Tag Archives: Darius Garland

Cavaliers lose third straight road game

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were unable to get back into the win colum, losing their third straight game on the road, a 113-109 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Looking at the final score in this one can be a bit misleading. This game was not as close as the 113-109 final score shows. Memphis controlled the game for the majority of the second half. Cleveland found themselves down 21 points before closing the gap in the 4th quarter. Even with their run, the Cavaliers were unable to snap their losing streak. That is the third straight road loss for the Cavs after losing to the Lakers and Clippers on back-to-back nights.

Collin Sexton, Kevin Love, Darius Garland highlight starters

Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers in scoring with 28 points on another rough shooting night. Sexton went 11-25 from the field, including 3-8 from three-point range. Sexton attempted over one quarter of Cleveland’s field goal attempts on the night. Collin Sexton has shown that he is able to score, but this is an unacceptable amount of shot attempts. It was more than double than any other player on the Cavs shot attempts on the night.

Kevin Love did most of his damage from the free throw line, making 9-13 attempts, six of which came in the first quarter. Love finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, but failed to make any of his six three-point attempts.

Darius Garland finished with 11 points and six assists. Garland tied Collin Sexton for the team-high in assists on the night. Shooting was difficult for Garland (4-12 FG, 1-5 3PT). Garland has been impressive in the assists department as of late, averaging 6.1 assists per game in January. This is more than double than his assist average through December. Cleveland appears comfortable with Garland in the point guard role.

Larry Nance Jr. and Alfonzo McKinnie lead the bench

There were only two players coming off the bench who scored in double-digits. Larry Nance Jr. and Alfonzo McKinnie.

Nance scored 16 points on 7-8 shooting and made both of his three-point attempts, he also managed to grab six rebounds.

The surprising performance came from Alfonzo McKinnie. McKinnie appears to be carving himself out a role on this Cavs team. McKinnie made six of seven field goal attempts to finish with 12 points and added 10 rebounds to his final line.

Tristan Thompson gets ejected

Apparently Tristan Thompson and Jae Crowder are not best friends. Both Thompson and Crowder received technicals after getting into it earlier in the game. Thompson received a second technical while he was at the free throw line.

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Crowder clearly did not approve of Thompson’s actions and the second technical was issued rather quickly.

Cleveland finishes their road trip Saturday in Chicago as they take on the Bulls.

Cavaliers drop second straight game in L.A.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers did not have better luck with the Los Angeles Clippers, as they managed to lose to both teams in a two day period.

Time for the Cleveland Cavaliers to do their best Snake Plissken impression and “Escape from L.A.”. Back-to-back losses to the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers on back-to-back nights. The difference with the Clippers loss is that the game was never really close. Cleveland briefly led 3-0 and after that it was all Clippers. Los Angeles slowly built momentum through the first half until breaking things wide open in the second half. At one point Cleveland trailed by 36 points. Cleveland simply lacked the talent to compete in this one. While Kevin Love did not play, his presence would not have made that much of difference. That is how large the talent gap is between these two teams.

Rough shooting night for Darius Garland, but still has a noteworthy performance

Darius Garland went 5-16 from the field including 2-7 from three-point range. Garland’s 14 points and how he got there is not the important takeaway here. Garland became the second rookie this season to finish a game with 10 assists. This is Garland’s first career double-double.

This is some good news for the Cavaliers. Collin Sexton is not much of a passer, he’s more of a shooter. Cleveland needs some to be their point guard and appears that Garland is trending towards becoming the person that keeps the offense moving.

Collin Sexton and Cedi Osman lead Cavs scoring

Speaking of Collin Sexton, he led the Cavaliers in scoring on the night. Sexton scored 25 points on 10-18 from the field (4-6 3PT). Just another game from Collin Sexton. This is bit better than some other shooting efforts, but is in line with what Sexton usually ends up.

