked in initially, and the Cavaliers were +9 for the 20 minutes he played. Sure, he's old, he's slow, he can't jump, and he's in the twilight of his career. But, he's also experienced, skilled, as motivated as ever, a great teammate, a Cavalier icon, and he's willing to do what it takes to help this team win. I challenge you to a) find a better backup center in the NBA and b) find a man more deserving of a ring. Here's hoping you get what you deserve, big guy. As for tonight, in a microcosm of your Cavalier career, it was a steady, consistent job well done.

Photo: Tony Dejak/AP

Many Cavalier fans expected to celebrate a milestone tonight, but matchup circumstances caused that to be delayed. Not one to often disappoint the home crowd, however, the Cavaliers gave the 20,562 a win that was marked by a Delonte West cameo, lots of small ball against the small Mavs, plenty of Shaq touches, and some incredibly efficient shooting against one of the best in the West.

DNP-CD for Z?: That's right, Cavalier fans. Danny Ferry gets to enjoy a few more days in the record books alongside Zydrunas Ilgauskas because the 7'3" center recorded his first DNP-CD or "did not play - coach's decision" in a long time. If someone gets back to me on the last time it happened, I'll give you some recognition in the next Cavalier article. I'm mildly ticked at Mike Brown, especially considering how much time FSN Ohio devoted to this milestone feat in their pregame show. I understand that it wasn't a good matchup for Z with Drew Gooden being the biggest guy out there, but he could've found 5-6 minutes at some point in the late first or early second quarter to get him in. For heaven's sake, Shaq isn't any faster. If you think he breaks the record Wednesday, you could be mistaken. The Phoenix Suns aren't any better of a matchup for Ilgauskas or the Cavaliers' big unit. With about three minutes left and the outcome not in doubt, you could have ran Z out there as well, just like they did with Jawad Williams and Darnell Jackson. I realize that Z was probably a) rusty b) stiff and c) not worried about it, but it's just unfortunate that on the night the odometer was supposed to roll over, it didn't happen. Here's hoping Z gets it done on Wednesday.

Photo: Chuck Burton/AP

It must've been something in Dan Gilbert's wife's turkey, stuffing, or cranberry sauce in Detroit. Whatever it was, it left the Cavaliers wearing cement sneakers most of the evening as they tryptophaned their way through a first half where Gerald Wallace, Stephen Jackson, and the Bobcat bench looked like they skipped Thanksgiving dinner altogether. The Cavaliers trailed by as much as 24 in the third quarter before waking up and cutting the defecit to just five in the final minute with fourth quarter lockdown stops. But, their own fourth quarter cold streak did them in as they fell seven points short in Time Warner Cable Arena tonight.

Shaq in action: After missing six straight games, Shaquille O'Neal returned to the starting center role. It was apparent early that the Cavaliers had a tough time getting O'Neal readjusted. In Shaq's last two games against Orlando and Miami, the Cavaliers were finally starting to get things figured out with Shaq. Those six games he missed have regressed things back to the early season struggles. In the second half, Shaq got more touches and a little bit more rhythm, but he missed a few easy buckets and his effect at the defensive end was not great. O'Neal finished with 11 points and 8 rebounds on 5-of-11 shooting in 30 minutes. I feel Mike Brown played O'Neal a little bit too much tonight, especially in the fourth quarter, but Brown continues to tinker with his rotations, particularly in crunch time. It's obvious in his nine man rotation (which does not include Delonte West), Jamario Moon and Anderson Varejao are the main options off the bench and Daniel Gibson and Zydrunas Ilgauskas are the second-tier subs.

Photo: Duane Burleson/AP

In the holiday spirit, the Cavaliers took it easy on their former brethren, Pistons coach John Kuester and starting center Ben Wallace, who dealt with a shorthanded squad in tonight's matchup in the Palace. Cleveland led by as much as 19, but a fourth quarter push fueled by the Detroit backcourt and Cleveland's offensive stagnation cut the lead to just five in the final minutes. It took some LeBron heroics to seal things for the good guys as the Cavaliers won their sixth in a row in Detroit.

