The Cleveland Cavaliers rolled into Milwaukee on Black Friday with more swagger than they did nine days earlier. Good teams lose to great teams; great teams lose to another great team, get back up and hit back. The Cavs were planning to hit back and avenge the 15-point loss in Milwaukee.
Things started right as the Cavs took the lead and held it for the entire first half. They built the lead out to as many as 16 points, with Donovan Mitchell cooking en route to 21 first-half points. The Cavs peaked at a 91.3 percent win probability late in the second quarter.
The Cleveland Cavaliers couldn’t stop Giannis Antetokounmpo. Who stood out from the Cavs’ loss to the Bucks on Black Friday?
Then Giannis Antetokounmpo came out of the gates in the third quarter looking for blood, and the Cavs couldn’t find the solution to slow him down. Jarrett Allen, hampered by a hip injury suffered in the first quarter, played just four minutes after halftime before shutting it down for the night. The rest of the Cavaliers couldn’t stop the two-time MVP and the Greek Freak finished with 38 points.
After leading by 16 the Cavs went on to lose by 15, with the Bucks taking the third quarter 35-10. It was a disappointing night for many Cleveland players; did anyone have a good game? At least one did, so we will highlight him and then look to the most disappointing performer. Here is one stud and one dud from the Black Friday loss.