The Cavaliers throw away a game they played good enough to win.
The Cleveland Cavaliers‘ 109-108 loss to the Houston Rockets was heartbreaking on many fronts. There was questionable officiating both ways that led to the result but missed free throws and poor offensive execution down the stretch is what did the Cavs in. They combined to go 0-3 from the floor, commit one turnover, and went 1-3 from the line in the final two minutes. That type of late-game execution isn’t going to cut it on the road against a team as good as Houston.
Grades are based on our expectations for each player.
Donovan Mitchell
19 points (7-21 shooting), 3 rebounds, 3 assists
Mitchell came out strong as he scored 11 points on 4-8 shooting in the first quarter. It seemed like this was going to be his night, but things fell apart from there. This included scoring no points in the fourth on 0-6 shooting. Two of those missed shots came in the final few seconds which would’ve given the Cavaliers the win.
Darius Garland’s missed free throws and Jarrett Allen’s loose ball foul take some of the spotlight off of Mitchell’s poor fourth quarter, but that’s a little unfair. He bares as much of the blame for the loss as either of them. This game was there for the taking and he didn’t step up.
Grade: D+
Darius Garland
26 points (10-21 shooting), 5 assists, 2 rebounds, 3 steals
Garland had a good game until he didn’t. His three with 2:15 left felt back-breaking at the moment and was more proof that he’s been one of the most clutch players in the league. At that point, he had 7 fourth-quarter points on 3-5 shooting. The clutch narrative quickly fell apart from there.
He turned it over during a tie game with 45 seconds left. Tari Eason then committed a flagrant foul on a Garland three-point attempt. He only needed to make two of them to ensure the Cavs at least went to overtime, but he only made one of three.
The tough ending overshadows what was a solid Garland performance for 46 minutes. But the Cavs lost this game in the final two minutes and Garland was a big reason why the did so.
Grade: C-
Jarrett Allen
17 points (7-11 shooting), 13 rebounds, 3 assists
The Rockets combined for 20 offensive rebounds and Alperen Sengun was able to win the game at the line because Allen committed a loose ball foul with five seconds to play in a tie game. Allen fought hard. He wasn’t the sole reason why the Rockets had 24 second-chance points, but he does bear some of the blame for that.
This wasn’t a horrible game by any stretch, but the Cavs had a chance to win it late and Allen, like Mitchell and Garland, couldn’t make the one play the team needed to put them over the edge. That covers up what was a gutsy performance.
Grade: C-
Dean Wade
8 points (3-8 shooting), 8 rebounds, 3 assists,
Wade was incredible defensively and hit timely shots. He was able to shut down Jalen Green when they were in man defense and disrupt the side of the court he was on when Cleveland switched to zone. It was the ideal game from Wade.
Like Allen, Wade could’ve done a better job of clearing defensive possessions, but the Rockets are the top offensive rebounding team in the league for a reason. That will knock his grade down some.
Grade: B
Max Strus
5 points (2-6 shooting), 5 assists, 1 rebound
Strus struggled to find his rhythm tonight despite the 5 assists. He was mostly a nonfactor and didn’t see any fourth-quarter minutes as Kenny Atkinson chose to close with Sam Merrill and Ty Jerome instead.
The Cavs needed more from Strus considering they were already missing three rotation players.
Grade: D+
Georges Niang
8 points (3-7 shooting), 5 rebounds
Niang was out there during the disastrous end to the first quarter as the Rockets outscored the Cavs by 14 once he and Tristan Thompson entered the game. He righted the ship from there and was a contributor to Cleveland’s fourth-quarter comeback, but the team ultimately wasn’t able to recover from the poor first-quarter minutes he was a part of.
Grade: C
Ty Jerome
18 points (6-12 shooting), 4 rebounds, 3 steals
This was the exact performance you needed from the bench. Jerome hit clutch threes and made momentum-swinging plays on both sides of the court in the 25 minutes he was there. Jerome deserved more playing time than what he got, but that isn’t his fault. This was an excellent Jerome game.
Grade: A
Sam Merrill
7 points (3-9 shooting), 5 rebounds, 3 assists
Merrill did a lot of good things on the court on Wednesday. Hitting threes wasn’t one of them as he went just 1-6 from beyond the arc.
Even though he made a big contribution in the Cavs’ fourth-quarter run, they needed him to knock down some of the clean looks that they were able to get for him. That’s what he’s on the floor to do and he couldn’t do it.
Grade: C
Tristan Thompson
0 points (0-1 shooting), 3 rebounds, 3 assists
Like Niang, Thompson was on the court during the poor close to the first quarter. He bounced back nicely as he helped the Cavs get back into the game in the second and third quarters despite not having a huge night on the stat sheet. Thompson’s screening ability remains elite as he continually opened up clean looks for his teammates. That mattered on a night the Cavs halfcourt offense got stuck in the mud.
Grade: B-
Jaylon Tyson
0 points (0-1 shooting), 1 rebound, 1 steal
The rookie seemed out of place at times when he was on the court. Miscommunications with both Garland and Allen resulted in turnovers. The team also struggled mightily during his minutes at the end of the first quarter. You don’t want to pin that on Tyson, but some of that is on him.
This wasn’t the statement game you were hoping to see from Tyson after his strong showing in his previous outing against the Phoenix Suns.
Grade: D