Kevin Love will sit out Thursday against Bulls

The red-hot Cleveland Cavaliers will be shorthanded on Thursday when they take on the Chicago Bulls, as power forward Kevin Love will sit out, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Love suffered an eye injury Wednesday after getting poked in the eye by Miami Heat point guard Mario Chalmers. 

The Cavaliers are rolling of late, having captured 14 wins over their last 15 contests. They now sit just a half-game back of the third-place Bulls with the All-Star break looming.

However, much of that success has come without Love, who is averaging 15.1 points and 10.2 rebounds while shooting just 40.8 percent from the field over the past 15 games. On the season as a whole, Love's play has slipped since last season, when he was named to the All-NBA second team.