The short-handed Charge were able to grind out another victory.
The Cleveland Charge picked up their second straight win as they defeated the Rip City Remix 120-113. This wasn’t a pretty game, but Cleveland did enough to grind out a win thanks another strong showing from Cleveland Cavaliers’ two-way player Nae’Qwan Tomlin.
The Charge came out of the gates strong fueled by two quick threes from Emoni Bates. They used this to jump out to a quick 11-point advantage.
That lead didn’t last long. The Remix proceeded to go on an 8-0 run to close the gap. Neither team was able to create separation throughout the remainder of the first half.
Nae’Qwan Tomlin got the Charge offense going in the third quarter to push the lead back to nine. But again, they couldn’t sustain it.
Foul trouble forced Tomlin to the bench midway through the third quarter. The offense fell apart from there which allowed Rip City to turn defense into offense and create easy looks from there.
It seemed like the lead was going to fall apart completely, but it didn’t. Feron Hunt helped keep the offense afloat with some much-needed off-the-dribble attacking. This allowed the Charge to take an eight-point lead into the fourth.
“It’s just a credit to our guys for staying ready,” said Charge head coach Chris Darnell. “I know it’s cliche to say, but it’s really the next man up mentality. I thought that’s what we had tonight when we needed it.”
The Remix quickly cut into the deficit and made it a two-point game, but the Charge never let Rip City get closer than that.
“There was a time out in the fourth quarter that we felt the energy was a little bit low,” said Luke Travers afterward. “Feron was a big driver of that to get back to the next play. I think it showed at the end of the game.”
It certainly did.
The Charge were finally able to create separation in the final three minutes. They continually attacked the paint and turned defense into offense. This was spearheaded by Tomlin who provided 11 fourth-quarter points.
Jules Bernard put the game away with a deep three in the final minute. It was a much-needed confidence boost for someone who’s still finding his rhythm after missing most of January and February.
“He’s starting to shoot the ball with a bit more confidence,” Travers said. “He was huge for us.”
Speaking of confidence, Tomlin has elevated his game since receiving that initial ten-day contract from the Cavs. In the five games since, he’s averaging 19 points and 5.8 rebounds on 59% shooting from the field and 42% from three.
This is quite the progression from someone who wasn’t expected to make this kind of jump coming into the year.
“I was thinking about it the other day, like the first two games, he was playing garbage time in G League games, which is insane to think of,” Travers said. “When you get these opportunities, you got to make the most of it. I think he really has done that. So it’s really cool to see.”
His off-the-dribble skills stand out. There simply aren’t players at this level with his size and talent. The scary thing is that he’s still discovering just how good he can be.
“He just continues to get better and better,” Darnell said. “It’s almost like he doesn’t know how good he is or how good he can be. He’s such a unique player with his size and athleticism and skill set that I still think he’s just scratching the surface.”
Travers has received valuable reps at point guard which has led to inconsistent results on the court. The Charge’s lack of a true point guard has foisted those responsibilities onto Travers who’s better as a secondary creator as opposed to a primary one at this point in his career.
Rip City’s defense was aggressive at the point of attack. They picked up full court and just across the timeline. Travers struggled with turnovers as a result. This has been a recurring trend as he’s now turned it over three or more times in seven straight games.
“Dealing with pressure is still something I need to work on,” Travers said. “When guys are full-court pressing, it’s not so much happens in the NBA, but you know, if you see a 6’7”, 6’8” guy that’s dribbling the ball up, you’re always going to kind of try and pick on him a little bit. So, getting better with that is something I still need to work on, and it has gotten better.”
This is a developmental league. Often, you need to make mistakes to grow. We’ve seen Travers take steps as an off-the-dribble creator throughout the season. This will help him in his NBA career, even if it leads to uneven performances in the present.
“I think [playing this much point guard] is going to be good for me,” Travers said. “At the next level, you got to be able to make those decisions, reading guys off the ball. And it’s been a lot of fun, something that I’ve always enjoyed doing, but maybe not at this magnitude of having the ball just about every possession.”
Bates buried two threes early but wasn’t able to build off of them. He struggled to find his shot from there on out and couldn’t establish himself as an inside scorer.
The Charge head on the road to take on the Wisconsin Herd on Friday. They will return home for their final homestand of the season on Saturday, March 22.