CLEVELAND _ Months from now, it might be remembered as the night LeBron James shucked his goggles about nine minutes into the game.
But for the moment, Saturday's key Eastern Conference matchup against the Washington Wizards was regarded as an indicator of the Cavaliers' continuing issues on defense.
The Cavs surrendered 40 points in the first quarter, season highs for both the Wizards and the Cavs defense, and 71 points in the first half. They had no answer for the Wizards' John Wall, who poured in 37 points, hitting 14 of 21 from the field, or a balanced Washington attack that placed seven players in double figures.
The Cavs tightened up in the second half and cut a 17-point deficit down to four in the fourth quarter before the Wizards pulled out a 127-115 victory at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Cavs saw their lead over the Boston Celtics cut to one-half game, while the Wizards trail the Cavs by 2{.
With just 10 games remaining in the regular season, Cavs coach Tyronn Lue has much to fix with his team ranked 22nd in the league in defensive efficiency going into the day's play. The Cavs had allowed three consecutive opponents to shoot 51 percent or better until Friday, when they held the Charlotte Hornets to 42 percent from the field. Then the Wizards blistered them for 60 percent.
Even the somewhat surprising presence of James wasn't enough to tame the Wizards, who ran their winning streak to three games.
Listed as questionable earlier in the day after suffering a corneal abrasion in his right eye Friday at Charlotte, James came out in protective goggles he'd vowed not to wear just hours before.
Those hoping to catch a photograph of James in them had to shoot quickly. After missing a jump shot, James tossed the goggles toward the bench with about four minutes remaining in the first quarter and trainer Steve Spiro ran out to retrieve them.
James' eye was red and swollen and he experienced blurred vision Friday night, but he still played 41 minutes against the Wizards and scored 24 points, hitting 10 of 21 from the field. He added 11 rebounds and eight assists, recording his 37th double-double this season, a career-high.
Lue wasn't surprised that James was able to go against the Wizards. The Cavs are 0-6 this season when James doesn't play.
"It's a physical game, it's a contact sport, you're going to get hit. He always gets up," Lue said before the game. "It doesn't surprise me he's playing again tonight. He's one of the toughest players we've got in this league and had in this league. He's accustomed to it and he gets up and just keeps on playing."
Kyrie Irving also tried to keep pace with Wall and Bradley Beal, who added 27 points for the Wizards. Irving ran his streak of 20-point games to 21, the longest active in the league, with 23 points on 8-of-23 shooting and had four assists.
Both teams were playing the second night of a back-to-back. The Wizards won 129-108 Friday at home over the Brooklyn Nets, while the Cavs flew home from a four-game, three-city road trip after a victory at Charlotte.
Wall hit his first five shots in a span of five minutes and teamed with Beal to hit 10 of their first 12 field goals. The Wizards shot 82 percent from the field in the first period and 70 percent in the first half.
The 40 points the Cavs allowed in the first quarter was a season-high by an opponent, surpassing 37 posted by the Warriors on Jan. 16.
At halftime, the Wizards led 71-61, thanks to 70 percent shooting from the field and 56 percent (5-of-9) from 3-point range. Wall totaled 24 in the first half on 10 of 11 field goals, including 2 of 2 from beyond the arc.
