Cavs News: Miami lockdown, Mitchell leadership, future play

The Cleveland Cavaliers were on the road last night in Miami, a place they have historically struggled. Going into last night they had one just once in their last 22 tries in South Beach; make that twice in 23 as they held on to win 104-100.

The game was back-and-forth early, with Cleveland opening up a small four-point lead at the half. They would never relinquish that lead the rest of the way, although the Heat went on a 7-0 run late to close within one. The Cavs made enough plays to win from there, seeking out a close win over a tough Eastern Conference opponent with plans on making a push the rest of the way.

The Cavaliers did not end this game well; in the fourth quarter they made some sloppy mistakes. When it mattered, however, they made the plays to win and spoil Kevin Love’s first game against his old squad. Love finished with eight points, eight rebounds and two charges taken in only 20 minutes of action.

Darius Garland led the way for the Cavaliers with 25 points and seven assists. The Cavs played a tight rotation of just eight players, with Lamar Stevens the first off the bench after his heroics against the Boston Celtics on Monday. All five starters scored at least 13 points, with Jarrett Allen going for 15 and 12 and Donovan Mitchell scoring 18 points.

The Heat scored just 47 points in the second half as the Cavs’ defense clamped down. It was the 25th time the Cavs have held a team to 100 points or fewer this season; the next highest team is Miami with just 14. The Cavs have inched back into first place in defensive rating, with Evan Mobley continuing to grow as a do-it-all defensive phenom.

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The end of the game was not pretty for the Cavs, who were outscored 10-6 in the final minutes to tighten the final margin. Donovan Mitchell knew that, and immediately after the game he gathered the team on the court to discuss their wavering finish. That’s the kind of leadership this team didn’t have last season; Mitchell has stepped in to fill that role.

It was a banner night for Mitchell in another way as well. His third-quarter 3-pointer gave him the single-season franchise record for 3-pointers in a season, passing J.R. Smith, with 205.

205 made 3-pointers is already tied for 103rd in league history. At his current pace, if Mitchell plays in all 14 remaining games he will hit another 50 3-pointers, giving him 255; that would be a career-best and place him 27th on the all-time list (probably more like 30th because a few players this season are ahead of him).

Here on the website this morning, we looked at four players whose futures in Cleveland might just depend on how they play down the stretch. They range from 15th-man Sam Merrill (literally playing for his immediate future) to key rotation players. Will they all make a case to be on the team next year?

NBA news

The Eastern Conference Play-In battle continued to stay hot, with the Atlanta Hawks pulling out a two-point victory in Washington. Late in the game Bradley Beal stole the ball and, down two, attempted a fastbreak layup. He yoinked it, and that was all she wrote. The Toronto Raptors lost in Los Angeles to the Clippers, while the Chicago Bulls pulled out a surprising win in Denver over the West-leading Nuggets. One of those four teams won’t make the play-in; currently it’s the Bulls a game out in 11th.

There was action in the Western Conference too, as the Oklahoma City Thunder were blown out by the Phoenix Suns despite Kevin Durant hurting his ankle in warm-ups. The New Orleans Pelicans got news that Zion Williamson would miss at least another two weeks on Wednesday, but rallied to take down the Dallas Mavericks, who lost Luka Doncic to a thigh injury partway through.

Coming up: The Cavaliers will stay in South Beach, playing the Miami Heat again on Friday night.