CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland Cavaliers nearly pulled off the unlikely Sunday night.
Among six players, including three of their regular starters and the full starting lineup, Cleveland gave the New Orleans Pelicans, led by Zion Williamson, everything they could handle before running out and losing 116-109.
“I was proud of their effort,” Cavs coach JB Bickerstaff said. ‘Just the gravel we’re talking about, the waste, the selflessness they were playing with. We had to start really well and they brought it from the start and competed for the whole game. ”
The Cavs were a three-quarter the better team. They took a two-possession lead in the deciding fourth. But there was too much to overcome:
Heavy legs on the second night of a back-to-back.
An incomplete – and abbreviated – rotation, with Darius Garland, Collin Sexton, Larry Nance Jr., Jarrett Allen, Damyean Dotson and Dylan Windler all watching in street clothes off the couch.
Much trouble with starting center Isaiah Hartenstein, who left with six after scoring just 22 minutes on a night, the Cavs could not afford to lose another corpse.
A missing go-to goal scorer in the pinch.
And of course, Zion, who bullied Cleveland throughout the night and in the final seconds scored a monstrous performance with a powerful two-point dunk.
Williamson was the difference and he scored 38 points, including eight in the fourth quarter, on 16-of-22 shooting with nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Brandon Ingram added 27 points and eight assists.
“Zion is really good,” Bickerstaff said. ‘In today’s NBA, not one person will be able to guard a man like this. I thought in the first half we left Dean (Wade) a little too much on an island. In the second half we started to congregate more, with a few charges, some charges that were also not mentioned, but I thought our guys did a better job of supporting Dean in the second half. ‘
After an embarrassing loss one night earlier against the short-handed Toronto Raptors, the Cavs looked motivated and outspoken. With a sharp ball movement, less dribbling and a wealth approach, they reached a season high of 39 points in the first quarter and 68 in the first half – also their best this season.
Rookie Isaac Okoro had a career night and bagged 19 points on 6-out-10 shooting. Wade also set a career high with 21 points and drilled 5-out-8 from deep. Matthew Dellavedova, who started in place of Garland, organized the group and dished out a match-high ten assistants. Kevin Love, one of the veteran leaders, added 19 points and five rebounds. Even Cedi Osman was back in the rotation and jumped off the bench to score 15 points, the most he has had since Feb. 14.
The Cavs showed the fighting, pride and urgency that is lacking Saturday night. There was no reason to hang on to this one head – even though they faded and scored just 15 points in the fourth quarter and passed 26-15 over the last 12 minutes.
“I thought we played well, I thought we moved the ball well. “I thought we were creating open looks for each other, they just did not fall,” Bickerstaff said of the fight in the fourth quarter. ‘It’s hard to play against a team that has weapons in Zion and Brandon. You have to make shots to keep up and I thought tonight we just did not make enough shots. ‘
Twenty minutes before hitting, a text from one of Cleveland’s coaches arrives. It reads: “We will give it the best chance.”
They have. It just wasn’t enough.
Move on
With 49.8 seconds left in the first quarter, Kevin Love made his third triangle of the night, surpassing Mark Price for second place on the all-time franchise leaderboard. After draining five that night, Love has increased his total to 805 since arriving in Cleveland in 2014.
Following
The Cavs have a few days off before going to Charlotte on Wednesday night to play the Hornets. Tipoff is set for 19:00
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New Cavs face masks for sale: Here you can buy Cleveland Cavaliers-themed face masks for coronavirus protection, including a single mask ($ 14.99) and a 3-pack ($ 24.99). All NBA proceeds are donated to charity.
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