Cedi Osman made five of his eight three-point attempts, leading to his 21 points on the night. Osman would go 2-5 from two and make both free throw attempts. Cedi Osman has been feeling it lately, making 11 of his last 19 three-point attempts. Cleveland has been making an effort to get Osman involved and that effort is paying dividends, even though they have lost their last two games.

Cleveland is off until Friday as they travel to Memphis to take on the Grizzlies in their fifth game of the road trip.

Second half collapse leads to Cavaliers loss

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were outscored by 30 points in the second half which led a blowout loss to the Lakers in Los Angeles.

The Cleveland Cavaliers kept things close in the first half, they even held a one-point lead. Unfortunately, this did not last. The Los Angeles Lakers predictably went on a run in the second half. Cleveland was outscored by 30 over the final two quarters, leading to their blowout loss.

The Cavaliers lost the turnover battle yet again (20-9). Cleveland continues to be on the worst teams in the league when it comes to turnovers. Their 16.4 turnovers per game are second-most in the league.

Bench scoring was also a major factor. Cleveland finished with only 14 points from their bench players. 21 of the Lakers 60 bench points came from just Dwight Howard. The depth of Los Angeles clearly had the advantage.

Cavs starters score in double-digits, but not enough to keep the second half competitive

Kevin Love (21), Cedi Osman (15), Tristan Thompson (17), Collin Sexton (16), and Darius Garland (16) all had productive scoring efforts. Some were more efficient than others.

  • Kevin Love: 7-17 FG, 1-4 3PT, 6-6 FT
  • Cedi Osman: 5-12 FG, 4-6 3P, 1-1 FT
  • Tristan Thompson: 8-11 FG, 1-2 FT
  • Collin Sexton: 6-16 FG, 0-2 3PT, 4-4 FT
  • Darius Garland: 7-13 FG, 2-6 3PT

Collin Sexton continues to struggle with consistency. It seems like a frequent occurrence that he misses at or near 10 shots a game. Cedi Osman’s night was only saved by making four shots from deep.

Cleveland continues their road trip Tuesday

Monday’s loss to the Lakers was the third game of the Cavaliers six game road trip. Cleveland came out victorious in their first two games against the Pistons and Nuggets. Game four will be in the same building as game three. This time their opponent is the Los Angeles Clippers. Tipoff is at 10:30 P.M.

Cavaliers top Nuggets in Denver

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The Cleveland Cavaliers managed to defeat the Denver Nuggets by a score of 111-103, winning their second consecutive road game.

This road trip for the Cleveland Cavaliers is off to a great start. After slugging out a win in Detroit, Cleveland took down the Nuggets in Denver 111-103.

The Cavaliers led for the majority of the game, the first time they trailed was in the 4th quarter with 4:46 to play. At that point Denver took a one-point lead which did not last long. Cleveland managed to to go on an 18-7 run to close things out and come away with a victory.

Three Cavs starters finish with double-doubles

Kevin Love, Cedi Osman, and Trsitan Thompson all had a double-double. This was expected from Love and Thompson, but not Osman. Osman can certainly be hit or miss when it comes to just about everything. Saturday was night was apparently more of a hit for Cedi than anything. Osman grabbed 12 rebounds and went 4-8 from the field (2-4 3PT) while making his lone free throw attempt.

Kevin Love had a rough night when it came shooting from deep, only making two of his nine attempts. Love did manage to go 5-9 with his two-point attempts. Love also had 12 rebounds and four assists.

The difference between Tristan Thompson’s double-double and the double-doubles from Love and Osman are that Thompson had offensive rebounds. Love and Osman only have defensive rebounds. Thompson had seven offensive rebounds (13 total) and 18 points.

Sexton and Garland put together an impressive performance

Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers in scoring with 25 points on 9-18 from the field (4-7 3PT) and 3-4 from the free throw line. Efficiency still seems to be an issue for Sexton. Sexton is still young and can improve upon this particular area of his game.

