Larry Accepts New Role

A key to the Cavaliers' stepped-up play--they entered the week on an Eastern Conference-best 11-3 run since Christmas--has been the bench, namely C Anderson Varejao, PG Daniel Gibson and SF Devin Brown. The trio has been so effective that when starting SG Sasha Pavlovic went out for at least six weeks with an injured left foot, coach Mike Brown inserted Ira Newble into the lineup to keep from breaking up his top reserves. Another factor in the team's improvement: G Larry Hughes was told to focus on defense and not worry about scoring, and he accepted the new role. . . .