Cavs

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell scored 42 points on 15-of-30 shooting (8-of-15 from three-point range), but it wasn't enough as the Cavs fell…

The Cavs fell to 42-27 with the loss but remain fourth in the Eastern Conference. They'll now visit the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday at 5 p.m. Outside Mitchell, Isaac Okoro and Caris LeVert each fared well with 16 points apiece.

The Cavs gave up a double-digit second half lead and lost to the Miami Heat, 119-115. The Miami win ensures a split of the season series between the two ...

The Cavs were without starting point guard Darius Garland and lost Jarrett Allen to a right eye injury in the fourth quarter.

They sit fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 42-27 record and are 3.5 games behind the The [New York Knicks](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/knicks/) sit 2.5 games behind Cleveland with a 39-29 record. The Cavs have three more sets like this in the regular season as they wrap up their current trip with a two-game stint in Charlotte. Down the stretch of the game, the small details in execution — an element the Cavs have discussed as a central focal point for the final games of the season and the playoffs. They had an opportunity to prepare for a game and then prepare for the adjustment game. The Heat were also more physical down the stretch of the game, especially in the fourth quarter. They have the talent to do so, mixed with a veteran presence and guys who have been to the postseason. The Heat were also able to find their spots and get to the free-throw line, where they shot 21 of 23. If this was a playoff series, we still won one, and that’s kind of the mindset. [Miami Heat](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/heat/), the Cavs had a small taste of what the playoffs could look like. [Cleveland Cavaliers](https://theathletic.com/nba/team/cavaliers/) starting five have not been to the playoffs. The Cavs have aspired to make a playoff run, and with 13 regular season games left, they can envision it.

Jimmy Butler scored 33 points and the Miami Heat rallied from a 14-point, second-half deficit to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-115 on Friday night.

Mitchell scored at least 25 points in a first half for the third time this season — all on the road. He had “only” 16 at the half of his 71-point game in Cleveland against Chicago on Jan. The play was reviewed and determined to be a common foul; Allen left the game. ... Jarrett Allen was inadvertently poked in the eye by Adebayo as the two were among those going for a rebound with 3:53 left. Miami made a burst to get within 89-82 going into the fourth, providing a spark. Butler scored 12 in the fourth, when Miami outscored Cleveland 37-26.

But some big shots from Tyler Herro and Jimmy Butler doing Jimmy Butler things led the way. Some takeaways… #1: Donovan Mitchell hot first half, eyeing the ...

Even aside from the jumpers, he was the entire key to every Heat offensive run that was made in this game. The stuff that puts him in creation mode, instead of the reactionary base to the guards. With that said, late in the third, Jimmy Butler began resorting to a bit of a jumper display. He was getting whatever, whenever he wanted in this game, but the rough stretches for this team were just…rough. Some back and forth ensued with some triples falling in the Cavs favor, putting this game back at a 3 point lead for Miami. He was hitting them, but that pretty much sums up the process of the offense. He needs to be a primary option off the attack on the ball. Now to the specifics of this game, they weren’t putting themselves in a position to win that battle with the amount of careless ones they were giving up. But the usage of Bam in that lineup has stuck out to me heavily. More possessions, more fast-break opportunities, more of a chance to win with this uneven half-court offense. They use him as a roller even more than usual, part of the Herro or Oladipo pick and roll sets, which ties back to the turnover conversation. The early problems weren’t that they weren’t focused on Mitchell, it was that they were *too* focused on him.

immy Butler scored 33 points, Tyler Herro added 25 and the Miami Heat rallied from a 14-point, second-half deficit to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-115 ...

14, 25 in his return to Utah on Jan. 2 game against Chicago when he forced overtime in what became his 71-point game by running down an intentionally missed foul shot and scoring. 10, and 25 on Friday. Cleveland (42-27) fell 3-1/2 games behind Philadelphia in the race for the No. Mitchell made the first and intentionally missed the second. Mitchell scored at least 25 points in a first half for the third time this season — all on the road.

The Cavs allowed a combined nine 3-pointers from Max Strus and Tyler Herro in the second half as Miami ran down Cleveland in the final stretch.

