Portland, Jan. 8 (BUS): Darius Garland scored 26 points and Rajon Rondo 11 from the bench in his first appearance with the Cavaliers to lead the Cleveland to a 114-101 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
It was the Cavaliers’ 22nd win, equaling the total for the entirety of last season when they finished 13th in the Eastern Conference, the Associated Press reported.
Rookie Evan Mobley added 18 points for Cleveland in the team’s first Portland win since January 2013.
Norman Powell scored 19 points for the Blazers, who have lost six of their last seven games.
The Cavaliers led most of the game, but Little Nasser’s hat-trick netted Portland within 90-87 in the fourth quarter. Sidi Othman replied with 3 for the Cavaliers.
Unnamed: The other 3 hit narrowed to 101-96 with 3:01 to go, but once again Usman came back with a 3 pointer and the Blazers couldn’t catch up.
Rondo made his Cavaliers debut after being acquired in a three-team deal with the Lakers and Knicks earlier in the week.
The 16-year-old NBA veteran entered the game just over five minutes before the end of the first quarter, and his 3-pointer gave the Cavaliers a 22-16 lead.
Cleveland has been shocked by the absences caused by COVID-19 protocols in recent weeks, but the team has largely regrouped.
In terms of incorporating the latest Cavalier, coach JB Bickerstaff said he wanted the Rondo to be the Rondo.
“We just want all of our men, we want them to be the best version of themselves.
So we will not place any restrictions on it. “We’ll let him play to his strengths,” Bickerstaff said. “Some of this we feel in order to discover combinations and things like that.”
Portland was left without star goalkeeper Damien Lillard, who was discharged due to an abdominal tendinopathy.
Lillard has missed the last two games and is expected to miss Sunday’s game against Sacramento while his injury, which has troubled him since the Tokyo Olympics, is assessed.
Teammate CJ McCollum missed Portland’s thirteenth straight game with a collapsed right lung, while Larry Nance Jr. missed after injuring his right knee during Wednesday night’s 115-109 loss to Miami.
The Cavaliers led by as much as 12 points in the first half and led 57-47 in the first half. Garland led all scorers with 16 goals.
A Powell III and floating pointer from Dennis Smith Jr. pulled the Blazers out within 79-76 late in the third quarter.
Hint INS
Cavaliers: Cleveland saw the return of Usman, who missed six games in health and safety protocols. …it was the Cavaliers’ first six-game road trip.
Trail Blazers: Quarterback Yusuf Nurkic hit a pair of three-pointers in the first half, marking his first game of the regular season with multiple trebles. Center Cody Zeller is back after missing 12 games with a knee injury and a stint on COVID-19 protocols.
next one
Cavaliers: Keep swinging their way up the Golden State on Sunday night.
Trail Blazers: Host the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. The following night, they hosted the Brooklyn Nets at a game originally set for December 23.