The Cleveland Cavaliers staged a sensational second-half comeback to preserve their perfect start to the season with a 105-100 defeat of the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
A superb defensive performance from Evan Mobley and 22 points from Donovan Mitchell laid the foundations for an unlikely victory that saw Cleveland improve to 11-0.
Mobley led the Cleveland scoring with 23 points, but it was his work at the other end of the court which proved decisive.
The 23-year-old power forward pulled down 13 defensive rebounds and made four steals and a block as Cleveland dug themselves out of a 14-point hole in the third quarter to snatch victory.
The Cavaliers outscored Brooklyn 35-18 in the final period, but only edged into the lead after two Garland free throws put them 97-96 ahead with just over two minutes remaining.
Cleveland held onto that slender advantage for the remainder of the game, with Mobley bringing loud roars of approval after an emphatic block of a Cameron Johnson layup in the closing seconds that was emblematic of his display.
Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson admitted his team had been below-par for long periods, but praised their resilience in grinding out a win.
– ‘Heck of a comeback’ –
“We weren’t great, but it’s a sign of a really good team that they can pull something like that out when you’re not playing your best,” Atkinson said afterward. “That was a heck of a comeback.”
Atkinson added that preserving the team’s unbeaten start to the season was also a key motivator to his players.
“Normally you know after 11 games, you’re not thinking about a streak,” Atkinson said. “But tonight you’re thinking ‘I don’t want it to end this way.’
“When you’re out there it’s in the back of your mind, and you’re thinking ‘we got to keep this thing going’.”
Johnson led Brooklyn’s scoring with 23 points, while Cam Thomas and Dennis Schroder both finished with 22 points apiece.
In other games on Saturday, Collin Sexton scored 23 points and Lauri Markkanen added 20 as the Utah Jazz held off San Antonio 111-110 for their second win of the NBA season.
Victor Wembanyama, last season’s NBA Rookie of the Year, scored 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds with seven blocked shots as well, but the 20-year-old French star was whistled for a costly offensive foul in the final seconds.
Jordan Clarkson added 16 points off the bench for the Jazz, who rose to 2-7 but remain last in the Western Conference.
Stephon Castle contributed 23 points for the Spurs and Devin Vassell added 21 off the bench for San Antonio, which fell to 4-6.
Keldon Johnson’s 3-pointer lifted San Antonio within a point with 31 seconds remaining but Clarkson answered with two free throws to pull Utah ahead 107-104.
“Wemby” was whistled for an offensive foul while making a screen on the next Spurs possession, a call that held up on a video review, and Clarkson added two free throws.
Julian Champagnie answered with a corner 3-pointer for the Spurs with five seconds remaining but Sexton sank two final Jazz free throws and Vassell’s 3-pointer at the buzzer for San Antonio was too little and too late.
In Atlanta, meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls produced a balanced offensive performance to take down the Hawks 125-113.
No fewer than eight Chicago players finished in double figures, with Ayo Dosunmo leading with 19 off the bench and Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and Coby White all bagging 18 points each.
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