Cavaliers hold on against Celtics 117-110
The Cleveland Cavaliers survived a feisty comeback from the Boston Celtics and snapped their losing streak with a 117-110 victory.
Things were starting to spiral out of control for the Cleveland Cavaliers as they lost four straight games, the last being manhandled by the Miami Heat. The Cavs were able to get off their bad streak and back into the win column Wednesday with a surprising win against the Boston Celtics.
At one point in the game Cleveland held a 21-point lead. Late in the 4th quarter Boston cut into the lead to make the final result uncertain. Even when the Cavaliers were able to stretch their lead back out with free throws, the Celtics were able to cut right back in and stay competitive. The fact that Cleveland was able to win in this fashion should bode well for the development of their younger players. Development is a huge part of this season and there are signs of promise moving forward.
Return to SexLand
The Cavaliers scoring effort was led by Collin Sexton who finished tied with a game-high 29 points on 10 of 20 shooting. Sexton made 2 of 5 shots from deep and all 7 free throw attempts in the Cleveland win. The other half of SexLand also contributed as Darius Garland was Cleveland’s second-leading scorer with 25 points. This was the highest scoring output from Garland since the end of February, an encouraging sign moving forward. Each member of SexLand finished with 6 assists, a display of their improving passing abilities.
Nance steps up
Larry Nance Jr. was also a major factor for Cleveland as he made his usual all-around contribution. Nance finished with 18 points on 7-8 from the field, 2-3 from three-point range, and made both free throws. As far as non-scoring stats go, Nance had 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, a typical Larry Nance Jr. performance.
Promising performance from Okoro
Isaac Okoro scored 15 points on the night, his highest total since February 27th in Philadelphia. Okoro made half of his 10 field goal attempts and all five of his shots from the charity stripe while adding 4 rebounds and 2 assists to his final line. This is the kind of development that the Cavaliers like to see out of their young rookie. It shows he can be a complimentary offensive option in the future and takes pressure off some of his teammates.
