The Cleveland Cavaliers began their Home & Home vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night. OKC is coming into the game injury-riddled, with six players out for the game.
Cleveland, on the other hand, played without Peyton Watson and Jaylon Tyson, allowing for rookie Meleek Thomas to get his first career start.
The Cavs capitalized on Chet Holmgren being out on the first possession, running an action to get Evan Mobley a lay-in to start the game . The Cavs went into the first break leading 11-9. Mobley and James Harden each contributed four points to the start, and Donovan Mitchell knocked down a three. The Cavs did give up three offensive rebounds to OKC before the timeout.
The Cavs came out of the timeout getting baskets from Mobley and Jarrett Allen, but struggled to knock down perimeter shots. Halfway through the first quarter, the Cavs were 1-for-7 from three-point range. The Thunder saw their first three-pointer fall in this shift from Kenrich Williams. Aday Mara checked in for Isaiah Hartenstein and gave Mobley fits with his skills, leading to a layup off a ball fake.
Tyrese Proctor came in for his first shift at the end of the first quarter and hit two big three-pointers, while Mario Hezonja played physical defense on SGA, trying to make things difficult for him. The Cavaliers ended the first quarter up 30-26.
Oklahoma City starts the quarter on a 5-0 run, leading to Kenny Atkinson taking a quick timeout. Over the next portion of the quarter, the Thunder started seeing their offensive game plan come together.
Ajay Mitchell continued to get downhill on the Hartensstein pick-and-roll, while Gilgeous-Alexander hit a big three, and also fed open players around him due to the attention he was receiving. Thunder rookie Bennett Stirtz hit two threes for the Thunder.
On the Cavs end, Thomas Bryant came in and made an impact, while Jarrett Allen got aggressive on the offensive glass, leading to a three-point play and drawing a foul to get to the free-throw line on another.
OKC dominated the quarter and built a 15-point advantage. Thunder led the Cavs 59-48 at halftime. SGA led the Thunder with 17 points, while Mitchell and Allen tied for the team lead with nine.
What looked like a game the Thunder were about to run away with, Cleveland punched back, hitting eight of their first ten shots, including six of their first eight threes, cutting the deficit to four. The Cavs' offense is in rhythm, but they're struggling to stop the Thunder immediately.
The Cavaliers' ball movement was impressive in the quarter, leading to open threes made by Sam Merrill, Hezonja, Harden, and Meleek Thomas. After Micah Peavy hit a shot for the Thunder, he fouled Mitchell on the other end, leading to a media timeout.
The Thunder come out of the timeout finding their groove again offensively and drawing contact from the Cavaliers, leading to more free throws. The quarter ends with the Thunder leading Cleveland 90-84. The Cavs win the quarter 36-31, thanks to excellent three-point shooting and a spark from Hezonja.
Cavs start the fourth quarter with a 5-0 run, making it a one-point game. Jared McCain draws a foul on Craig Porter Jr. to get a three-point play before the Cavs go on another 5-0 run, giving them the 94-93 lead.
The two teams go on to trade blows. Gilgeous-Alexander shows why he is the two-time reigning MVP, while the Cavaliers aren't backing down. Through the fourth, the Cavs have done a great job moving the ball around offensively, but they continue to give the Thunder additional possessions.
Mobley gives the Cavs a big offensive stretch with three minutes remaining, drawing a foul on SGA, then hitting a pick-and-roll, with Mitchell giving Cleveland a three-point lead. He then draws a foul on Hartenstein to make another trip to the stripe, splitting the shots and giving the Cavs a 109-108 lead.
In the end, SGA and the Thunder prove too much for Cleveland as they scrape by with a close win.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/cavaliers/onsi as How the Cavaliers Failed To Beat the Injury-Plagued Oklahoma City Thunder at Home .