Darius Garland led the Cavs in assists with eight. Garland has become the clear point guard for the Cavs with Sexton shifting to the shooting guard position. Garland is averaging 5.8 assists per game in January. This is much improved upon his previous monthly averages (3.5 in October, 3 in November, 2.7 in December). Garland did more than just set up his teammates, he also scored 18 points (8-16 FG, 2-9 3PT). Not the best shooting night for the rookie point guard. Like Sexton, his shooting should improve, but as long as he racks up assists it is a bit more forgivable.

Cleveland continues their road trip on Monday in Los Angeles as they take on their old friend LeBron James and the Lakers.

Cavaliers slug out win in Detroit

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The Cleveland Cavaliers bounced back from their loss to the Detroit Pistons just two days ago with a 115-112 overtime victory.

This game was not pretty. It was downright ugly at times. At one point the Cavaliers found themselves down 13 to the Pistons. Things appeared to be getting out of hand. Cleveland fought back to tie things up at the end of regulation. Two late field goals from Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson put the game away to give the Cavs a 115-112 win in overtime.

Tristan Thompson was the star of the game. Thompson finished with a career-high 35 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.Thompson went 15-20 from the field and made five of six free throw attempts. The Cavs center was able to round out his night with three assists, three blocks, and one steal. Tristan Thompson is clearly the player of the game.

The Cavaliers got a great contribution from rookie point guard Darius Garland. Garland scored 20 points, making eight of 14 field goal attempts, including both shots from deep. Garland led Cleveland with seven assists.

Alfonzo McKinnie was signed to a 10-day contract earlier in the day and contributed with three critical steals. Two of McKinnie’s three steals came early in the 4th quarter. The third steal came with 22.7 seconds left in the game with Cleveland clinging to a three point lead. McKinnie was able to take the ball away from Derrick Rose. This led to Tristan Thompson’s game sealing dunk.

Cleveland got a bit of revenge on Detroit Thursday. The Pistons were able to come back and defeat the Cavaliers Tuesday in Cleveland. This time Cleveland returned the favor.

The Cavs will continue their six game road trip Saturday as they travel to Denver to face the Nuggets at 9:00 P.M.

Cavaliers drop final game of decade in Toronto

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The Cleveland Cavaliers lost their final game of the decade north of the border in Toronto, falling to the Raptors by a score of 117-97.

The final result of the game seems a bit familiar. The last time the Cleveland Cavaliers faced the Toronto Raptors they also lost by double-digits. In fact, it was also by 20.

The real difference between the teams was three-point shooting. Cleveland and Toronto both attempted a near equal amount of shots from deep (37-38). The difference was that Toronto made 17 three-pointers compared to Cleveland’s 10, that amounts to 21 points. Toronto is a superior three-point shooting team, Cleveland did not really have a chance.

The Cavaliers were led by 22 points from Collin Sexton. Sexton went 5-11 from the field, 1-4 from three, and made all five free throw attempts. This was the first game since December 12 that Sexton attempted more than two three-pointers. It was only the third time in the month of December that more than two three-pointers were attempted. Collin Sexton only made three shots from long range (11.1%) for the month, not exactly what the Cavaliers expect from their 2018 first round draft pick.

Tristan Thompson was the most efficient Cavalier on the night, making five of six shots and four of five free throw attempts. Thompson did finish with a double-double (11 rebounds).

Cedi Osman made the most three-pointers of any Cleveland player with four. Osman was 1-4 on all other shots, this has been a pretty consistent theme this season. Osman also had four rebounds and four assists.

Darius Garland finished 12 points on 5-11 shooting (2-7 from three). Garland was tied for a team-high with four assists.

Kevin Love also had a double-double (10 points, 11 rebounds). Love struggled from the field, making four of 11 attempts and 1-7 from three-point range. With Love struggling in this manner, it would be difficult for the Cavaliers to keep the game close.

