by 01/02/23: The 16-20 Chicago Bulls visit the 23-14 Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Field House, this is the second straight game these teams will square off after the Cavs took down the Bulls in a thriller (103-102) just two days ago. This time around the Cavaliers will be without Stars Evan Mobley and Darius Garland.
The First Quarter:
The Bulls got off to a good start on offense due to back-to-back jumpers by 5-Time All Star DeMar DeRozan, and some well executed offense. J.B. Bickerstaff took a timeout with 6:50 to go, the Bulls harbored a 16-7 lead early. Although the Cavs were down at the time, they had done a great job in drawing fouls, they were already in the bonus at this point.
After the timeout, the Cavs came out swinging with two free throws from Jarrett Allen, a three-pointer from Kevin Love, and a scoop and score by Caris LeVert. Despite a few good possessions by the Cavs, Chicago kept the pressure on as they had nine different players score in the first quarter, and by the end they led 34-27.
The Second Quarter:
Chicago stayed hot after the first quarter as they started the second on an 11-3 run, forcing Bickerstaff to use another timeout as the score was 45-30. This was made happen by a couple quick buckets by veteran big man Andre Drummond and a few steals by DeMar DeRozan.
Chicago continued their dominance during the game as the Cavs could not put together consistent offensive possessions, and with 1:50 to go in the half, Chicago led by 21 points, 60-39. Mitchell caught fire towards the end of the half including a 4-Point Play conversion, but the Cavs still went into half with a lot to talk over as they were down 65-47.
The Third Quarter:
The Cavs definitely played better in the third quarter, mainly due to Donovan Mitchell continuing his great game. The Cavs were taking higher percentage shots and playing better defense compared to the first half. When it was all said and done the Cavs fought their way back and found themselves down just 96-91 at the end of the quarter. Donovan Mitchell had 40 points himself at the end of the third.
The Fourth Quarter
The Cavs and Bulls continued to play well offensively as the Cavs came back to eventually tie the game at 123. The Bulls Center Nikola Vucevic knocked down a huge triple with 36 seconds left to put Chicago up 126-123. The Cavs answered with an Alley Oop from Mitchell to Allen to make it a one point game. Chicago’s Ayo Dosunmu then hit two free throws to go back up by 3 with 18 seconds to go.
On the next possession, Jarrett Allen gets a hook shot to go, bringing the Cavs back to within 1 point with 8 seconds to go. Coby White was fouled and knocked down 2 free throws to put Chicago back up 3 with 7 seconds to go.
The Cavs purposely missed a free throw to have a chance and it worked! Donovan Mitchell secured his own rebound to tie the game at 130 with 3 seconds to go, DeRozan missed a shot on the other end and the game goes into overtime with Donovan Mitchell leading the way with 58 points.
Overtime:
Donovan Mitchell came out of the gates and hit a three to get 61 points. The Cavs came out firing on a 7-0 run to start OT, and they didn’t look back. Donovan Mitchell had an All-Time Great Performance finishing with a whopping 71 Points, 11 Assists, and 8 Rebounds as the Cavs win 145-134.
Notable Performances:
Cavs:
Donovan Mitchell: 71 Pts, 11 Ast, 8 Reb
22/34 FG, 7/15 3PT, 20/25 FT
Jarrett Allen: 21 Pts, 8 Reb, 9/10 FG
Kevin Love: 12 Pts, 17 Reb
Bulls:
DeMar DeRozan: 44 Pts, 4 Ast, 4 Stl
16/32 FG
Nikola Vucevic: 20 Pts, 13 Reb
Zach LaVine: 26 Pts, 6 Ast, 6 Reb