Not the Pistons you remember: Flashback to last year's playoff series and a starting lineup for the Pistons of Rodney Stuckey, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Antonio McDyess, and Rasheed Wallace. That's right, just one of them was in the starting lineup tonight. McDyess and Wallace have departed to San Antonio and Boston respectively, and Hamilton and Prince were both missing tonight due to injury. Speaking of injuries, Shaquille O'Neal was cleared by team doctors, but Mike Brown chose to hold him out for the sixth straight game with the hope that he can go Friday in Charlotte.

Catching up with old friends: There was a lot of turnover in Detroit this past offseason, and some of that affected the wine and gold. Cavalier offensive coordinator/guru John Kuester is now the Pistons head man, and reserve Cavalier power forward Ben Wallace is now starting Pistons center Ben Wallace in a Back to the Future role with the team where he won a title. It was interesting to see how Kuester's offense has carried over to the Pistons. Granted, he doesn't have anywhere close to his full arsenal right now, but the Pistons were able to get some pretty good shots in this game late. As for Big Ben, he chimed in to the tune of 8 points and 9 rebounds in almost 31 minutes. He even made 4-of-6 free throws, including back-to-back swishes. I was a fan of Wallace's work in his first tour of duty in Detroit, enjoyed his time here in Cleveland, and I still respect the guy who is starting at center in the NBA at age 35. I wish nothing but the best for two former Cavaliers... unless we're playing them of course and as long as we beat them out for the Central Division crown.

Photo: John Kuntz/Cleveland.com

Today, Brady Quinn threw for 304 yards and 4 touchdowns, the Browns amassed 439 total yards, they converted 10-of-19 third downs, converted 2-of-2 fourth downs, did not turn the ball over, controlled the ball for nearly 35 minutes, and the Browns jumped out to a 24-3 lead in the first quarter on the way to their second victory of the season. It sounds great, doesn't it?

The only problem is the Browns didn't win, and that defense that I so greatly praised not six days ago is the main culprit. Number one draft pick Matthew Stafford threw for 422 yards and 5 touchdowns, 1 of them with 1 arm as time expired (more on that later) as the Lions piled up 473 total yards and marched down the field in less than two minutes with two timeouts, crushing the Browns and outscoring them 35-11 in the last three quarters.

Surprise inactives: Today, the Browns did not dress LB David Veikune, WR Brian Robiskie, and RB Jerome Harrison. While Harrison, especially with his whiny comments this past week, does not surprise me, I'm disappointed that Robo and Veikune were left off the active list. To have two of your top four draft picks (both of them second round picks) left off your gameday roster due to ability is not a vote of confidence for the Browns' drafting skills. Even more than that, it's the simple fact that this season is lost, and the Browns need to see what they have in Veikune and Robiskie. Chris Jennings was the backup running back and got 15 touches today, and perhaps it was better to have him active and leave Harrison inactive.

Photo: Chuck Crow/Cleveland.com

On back-to-back nights, it took a high-scoring performance from LeBron James and a lockdown on defense in the fourth quarter to lift the Cavaliers to victory. Once again, the defensive lockdown began when James took his rest to start the fourth. On this night, it was Jamario Moon who led the charge, guarding Andre Iguodala, as the Cavaliers got balanced scoring to notch win number ten.

Shaqlessness continues: No surprise here, Shaq missed game number five in a row, but with three days off, the hope is that he can practice with the team and play on Wednesday in Detroit. For the Sixers, they were without forward Marreese Speights and sharpshooter Jason Kapono, their lone true three point shooting threat. The Sixers are in fact one of the worst three point shooting teams in the league, and they made just 5-of-19 attempts.

MileZtone: Zydrunas Ilgauskas moved into second place on the all-time games played list for the Cavaliers. Z passed Bingo Smith with his 721st game played, and he now stands just two games behind Danny Ferry for the franchise record. Z rebounded for a strong performance after mighty struggles recently, especially Friday night. Z finished with 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting, adding 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks in 34 minutes. I get worried with Z playing that many minutes, so let's hope Shaq is not far from return.