The Cavaliers were having a collective heat check.

This is the Cavs’ 40th NBA season. Only twice before have the Cavs made more 3-point goals than they did in their 114-89 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers at Quicken Loans Arena.

The Cavs (38-11) won their eighth game in a row, as they buried the Clippers under an avalanche of 3-point goals.

Their 16 3-pointers were one off their all-time record set at New York on March 5, 2008, and at Phoenix on March 12, 2009.
The Cavs shot 59.3 percent from behind the arc (16 of 27).

All-Star LeBron James finished with 32 points, three rebounds and 11 assists. He jump-started the long-range assault by making 5 of 6 3-point goals, all in the first quarter.

The Cavs tied a franchise record with their 46-point output in the first quarter. It was only four off the all-time NBA record of 50.

Altogether in that record-setting first quarter, they drained 11 of 13 attempts from behind the arc, which tied an NBA record.

“There’s no description when a player gets in a zone like that,” James said. “Everything you put up feels like it’s going in. It’s a great feeling to get into a zone on that basketball court.”

Teammate Daniel Gibson knows a thing or two about heat checks.

“You get in a zone and make three or four (shots),” he said. “The next one you take with a hand in your face, it doesn’t matter. (It’s) a check to see how that temperature is on that jump shot.”

James’ five 3-pointers in the first quarter tied a team mark. His 23 first-quarter points were one off his all-time record. He has had 24 on three occasions, the last in Milwaukee on Feb. 20, 2009.

The Cavs extended their lead at halftime to 67-39.

The Clippers (20-27), who have lost eight in a row to the Cavs, fell behind by 31 points at one point.

But guard Eric Gordon’s three-point play with 6:52 remaining pulled the Clippers to within 11 points, 92-81.

That’s when James recorded his first field goal since the first quarter with a dunk.

Center Shaquille O’Neal followed with a dunk and a layup, and the rout was back on.

Rookie guard Danny Green was knocked off-balance when he was high in the air by Clippers forward Al Thornton. The latter was assessed a flagrant foul with 1:10 remaining, as Green fell right on his back.

He was walking around very gingerly after the game.

“It hurt like hell,” he said.

Green’s lower back might be extremely sore this morning. It might not be out of the question for him to miss a game.

The Cavs didn’t miss much on the night. They shot 50.6 percent from the field.

“Some of the shots they made were incredible in the first quarter,” Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. “Some of them were 4 and 5 feet behind the 3-point line.

“Right now, I’ve got money that I’ll put them in the gym naked, nobody else on them, that they probably can’t make 11 out of 13 again from the same spots that they made in the game. Some of those shots, from where they were shot, defense or no defense, they are just not that easy of a shot.”

The Cavs are off to their second-best start in franchise history after 49 games. Only last year’s team was better.

They are also 26-6 in their last 32 games.

O’Neal posted his sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds. He had three assists.

“I was always taught to make your teammates better,” he said. “They were doubling and we were kicking it out. I have some of the best shooters in the game on my team.”

Gibson added 14 points and a season-high six assists.

Guard Baron Davis had a team-high 30 points for the Clippers.

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