Cleveland returns home to face the Charlotte Hornets Tuesday at 7:00 P.M. as they look to kick this decade off with a victory.

Love-less Cavaliers defeat Timberwolves

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Kevin Love was held out of the game, but the Cleveland Cavaliers were able to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves by a score of 94-88.

Kevin Love was held out of Saturday’s contest with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Cavaliers caught a break of their own with Minnesota being with out their best player in Karl-Anthony Towns. Even without Love, Cleveland was able to bounce back from Friday night’s loss to Boston with a 94-88 victory in Minnesota.

Collin Sexton and Darius Garland led the Cavaliers scoring attack with 18 points each. Garland was a bit more efficient from the floor (8-11 FGA, 2-4 3PT) than Sexton (5-17 FG, 0-1 3PT). Sexton was able to go 8-11 from there free-throw line to make up for his troubles shooting the ball and grabbed a surprisingly high seven rebounds.

Tristan Thompson had a typical Tristan Thompson game. Thompson scored 12 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Four of Thompson’s rebounds were of the offensive variety. Thompson also struggled shooting the ball (2-9), but was able to salvage the evening with his effort at the free throw line (8-11).

Larry Nance Jr. started in place of Kevin Love and finished with nine and nine. Nine points and nine rebounds. Nance did his best Kevin Love impression, going 1-3 from deep.

Like many other Cavaliers, Kevin Porter Jr. struggled when shooting the ball. Porter went 3-10 from the field and 0-3 from three-point range. Porter also went 4-6 from the free throw line, helping him get to 10 points on the night.

Highs and lows for the Cavaliers

Cleveland out-rebounded Minnesota 61-39. Rebounding made free throws (26) and the final score were the only positive areas for the Cavaliers. There were plenty of issues for Cleveland.

One of the main issues with Cleveland has been turnovers. Committing the second-highest amount of turnovers per game, Cleveland committed another 29 Saturday. The Cavaliers are not going to get away with almost 30 turnovers and win often, but they managed to that against Minnesota.

Three-point shooting is another area of concern. While they attempted only 20 three-pointers, they only made four. Minnesota also struggled in that area, but made double the amount that Cleveland made.

The Cavaliers were also on the wrong side of fast break points and points in the paint. Minnesota was able to score 15 points in transition compared to Cleveland’s six. Minnesota was also able to dominate points in the paint, edging Cleveland 50-44.

The Cavaliers managed to win despite being outplayed in several key areas. This is unlikely to be a common occurrence for a team like the Cavaliers who are young and lacking talent across the board.

Cleveland will take on the Raptors in Toronto on New Year’s Eve at 7:00 P.M.

Cavaliers defeat Hawks 121-118

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The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Atlanta Hawks 121-118 at home in order to win their third consecutive game and ninth overall.

The game was tied at 94 as the 4th quarter began. Cleveland needed some help from their younger players if they were going to win. Luckily for the Cavaliers, they got just that. Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. combined to score the first 17 points for the Cavaliers in the fourth quarter as they narrowly won their third straight game.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 15 points off the bench, nine of which came in the fourth quarter. Porter had himself a game and made plenty of highlight worth plays.

Kevin Porter Jr. definitely took advantage of every opportunity he was given Monday. Porter performing like this is definitely a great sign moving forward.

Darius Garland scored 10 points in the fourth, eight came in that early stretch to being the final quarter. Garland finished with 21 points in the win.

Porter and Garland were not the only Cavs players to have a good game. Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers in scoring with 25 points on 12-20 from the field. What is noteworthy about Sexton’s performance was that he missed his only three-point shot and went 1-2 from the charity stripe. 19 field goal attempts came from two-point range.

Kevin Love also scored 20 points, going 7-16 from the field. Love did not have a ton of success from deep, only making three of 10 attempts from distance. Luckily Cleveland was carried by Porter and Garland to start the 4th, so they did not need to rely on Love to pull ahead of Atlanta.

