De’Andre Hunter led the way with 30 points, including nine in overtime.
The Cleveland Cavaliers fell down by 18 in the third quarter before deciding to start trying. They erased another large second-half deficit to extend their winning streak to 10 games as they defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 133-129 in overtime. They have DeAndre Hunter and Ty Jerome to thank for their comeback.
The Cavs simply didn’t come out with the level of execution needed to win an NBA game. Especially one that they played without their best player, Donovan Mitchell.
Darius Garland has stepped up in the three previous games without Mitchell. He didn’t on Sunday afternoon. Garland had a tough time getting into a rhythm. He couldn’t get his shots to fall which bled into other parts of his game. He wasn’t the off-the-dribble playmaker or orchestrator we’ve seen all year. As a result, the starting offense was completely stuck in the mud.
Cleveland registered a paltry 42 points in the first half thanks to shooting 32.6% from the floor and 5-20 (25%) from beyond the arc. This led to a 12-point deficit at the break.
The offense woke up in the third quarter. De’Andre Hunter and Jerome combined for 22 of Cleveland’s 37 third-quarter points, but they hardly cut into Portland’s lead due to consistently sending them to the foul line.
The Cavs committed nine fouls in the third quarter, which led to 12 points at the line and a 35-point quarter from the Blazers. This allowed their lead to balloon to as many as 18 late in the third.
However, if there’s anything that we’ve learned about the Cavs this year, it’s that you can’t keep them down for too long.
Cleveland stormed back in the fourth quarter thanks to a string of three-point makes from Hunter. They took their first lead of the second half with just under five minutes to play.
The Trail Blazers didn’t roll over. They seemed to have an answer for every Cavalier haymaker until the last minute. Max Strus hit a baseline corner three to give the Cavs a 118-115 lead with under 30 seconds left. It felt like that was going to be the ball game.
Kenny Atkinson, as he’s shown to do in previous situations, played the numbers game from there. He didn’t let the Trial Blazers attempt a three-point shot. He opted to send them to the line and try to win a free-throw contest.
This backfired as Garland missed one of the crucial free throws that left it a two-point game. Anfernee Simons was fouled on a game-tying attempt and made both free throws at the line to send the game into overtime.
Hunter brought home the victory with nine points in overtime. He sealed the game by grabbing a rebound and making two free throws to make it a two-possession game with under five seconds left.
Hunter led the way with 32 points and seven rebounds. Jerome wasn’t far behind as he provided 25 points on 8-17 shooting with six assists.
Mobley struggled for the first three quarters, but just like Friday’s game against the Boston Celtics, he came alive in the fourth. Ten of his 20 points came in the fourth quarter to spur them on to victory. He fouled out at the end of the fourth.
The Trail Blazers were led by Deni Avdija. He finished with 30 points on 8-13 shooting. Anfernee Simons added 27 points on 7-23 shooting.
The victory extends Cleveland’s winning streak to 10 games.
It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win. The Cavs are now 50-10 on the season.