Darius Garland had 24 points and eight assists and Max Strus scored all 20 of his points in the third quarter, helping the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 105-102 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night.
The Cavaliers took their largest lead at 89-77 early in the fourth quarter on a three-pointer by Garland, then held off a furious comeback attempt led by Dennis Schroder, who scored seven points in the Last 95 seconds.
Toronto had a chance to force overtime on its final possession, but Gary Trent Jr. went out of bounds in the corner before sinking a potential game-tying shot. Cleveland ran out the clock and ended its two-game losing streak.
“I’m glad we started getting back together tonight,” Garland said. “We just had to bring some energy, and the crowd picked us up a little bit. I also told Max to shoot the ball and he finally did.
Strus made four 3-pointers and made 8 of 10 field goal attempts in the third as the Cavaliers rallied from 10 points down. He missed all six of his shots in the other three quarters and finished with 11 rebounds and five assists.
Raptors center Jakob Poeltl set season highs with 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Pascal Siakam had 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Scottie Barnes had 15 points and eight rebounds as Toronto fell to 1-5 on the road against Eastern Conference teams.
“I feel like we had control for most of the game, but we gave them that streak in the third that gave them some life,” said Poeltl, who made 34 of 39 shots on goal. over the last six games. “We gave up some offensive rebounds and made some sloppy mistakes. That’s how you lose a close game.
Jarrett Allen scored 18 points and Evan Mobley had 12 points and 14 rebounds for Cleveland, which is 1-2 in its five-game homestand. The Cavaliers lost to the Lakers 121-115 on Saturday night.
Garland, who missed the second half of the game against the Lakers with a neck strain caused by a hit to the head on Max Christie’s knee, played a season-high 41 minutes.
“Guys love playing with him because when the ball is in Darius’s hands, everyone is an option,” Cleveland coach JB Bickerstaff said. “He does things creatively and selflessly.”
Schroder scored 15 points and Trent added 13 off the bench for Toronto, which had won two in a row.
Donovan Mitchell scored 10 points for the Cavaliers in his second game after missing four straight games with a right hamstring strain. The four-time All-Star has made only 8 of his 35 field goal attempts since his return.
Cleveland didn’t commit a foul in the first quarter, preventing Toronto from making its first free throw until midway through the second. The Cavaliers attempted a foul shot in the first 29 minutes.
FOLLOWING
Raptors: Visit the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.
Cavaliers: Host the Atlanta Hawks in a season tournament game Tuesday night.
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