Cleveland made a trade before the game

The Cavaliers agreed to a trade prior to the game. Sending Jordan Clarkson to Utah for Dante Exum and two second round draft picks. This will allow for the Cavaliers to use their younger players in more prominent roles. Meaning that players such as Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. could be more integral to Cleveland’s strategy moving forward.

Cleveland will look to win their fourth straight game Friday as they head out on the road to take on the Boston Celtics at 4:00 P.M.

Another double-digit loss for Cavaliers

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The Cleveland Cavaliers lost yet another game by double-digits, this time falling to the Toronto Raptors by a score of 133-113.

This result is not entirely surprising. The Cleveland Cavaliers are not a good basketball team and the Toronto Raptors are. Even with subtracting Kawhi Leonard from the equation, Toronto is head and shoulders above the Cavaliers in terms of talent. Cleveland has now dropped 16 of their past 18 games.

Cleveland did not outscore Toronto in any quarter, the closest they came to accomplishing that was tying the Raptors with 29 points in the 4th quarter. Fast break points and overall shooting percentage were the difference in the game. Toronto scored 29 fast break points compared to Cleveland’s four. A combination of speed from Toronto and poor transition defense led to that discrepancy. Scoring easy buckets next to the basket will certainly provide a boost in terms of shooting percentage. The Raptors made 58.4% of their shots, that is an incredible performance from Toronto and an unacceptable defensive effort from Cleveland. Whether it is due to inability or a lack of effort, there is no way they should let an opponent make nearly 60% of their shots in a game.

Positives

Surprisingly, there are some positives. Collin Sexton and Darius Garland both scored 20+ points in the same game for the first time. Sexton made 10 of 16 attempts while Garland went 7-14 including 4-8 from deep. That’s great to see from a development standpoint. Cleveland is going to need Sexton and Garland to be their main scoring threats in the future. Finding a way that both are able to score in this manner will be key for the Cavaliers moving forward.

Tension on the court

There was a moment in the first quarter where there was clear tension between Kevin Love and Collin Sexton. After Toronto scored it was quite obvious that Love and Sexton were not happy with each other. The root of the disagreement appeared to be over defensive assignments. The fact that something that seems like a relatively common occurrence caused this to be an issue is alarming. In fact, this helps the argument to why Kevin Love should be traded.

The Cavaliers return home to face the Hornets Wednesday at 7:00 P.M.

Cavaliers hang on to defeat Wizards

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The Cleveland Cavaliers were able to keep the lead and come away with their first road win of the season with a 113-100 against the Washington Wizards.

It was going to happen eventually. The Cleveland Cavaliers are now in the win column on the road. Cleveland came away with a 113-100 win in Washington.

At one point the Cavaliers led by 21 points. Even though Cleveland was seemingly in control throughout the game, Washington fought back to make it a one point game in the fourth quarter. That was as close as the game would get down the stretch as the Cavaliers pulled away for the win.

The Cavaliers were led by another tremendous outing from Tristan Thompson. Thompson scored 21 points on 8-12 shooting from the field and added five points at the free throw line. With 12 rebounds on the night Thompson had his seventh double-double in eight games.

Kevin Love also had a double-double. Love finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Love also added two assists and two blocks to his final line.

Collin Sexton did not have the best night shooting the ball as he went 7-19 from the field, including 2-5 from deep. Despite the rough shooting performance Sexton was able to score 16 points.

There was a bit of a spotlight on Darius Garland in this contest. Garland was once on an AAU team the was coached by Bradley Beal. Garland did not seem fazed by that and managed to score 15 points on 6-11 shooting and assisted on six other baskets.

The Cavaliers are now 3-5 on the season which includes a 1-3 record on the road. This win also got Cleveland their first win in their red uniform this season.

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Cleveland will continue their road trip when they face the Knicks in New York Sunday at 7:30 P.M.