Cavs vs Bulls score: Cleveland wins NBA Cup opener, sets team record with winning streak

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Cavs vs Bulls score: Cleveland wins NBA Cup opener, sets team record with winning streak

Nate Ulrich, Akron Beacon Journal · Akron Beacon Journal

Sat, Nov 16, 2024 ·

8 min read

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CLEVELAND — The 14-0 Cavaliers prevailed in their first Emirates NBA Cup game of the season Friday night, defeating the Chicago Bulls 144-126 and setting a record for the longest winning streak in Cleveland franchise history.

Three previous Cavs teams (2008-09, 2009-10 and 2017-18) had 13-game winning streaks.

With the victory, Cleveland's Kenny Atkinson also established an NBA record for the longest winning streak to begin a head coaching tenure with a team at any point of a season.

Here is how the game unfolded through our live updates.

Nov 15, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Coby White (0) during the first quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Cavs defeat Bulls 144-126

The Bulls (5-8) reduced the Cavs' lead to 122-117 when guard Zach LaVine made a layup with 3:57 left. The Bulls later trimmed the Cavs' edge to 123-119 on a putback dunk by guard Ayo Dosunmu . But the Cavs got hot down the stretch, and Bulls never got any closer.

Guard Donovan Mitchell scored a game-high 37 points, with 18 points in the fourth quarter, to lead the Cavs. Point guard Darius Garland had 29 points and nine assists. Center Jarrett Allen posted a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Guard Caris LeVert came off the bench and tallied 22 points.

Guard Coby White led the Bulls with 29 points, followed by center Nikola Vucevic 's 25.

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Bulls behind Cavs 122-113 with 5:45 remaining in the NBA Cup opener for both teams

Garland made a layup with 7:30 left in the fourth quarter and a jump shot with 6:08 remaining to give the Cavs a 122-113 advantage.

The Bulls called timeout while trailing by the same deficit with 5:45 left in the fourth quarter.

Chicago Bulls trail Cleveland Cavs 118-112 with 7:56 left in the fourth quarter

The Cavs led the Bulls 118-112 when Chicago called timeout with 7:56 left in the fourth quarter. At this juncture, Mitchell had nine points in the final quarter and 28 points total.

Allen's dunk on an assist from small forward Isaac Okoro put the Cavs ahead by six points and compelled Chicago to use a timeout.

Cleveland Cavaliers lead Bulls 107-102 at end of third quarter

The Cavs led the Bulls 107-102 at the end of the third quarter.

Garland (23 points), Allen (20 points) and Mitchell (19 points) led the Cavs in scoring through three quarters.

White scored 16 points in the third quarter and led the Bulls heading into the fourth quarter with 26 points.

Cavaliers lead Bulls 99-91 late in the third quarter

The absence of forward Evan Mobley , who's out with an illness, is glaring for Cleveland's defense. The Bulls went ahead 90-89 with a 3-pointer by White with 5:23 left in the third quarter. It was Chicago's first lead since early in the first quarter.

The Cavs fought back, though, and led 96-91 during a Chicago timeout with 2:56 left in the third quarter. Forward Georges Niang made a driving hook shot to put the Cavs head by five points with 3:38 left in the third quarter. Coming out of the Chicago timeout, Niang made a 3-pointer with 2:41 remaining before the final quarter.

Cleveland Cavs lead Chicago Bulls 85-76 with 9:07 left in the third quarter

With 9:07 left in the third quarter, Niang made an open 3-pointer on an assist from Mitchell, giving the Cavs an 85-76 cushion and prompting the Bulls to use a timeout.

The Cavs had their lead sliced to a point early in the second half, but answered with an 8-0 run and outscored the Bulls 8-3 to begin the third quarter.

Cavs lead Bulls 77-73 at halftime

This is just an educated guess: Atkinson will be talking to his team about defense at halftime.

Despite Cleveland's record-setting scoring production in the opening quarter, the Cavs only led the Bulls 77-73 through two quarters. With 1:03 left in the first half, Bulls Dosunmu made an open corner 3-pointer on an assist from forward Patrick Williams to cut the Cavs' led to four points.

Garland led the Cavs with 18 points in the first half, followed by Mitchell with 17 points and Allen with 16 points. Garland also had eight assists.

Vucevic led the Bulls through two quarters with 18 points. White and Dosunmu added 10 points each.

The Cavs went 28-of-43 shooting (65.1%) from the field (11 of 20 on 3 pointers) in the first half. The Bulls went 28-of-48 shooting (58.3%) from the floor (13 of 25 on 3s).

