Cavs closed this game strong.
The Cleveland Cavaliers moseyed through the first three-quarters of the game before closing out strong against the Washington Wizards. Evan Mobley especially turned it on as the second half began.
Mobley had just 6 points in the first half before going for 21 in the second. He was running the floor, catching lobs and abusing switches. Mobley’s growth as an offensive player continues to shine through his All-Star season as the Wizards simply had no answer for him once he got rolling.
Donovan Mitchell contributed his usual scoring punch with 33 points on 12-16 shooting. It wasn’t the most efficient night of his career but Mitchell’s control of the offense kept the Cavaliers afloat while the rest of the team searched to find its identity.
Washington’s defense eventually could no longer hold up as the Cavs’ relentless offensive attack took charge. The Cavs scored 130+ points for the 14th time this season — blowing away their total of just four the year before.
Max Strus has been working his way back from the ankle injury that kept him out for the first month and a half of the season. His defensive impact has begun to show itself recently. But more importantly, he hit five three-pointers tonight. All of the little things Strus does to impact winning are infinitely more impactful when he’s doing the thing he was brought to Cleveland to do.
While Dean Wade and Isaac Okoro recover from injury — and De’Andre Hunter waits to make his season debut — the Cavaliers turned to Emoni Bates, Craig Porter and Jaylon Tyson to fill some minutes. Bates went scoreless in a five-minute burst during the first half and didn’t return to the game. Tyson and Porter, however, earned 20+ minutes each as they found ways to contribute without scoring.
Porter dished 5 assists, grabbed 4 rebounds and hawked 3 steals in 23 minutes. The Cavaliers may be more reliant upon him as the season goes on now that Caris LeVert is off the roster. The same can be said for Tyson — who is working in the absence of Georges Niang. Tyson had 7 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 20 productive minutes.
The Cavaliers will host the Minnesota Timberwolves at home on Monday.