Darius Garland’s 26 points weren’t enough to pull out the win.
The Cleveland Cavaliers once again fell behind by double-digits in the second half to a bad team. The Cavs fought hard to make it a game late, but you have to be perfect down the stretch to overcome 17-point deficits. They did enough to send the game to overtime, but the offense stalled out there as they fell to Charlotte 119-111.
We’ve seen different versions of this same game repeatedly through the first third of the season. The Cavs didn’t come out with the defensive intensity they needed to, and they couldn’t make enough outside shots to make up for it.
The Hornets took control of this game in the second quarter. They won that frame 24-18 as the Cavs went 5-23 from the field (22%), 1-7 from three (14%), and turned it over five times.
Charlotte pressed their advantage in the third. A 12-3 run pushed their lead from six to 17.
The Cavaliers were able to claw their way back thanks to 11 fourth-quarter points from Darius Garland. They briefly retook the lead halfway through the fourth, and it was a back-and-forth game from there.
The Cavs took a one-point lead with 21 seconds left after a Lonzo Ball steal in the backcourt and a layup from Jaylon Tyson. Two made free throws from Tyson made it a three-point advantage. Brandon Miller then hit a three with five seconds left to tie the game.
Cleveland had a chance to take the lead on the final possession, but Donovan Mitchell couldn’t hit the game-winner. As Mikey McNuggets pointed out, it seems like the play was meant to go to Garland, but it wasn’t executed properly.
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The Cavaliers held the Hornets to just nine points in overtime. The only issue was, the Cavs didn’t score any of their own as they went 0-10 from the field in the five-minute extra frame.
Garland was a bright spot for the Cavs. He put up a season-high 26 points on 8-19 shooting to go along with nine assists.
The Cavaliers have gone as Mitchell has this season. He simply didn’t have his usual scoring punch as he went 6-24 from the field. This included going 1-11 from three. He contributed seven assists in the loss.
Jarrett Allen looked like someone still getting back into basketball shape. He was held to nine points on 3-8 shooting with three rebounds in 23 minutes of play.
Kon Knueppel led the Hornets with 29 points on 11-19 shooting with three assists. Miller poured in 25 points on 8-23 shooting to go along with 13 rebounds and six assists.
The loss brings the Cavs’ record to 15-12. They will be back in action on Wednesday as they head on the road to take on the Chicago Bulls.
Category: General Sports
