Cavs easily take care of business in win over Hornets
Cleveland picks up their tenth consecutive victory.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are on another streak. But unlike their 15-game one to start the season, they’re beating every team by double digits. This was the tenth time they did that as they easily took care of the reeling Charlotte Hornets with a 115-105 victory.
Los Angeles Lakers coach JJ Redick said that you have to play “close to perfect basketball” to beat the Cavs. That standard is tough to live up to if you’re a struggling Hornets team that hasn’t won since Dec. 8.
The Cavs were overwhelming offensively. They got whatever they wanted as they came out with a complete attack that featured another impressive Darius Garland showing. He continues to play with a confidence on and off-ball that would’ve been difficult to imagine at this point last season. He led Cleveland with 25 points on 8-14 shooting with 2 assists.
Evan Mobley didn’t match his previous game against Charlotte where he scored 41 points, but it was impressive enough. He once again showed comfort in taking threes (even though it wasn’t his most efficient night) and consistently beating mismatches. That’s what the Cavs need him to do if they want to carry this offense over into the playoffs. Mobley contributed 17 points on 1-6 shooting from three with 5 boards, 2 blocks, an assist, and a steal.
Jarret Allen also had a solid outing as he finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds. He continues to play aggressively after having a relatively quiet beginning of December. It’s worth pointing out that Charlotte has a thin front line, but this is how you want Allen to react in this situation. He should be playing with this level of aggression when he has the talent advantage.
Donovan Mitchell had a slow start. He scored eight of his 19 points in the fourth quarter to put the game away. He also added 4 assists and 3 boards in the win.
The Cavs have been beating up on bad teams all season. They’re now 18-0 when playing against teams in the bottom 10 in net rating. The Cavaliers continue to take complete advantage of the lighter parts of their schedule which is exactly what great teams do. The win also puts them 5.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
Cleveland will have their toughest test of the season as they take on the 30-5 Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday. That should be a fun contest and a good measuring stick to determine just how good the Cavs are.