Hornets Lose a Nail-Biter to Cavaliers

Center Jarrett Allen stated that the Cleveland Cavaliers are out to change the way they are thought of around the NBA. He wants to be known as a “scrappy” team.

“We want to go into these games with people knowing they’re going to have a fight on their hands,” Allen said. “Over the past few years it’s been like, ‘Oh, it’s the Cavs, it’s an off night.’ I’m just being honest, that’s how people looked at us. But know we want people to look at us and say, ‘We need to bring our A game.”

Allen did just that, he brought his ‘A game.’ He had a big double-double with 24 points and 16 rebounds. The Cavaliers held off a furious rally by the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night for a 113-110 win.

Cavaliers power forward Lauri Markkanen scored 21 points, had eight rebounds and two steals. Evan Mobley contributed 15 points and 10 rebounds and Darius Garland had 16 points, including two crucial free throws with 14.9 seconds remaining in the game, as the Cavs improved to 3-2 on their five game road trip.

“Bouncing back, we showed the fight we have,” Markkanen said of the Cavs snapping a two-game skid to improve to 4-4 on the season. “We knew it was a tough trip and we just tried to stay in the moment. I thought we should have won one more, but I think 3-2 was still a pretty good trip.”

Point guard LaMelo Ball was the leading scorer in the game with 30 points and Terry Rozier, in his second game back from his ankle injury, scored 23 points for Charlotte.

The Hornets could not get anything going in the first quarter. They gave up more offensive rebounds to the Cavs than they were able to secure defensively. They had eight turnovers and let the Cavs shoot over 50% from the field in a dunk contest. It resulted in a Cavalier 40-21 lead at the end of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Hornets were able to get some turnovers of their own and briefly trimmed the lead to under 10 points. The Cavs quickly responded with an extended 13-3 run, to push their advantage up to 18 with two minutes remaining in the first half. The Hornets got good shots on the offensive end of the court when they were not being careless with the basketball. Going into the halftime break, the Hornets trailed the Cavs by 16 points, 65-49.

In the first half, the Hornets played underwhelming basketball, turning the ball over 13 times and shooting just over 35% from the floor.

LaMelo Ball came out very aggressive to start the second half, scoring 12 points in the first five minutes of the third quarter. The Hornets all but evaporated the Cavs lead, coming within four points. The Cavs quickly rebuilt their lead back up to 12. Both teams brought their benches into the game.

The Hornets went on a run and again it was answered by the Cavs. Several inefficient offensive possessions by the Hornets helped the Cavs extend their lead up to 15. PJ Washington hit a last second 3-point shot to put the Hornets within 12 points at the start of the final quarter.

The Hornets struggled in the fourth quarter and started to lose their poise with the officials. Hornets’ star Miles Bridges may have been effected the most. He was knocked to the ground several times in the second half without the benefit of a foul called. At that point in the contest, the foul shot attempts were onesided, the Cavs with 28 and the Hornets with only 12.

Coach James Borrego took a timeout with just over seven minutes remaining, with the Hornets down by 17, seemingly to gear them up for one last run. The Hornets responded with a 10-0 run in just over two minutes, to force the Cavs to stop play and take a timeout.

Ball and Rozier connected on 3-point shots for the Hornets, to make it a one possession game, but they could not put the team over the top. The Hornets got within 2 points on a couple of occasions, but the Cavs made their free throws to keep the Hornets at bay.

Ball also added seven rebounds and six assists for the Hornets. Even though he struggled shooting, Miles Bridges still contributed with 13 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Cody Martin (10), and PJ Washington (18), had a strong game off the bench.

The Cavaliers host the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night. The Hornets will have another nationally televised game on Wednesday against the Golden State Warriors.