Cleveland loses their second straight game for the first time since the end of January.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of their third losing streak of the season as they dropped their second straight game. This time, it was to a Los Angeles Clippers team that couldn’t miss.
The offense that was absent late against the Orlando Magic on Sunday was there in full force early on Tuesday night. The Cavs came out of the gates strong as they scored an impressive 45 points in the first quarter led by Donovan Mitchell and De’Andre Hunter who both added in 10 points.
The only issue was that they couldn’t stop the Clippers. Los Angeles poured in 37 in the frame led by James Harden’s 11 first-quarter points.
This opening quarter set the stage for what was to come.
Neither offense slowed down in the second. Cleveland clung to a narrow 73-68 advantage heading into the break.
The Clippers took control of the game in the third quarter. They won the quarter 38-29 thanks to repeatedly getting to the free-throw line. This allowed LA to take a four-point lead into the fourth.
Los Angeles’s slim advantage ballooned to 12 three minutes into the fourth quarter. Their continual ability to create second-chance opportunities allowed them to keep that going. On top of that, the good shooting that was there for the Cavs at the start of the game simply vanished.
The Cavs were able to cut the deficit to six but couldn’t get closer than that in the fourth.
This all added up to a 132-119 victory for Los Angeles.
Max Strus led Cleveland with 24 points on 8-12 shooting which included going 5-8 from three. Mitchell added 18 points on 5-18 shooting with 11 helpers. Darius Garland, De’Andre Hunter, and Evan Mobley all had 17 points.
Kawhi Leonard had a game-high 33 points on 12-19 shooting to go along with seven rebounds and four assists. Ivica Zubac was Los Angeles’ most impactful player. He provided 28 points and 20 rebounds. Eight of those rebounds came on the offensive end.
The Cavs won’t have long to lick their wounds. They will be back in action Wednesday night as they take on the Sacramento Kings at 10 PM.