CLEVELAND -- After 13-plus seasons and 199 career postseason games, LeBron James knows not to get carried away when the subject turns to potential playoff matchups. Especially in December.

So when James was asked after the Cavs' 113-102 victory on Wednesday about his feelings toward a potential playoff showdown with the Milwaukee Bucks, who James admits plays his team tough, he said: "how far down the line?"

"I don't know. The next several years they could be really, really good," James said, after posting 29 points, nine rebounds and six assists. "For me, I'm ready for whatever matchup. It doesn't matter if it's this year, or if it's several years, I'm going to be ready for it."

Kyrie Irving, who had just poured in 31 points and dished out a career-high 13 assists, was far, far more pointed.

"I hope. I hope, man. I hope," Irving said, when asked about the possibility of seeing the Bucks in the postseason. "They're a great young team. It would be great to go four games against them. I'm fired up to go against them every time now, for real. Ever since they kicked our (butt) in Milwaukee, it's been personal and it's going to continue to be personal."

The two anecdotes are not meant to contrast James, the nearly 32-year-old sage and three-time champion, with the 24-year-old Irving who's got one ring but still welcomes the street fight (he did just predict a playoff sweep in this hypothetical with Milwaukee).

Playoffs or no playoffs, and right now, the Bucks are 13-14 and in ninth in the East -- Milwaukee definitely has the Cavs' attention. You can see it not only in their words, but their actions.

The Bucks' 118-101 smashing of Cleveland on Nov. 29 struck a nerve. It wasn't just that Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 34 points to go with 12 rebounds that game, or that Jabari Parker added 18 points, or that Michael Beasley chipped in 17 off the bench. Or that the Bucks bullied their way to 68 points in the paint and scored 22 off Cleveland's turnovers. Or even that coach Tyronn Lue pulled his entire starting five during the third quarter when the group failed to respond to halftime adjustments.

It was all of the above. The Cavs approached this two-game, consecutive-night series clearly wanting to make right all those wrongs.

It started with a strict adherence to the game plan. Both Lue and James stressed it to the media -- get back on defense, no matter what. Try to keep the ball out of the 6-11 Antetokounmpo's hands in transition. Don't be afraid to help on to another man on a drive to the hoop.

In Wednesday night's game, the Cavs actually outscored Milwaukee in the paint, 48-44. Antetokounmpo and Parker combined for 110 points in the two games this week, yes (they are the reasons James and Irving are saying the Bucks are so good), but the rest of the Bucks were mitigated in part by Cleveland's discipline with its defensive plan.

"Defensively just making a conscious effort of getting back, a missed shot, a turnover," Lue said. "I thought LeBron -- the last couple games we showed them on film -- just set the tone. If you don't get the foul call, just sprint back getting back into the play. When we do that, and we load to the basketball and keep those guys out of the paint, it makes it easy on us and I thought we did a great job of shrinking the floor."

There is also the "personal" component that goes beyond Irving simply declaring it so. On Tuesday, the Cavs gritted out a 114-108 victory in overtime, perhaps most impressive because Kevin Love was out and J.R. Smith broke his thumb in the first half. James played 47 minutes and scored 34; Irving scored 28 points in 45 minutes.

Given the Cavs' M.O. of resting starters after arduous workloads for the second game on consecutive nights, it was reasonable to expect that Lue might leave James or Irving or both on the bench for Wednesday. That was in fact his plan heading to the arena, while knowing he'd also be without Love and Smith. That's four starters. Then both Irving and James talked him out of it.

"Just to prove that we're at a different level," Irving said. "At the end of the day it really comes down to that. We've been through the ringer. We know what to expect from one another. I'm pretty sure he wanted to sit us, understanding that myself playing (45) minutes, Bron playing (47)."

The Cavs scored the final six points of the third quarter to go up 15, the last three on a nifty drive to the hoop by Irving and free throw. Irving said they closed the quarter with such furor because "it's really physical out there.

"Especially against this young Bucks team, they're budding in the Eastern Conference," Irving said. "But at the end of the day, we just have to prove why we are who we are and those moments in the game and pockets of the game whether it's the beginning of the third or end of the third, you got to be able to either make a push."

Come what may for the Bucks, the Cavs are the defending NBA champs who are heading to the playoffs. Almost surely with a very high seed.

But they won't soon forget the Bucks. And no one forgets the Cavs -- especially Irving and James.

"For the last 48 hours to see those two," Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd began, "they put a lot of pressure on the defense tonight and we understand why they're the best team in the league. They're the champs and they showed that again tonight."