Miami scored 69 points in the second half and outscored Cleveland 37-26 in the final frame. The Heat shot 61% in the second half and made 11 3-pointers, with nine of them coming from Herro and Max Strus. [Caesars Ohio Sportsbook](https://www.cleveland.com/betting/ohio/caesars/) is open for bets now that Ohio sports betting has launched. Leading 113-108, Heat center Bam Adebayo (19 points) was called for a foul. Trailing 59-50 behind a barrage of Mitchell 3s, Miami came out swinging in the third quarter, reeling off a 10-2 run in less than three minutes to cut the lead to 61-60. The Heat racked up 30 points off just 11 Cavs turnovers. He had 25 points on 9 of 12 shooting, including 6 of 8 from deep in the opening half. The All-Star guard entered the game fifth in the NBA (205) in 3-pointers made. It’s also the third-most 40-point games in Cavs history. He notched six 3-pointers in the first half. “It’s tough to beat this team at home twice in the same week, but that’s what the playoffs are going to be,” Mitchell said. A prolific 3-point shooting night from Donovan Mitchell was overshadowed with Miami’s own long ball down the stretch.

The Cavs weren't able to get the job done on Friday night this last time at the Miami Heat, but they had a pretty nice night offensively.

Carr was a big-time scorer for the Cavs, with 16.2 points per game in nine seasons with the team, and he’s fourth in team history in total points. Knee and foot injuries hampered some of his time with the Cavs, however, Carr still had a very productive career as a scorer. A core of Garland, Mitchell, Mobley and Allen is a heck of a quartet to build around, and as Suchan mentioned, Cleveland is still playing well in the closing stretch of the regular season, as opposed to last season, when the Cavs faltered late. Bickerstaff](https://www.basketball-reference.com/coaches/bickejb01c.html) (now 44) and [Austin Carr](https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/c/carrau01.html) (now 75) two individuals of whom have their presences felt in sizeable ways with the Cavaliers organization. Bickerstaff has helped the Cavaliers establish their ever-improving culture in recent seasons, and he deserves plenty of the credit for Cleveland’s return to relevance in the past two seasons. 1 overall draft pick in 1971, and with what he did as a player in the early days of the team, his No. Cleveland had the second game of a mini series with the Heat then, and were looking to get a win once again after Hopefully Garland can get healthier in time here, and the same goes for Jarrett Allen, who missed the last few minutes of the game after being hit in the eye in a bad luck play accidentally by Bam Adebayo on a rebound attempt. [set to make their postseason return after a five-year drought](https://kingjamesgospel.com/2023/03/10/big-picture-cavs-cruising-first-playoff-berth-five-years/), and as KJG’s John Suchan detailed in a piece on Friday, there’s plenty of reason to believe in what this group is doing. 5 in the Eastern Conference, had last lost to the Sacramento Kings. It was mostly a tight contest, and despite the Cavs seemingly pulling away in the third quarter, Miami closed the quarter on a mini run because of Tyler Herro’s shot-making. Unfortunately, though, Jimmy Butler, who had 33 points in the game, proved to be too much to handle in crunch time, with his rim pressure and foul drawing.

Center Jarrett Allen -- one of the team's defensive anchors who has played a critical role in the No. 1 ranking at that end of the floor -- walked off the ...

Allen is averaging 3.8 screen assists and 9.0 screen assist points -- both numbers that rank in the top 20. The Cavs are 3.2 points per 100 possessions better on offense with him on the court and their effective field goal percentage rises by 3.4 points, according to CleaningTheGlass. Cleveland is currently 42-27 -- the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference and two-and-a-half games up on fifth-seeded New York for homecourt advantage in Round One. “I think our intensity as a group has stepped up, and that’s one of the areas that Jarrett leads us in. Eventually, Allen got helped off the floor and escorted to the locker room for further evaluation, replaced by Evan Mobley for the final 3:53. As Allen and Miami center Bam Adebayo -- who came flying in from behind -- battled for possession, Adebayo swiped down and raked Allen across the right eye. “Our guys are learning how to play purposeful basketball and how important every possession is and how important every game is,” Bickerstaff said recently. [Caesars Ohio Sportsbook](https://www.cleveland.com/betting/ohio/caesars/) is open for bets now that Ohio sports betting has launched. Last season, the indispensable Allen suffered a fractured middle finger on his left hand in early March. The Cavs are not scheduled to practice tomorrow in Miami before leaving for Charlotte -- the next stop on this four-game, eight-day series-like road trip. 1 ranking at that end of the floor -- walked off the court with a towel covering his right eye and trainer Steve Spiro guiding him through the tunnel. Allen’s status for Sunday’s game -- and beyond -- will likely be updated Saturday evening.