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Cleveland Cavaliers Watch Late Lead Evaporate, Fall To Bulls

By Aaron Ferguson

Apr 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jordan McRae (12) reacts after missing two of three free throws late in a 112-110 overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 13, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jordan McRae (12) reacts after missing two of three free throws late in a 112-110 overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Cleveland Cavaliers held a late lead against the Chicago Bulls, but ultimately watched it fade in a Las Vegas Summer League Semifinal loss on Sunday.

The Cleveland Cavaliers watched a late lead disappear and turn in advantage of the Chicago Bulls in an 85-79 loss on Sunday night.

Cleveland will not be celebrating a second championship this summer. If they held on to beat the Bulls, they would have played for the Las Vegas Summer League (LVSL) Championship.

The Cavaliers held a 73-68 lead with 5:13 left to play in the game, but the Bulls came storming back on a 17-5 run to close the game.

Denzel Valentine and Jerian Grant combined for 10 of the Bulls’ 17 points during that run, including a clutch three-pointer by Valentine that gave the Bulls the lead.

Cleveland did everything they needed to do to come away with a win. They had three players score 15-plus points, including Kay Felder‘s game-high 22 points.

Felder got it done on both ends of the court, once again. He had five assists and set his teammates up for many more great looks. He grabbed four rebounds and had three blocked shots.

Jordan McRae had an off night, at least by his scoring standards. He only scored 16 points and had four free-throw attempts. Getting to the free-throw line is a big part of his game. He averaged 11.6 free-throw attempts per game during the LVSL.

Raphiael Putney scored 15 points off the bench for the Cavs on a 5-for-9 shooting night. He also grabbed six rebounds and blocked a shot.

There was very little scoring beyond those three, however. The Cavs did shoot 43.9 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from three-point range for one of their most efficient games of the LVSL. It wasn’t enough, however, against the Bulls’ balanced attack.

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Six players scored in double figures for the Bulls, including Valentin (13) and Grant (13.) Christiano Felicio had a team-high 18 points for Chicago with his front court ‘mate Bobby Portis having 16 points. Guards Spencer Dinwiddie (10) and Dez Wells (11) round out the scoring onslaught for the Bulls.

Chicago was less efficient from the floor, shooting 36.4 percent from the field and 28.0 percent from three-point range in the win. The biggest factor was in the turnover margin, where they forced 17 Cavs turnovers and only had six of their own.

The Bulls will go on to face the Minnesota Timberwolves for the LVSL Championship on Monday.

Cleveland has a lot to take away from their entire LVSL experience. After an 0-2 start, players adjusted to the pace of the NBA and were able to grind out four straight wins to reach the Semifinals of the LVSL tournament, something not many would have predicted for the 14th-seeded Cavs.

Next: Cleveland Cavaliers Training Camp Invites Have High Expectations

Now the Cavaliers will review how the players performed and which players will have a shot at making the regular season roster for the Cavs.