Cavs fall to Mavs, lose Irving

Kevin Love had to carry the Cleveland Cavaliers in a blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday afternoon, and it may have been a sign of things to come.

Already without LeBron James for the next two weeks or so due to knee and back strains, the Cavaliers lost Kyrie Irving to back tightness in Sunday's 109-90 loss to the Mavericks.

Irving was substituted with 6:41 remaining in the third quarter and did not return.

Love did his part offensively, pouring in 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting to go with 10 rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal, but the Cavs failed to give Dallas much of a scare in the second half, falling to a disappointing 11-8 at home.

They also fell to 19-15 overall with their fifth loss in seven games, and they're closer to the sixth and seventh place Bucks and Nets in the Eastern Conference standings than they are to the fourth place Wizards.

That's particularly concerning when you consider that a LeBron-less team with a hobbled Irving plays six of its next games on the road and five of its next eight against winning teams, four of which come against winning Western Conference teams.

Monta Ellis led the way with 20 points for the Mavs, who have won five straight and six of eight since Rajon Rondo joined the team.