1 stud and 1 dud from Cavs’ disappointing loss to Warriors on Friday

Cavs Stud: Darius Garland

It’s hard to be uplifted when you lost a game you had an opportunity to take advantage of and failed to do so. Nevertheless, Darius Garland, now in his fourth year in the NBA, was in his bag throughout this contest other than struggling from the baritone range, where he went three-for-11.

Yes, 27.3 percent from beyond the arc is rough, but he kept the Cavs within reach twice in the second half when the Warriors wouldn’t miss in the third, shooting 60 percent.

With about 1:50 left in the third quarter, Garland nailed a three off of an Evan Mobley screen as he caught and shot a fadeaway bomb at the top right of the key to cut the lead to 13. Should it have been a four-point play? You tell me.

Around the 10-minute mark in the final quarter, the Warriors were up 15, coming off a hot third quarter. Garland used another Mobley screen for a step-back triple to keep the game from getting out of hand, trimming the Warriors lead to 12.

No look dimes to Jarrett Allen, putting rollerblades on defenders, attacking the cup, he was doing all he could to will the Cavs to a win. Hitting 10 out of his 25 total attempts, Garland ended the game with an overall field goal percentage of an even 47 percent.

He shot (100%), clutching 8-of-8 from the charity stripe as well. Finishing the night with 31 points, the Vanderbilt alum also led the team in assists (nine), just on the cusp of his 12th double-double of the season. It was one of the most frustrating losses of the season, but Darius did all he could, accounting for 56 total points.