The Cleveland Cavaliers were outplayed in the second half during their 96-82 loss to the Golden State Warriors.
This was a game that the Cleveland Cavaliers never had a chance of winning. The fact that Klay Thompson was playing his first game in two seasons already had the cosmos lined up for a Cavs loss, it was just how much Golden State would win by. While the final score only shows a differential of just 14 points, the Warriors absolutely dominated the Cavaliers in the second half. Cleveland trailed by 24 points late in the 3rd quarter and trailed by double-digits for the entirety of the 4th. The Cavs did cut into the margin, but the points were not impactful in grand scheme of things as the game was never really close over the final two quarters.
Cosmos aside, this game was certainly a case that showed a true contender (Warriors) and a team that still has a long ways to go (Cavaliers). Darius Garland’s nine points on 3-12 shooting is certainly not going to get it done in matchups like this, neither is Kevin Love’s 1-7 effort restyling in just two points. Evan Mobley was 5-12 with 11 points, but that is part of the ups and downs that comes with rookies.
The two most surprising performances Sunday night came from Lamar Stevens and Rajon Rondo. Stevens led the Cavaliers in points with 17 points on 8-11 from the field while Rondo scored 15 off the bench in 29 minutes. Rondo made all three attempts from deep and six of 10 overall.
The final result in this game is nothing to dwell on considering how much better Golden State is than Cleveland. It is key for the Cavs to put this loss behind them and regroup for their next game in Sacramento Monday night.