Nov 15, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (31) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) during the first half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Bulls staying within striking distance despite Cavs offense humming

The Cavs led 69-58 with 4:16 left in the second quarter, when play stopped because Bulls guard Dalen Terry was shaken up.

And coming out of the timeout, the Bulls cut the Cavs' advantage to 69-63 after forward Matas Buzelis made a 3-pointer and LaVine a fast-break dunk. LaVine then hit a jump shot to make it 69-65 Cavs with 2:39 left in the first half.

Cavs lead Bulls 54-36 with 10:44 left in the second quarter

Mitchell made a fast-break 3-pointer on an assist from LeVert to give the Cavs a 54-36 advantage with 10:44 left in the second quarter. The Bulls responded by using a timeout.

At this point, Mitchell had gone 5-of-6 shooting from the field (3 of 4 on 3-pointers) and scored 14 points.

Nov 15, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome (2) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey (3) during the first half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Cavs set franchise record for points in a quarter and lead Bulls 49-34 after the first quarter

The Cavs set a regular-season franchise record for points in a quarter and led the Bulls 49-34 after the opening quarter. Cleveland's previous best for points in a quarter was 47 in the first quarter against the New York Knicks on March 31, 2023. The only other time the Cavs scored 49 points in a quarter was in the playoffs — Game 4 of the 2017 NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors , to be exact.

Garland led the Cavs with 15 point in the first quarter. Mitchell and Allen added 11 points apiece. Garland also had six assists.

As a team, the Cavs went 19-of-22 shooting (86.4%) from the field (7 of 10 on 3-pointers) through one quarter.

White and fellow Bulls starting guard Josh Giddey picked up two fouls apiece in the first quarter. Vucevic led the Bulls with 11 points in the first quarter, followed by White with eight. Giddey had five points.

Nov 15, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Caris LeVert (3) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls guard Zach LaVine (8) during the first half at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Bulls cut Cavs' lead to 22-17 with 6:04 left in the first quarter

Atkinson called timeout with 6:04 remaining in the opening quarter after the Bulls cut the Cavs' lead to 22-17.

The problem Atkinson clearly wanted to address is the Cavs allowed open 3-pointers on a series of Bulls possessions. White, Dosunmu and Vucevic made 3-pointers for the Bulls preceding the timeout.

Donovan Mitchell's hot start lifts Cavs to early 14-7 lead vs. Chicago Bulls

Mitchell made his first four field-goal attempts, including two from 3-point range, scoring 10 of the Cavs' first 14 points.

Cleveland led 14-7 when Chicago called timeout with 8:32 left in the opening quarter. A Mitchell 3 prompted the timeout.

Here is some pregame information :

What to know about the Cleveland Cavs' winning streak

The Cavs entered Friday as the NBA's only undefeated team amid a franchise-best 13-0 start to a season. They became just the sixth team in NBA history to begin a season 13-0. The 2015-16 Golden State Warriors hold the league record for the best start to a season at 24-0.

The Cavaliers also led the NBA in points per game (121.8), field-goal percentage (51.8) and 3-point percentage (41.2). They were coming off two road wins earlier this week: 119-113 at the Bulls on Monday and 114-106 at the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.

What to know about coach Kenny Atkinson's start with the Cavs

When the Cavs reached 9-0, Atkinson set an NBA record for the best start to a season for a head coach with a new team.

And by going 13-0, Atkinson tied the longest winning streak in league history for a head coach with a new team at any point of a season. Lawrence Frank became the interim coach of the New Jersey Nets during the 2003-04 season and won his first 13 games spanning Jan. 27-Feb. 24, 2004.

The Cavs hired Atkinson in June to replace J.B. Bickerstaff , who landed with the Detroit Pistons after being fired by Cleveland .

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What is the injury report for Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Chicago Bulls ? Evan Mobley is out with an illness

The Cavs ruled out forward Evan Mobley (illness), small forward Max Strus (right ankle sprain) and guard Sam Merrill (left ankle soreness). During Atkinson's pregame media availability, the coach said Mobley is "not feeling great." The Cavs listed center Jarrett Allen (left lower leg strain) as probable, but he will play.

The Cavs announced Georges Niang will start in place of Mobley, joining guards Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell, small forward Isaac Okoro and Allen in the lineup.

The Bulls ruled out guard Lonzo Ball (right wrist sprain) and listed forward Adama Sanogo (right knee effusion) as probable to play.

How can I watch, listen, stream Cavaliers vs. Bulls NBA Cup game?

Friday night's game can be watched locally on the FanDuel Sports Network . It can be heard on the radio via WMMS (100.7-FM) and WTAM (1100-AM).

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Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich .

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavs score NBA Cup win, set team record for longest winning streak

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