Cleveland Cavaliers: 1 STUD, 1 dud from OT win over Bulls

Stud from OT win over Bulls: Donovan Mitchell

Coming into this first game of 2023, Donovan Mitchell had been in a bit of a slump by his standards, having scored over 20 points in only one of his past four games.

Early on against the Bulls, it looked like Mitchell might have another off night, as he scored just five points on 1-of-4 shooting in the first quarter. Mitchell began to get going in the second quarter as he scored 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting.

However, Mitchell was going to have to take his performance to another level if he was going to help lead the Cavaliers back from an 18-point deficit at the half.

Mitchell did just that in the third quarter, as not only did he shoot 6-of-9 from the floor, he often attacked the basket and was rewarded with 12 free throws, which he made all 12 of to give him 24 points in the quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Mitchell continued his torrid pace of scoring, shooting 7-of-11 and converting a miraculous intentional free throw miss in the final seconds where he grabbed the rebound and put the ball up and in to tie the game.

Mitchell scored 42 points in the second half and was a crucial factor in the Cavaliers’ second-half comeback.

But, Mitchell was far from finished. The sixth-year guard scored 13 of the Cavaliers’ 15 points in the overtime period, including three big-time three-point shots. Even when Donovan stepped to the free throw line late in the overtime period, he knew what was at stake.

We likely won’t see this historic performance topped anytime soon. 71 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists and an unlikely win.