Cleveland Cavs win nail-biter vs. Chicago Bulls as they enter NBA All-Star break
CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers regained momentum heading into the NBA All-Star break.
On the heels of their nine-game winning streak ending, the Cavs defeated the Chicago Bulls 108-105 on Wednesday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
Now the Cavs (36-17) will have seven days off until their next game Feb. 22 against the visiting Orlando Magic.
The Cavs had been sizzling until a 123-121 home loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night snapped their longest winning streak this season.
Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell told reporters at Wednesday morning's shootaround it would be “crucial” for Cleveland to respond to its loss to Philly and “go into the break strong.”
It wasn't pretty, but the Cavs bounced back against the Bulls (26-29).
The victory was the Cavs' 18th in the past 20 games and boost their record since Dec. 16 to a league-best 23-5.
Mitchell led the Cavs with 30 points on 8-of-21 shooting and added seven assists, six rebounds and two steals. Forward Isaac Okoro had 16 points, point guard Darius Garland 12 points and seven assists, forward Evan Mobley 14 points and nine rebounds and center Jarrett Allen 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Guard Coby White scored a game-high 32 points for the Bulls on 11-of-17 shooting from the field. Forward DeMar DeRozan added 24 points and six assists.
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Below is some information about the fourth quarter.
How crunch time between Cavs and Bulls unfolded
A foul called away from the ball on Bulls guard Alex Caruso sent Mitchell to the free-throw line. He made the foul shot to give the Cavs a 104-103 lead with 43.8 seconds left.
Then the Bulls committed a turnover with 17 seconds left, when White's high, hard pass to center Nikola Vucevic went out of bounds.
The Bulls fouled Garland with 11 seconds remaining. He made both, putting the Cavs ahead 106-103.
On the other end of the floor, Cavs forward Max Strus was called for an off-ball foul on White. With 7.7 seconds left, White made two free throws to cut the Cavs' lead to 106-105.
The Bulls fouled Mitchell with 4.7 seconds remaining. His two successful free throws gave the Cavs a 108-105 advantage.
Coming out of a timeout, White took the final shot for the Bulls and missed his 3-point attempt just before the buzzer.
Bulls guard Coby White was often at the center of the action vs. Cavs
White answered a 3-pointer by Garland with a 3-pointer of his own, tying the score 103-103 with 1:03 left.
With the crowd chanting "MVP, MVP, MVP," Mitchell made two free throws to give the Cavs a 100-97 lead with 2:18 left.
On the previous possession, Mobley made a short jump shot to give Cleveland a 98-97 advantage. Mobley nearly threw the ball out of bounds a moment earlier, but Okoro corralled the wild pass.
Cavs' Georges Niang and Bulls' Coby White draw technical fouls during altercation
With 8:25 left in the fourth quarter, Cavs forward Georges Niang and White exchanged shoves and heated words. The altercation appeared to start when Niang guarded White, and White acted as if Niang had fouled him.
After the officiating crew reviewed the play, Niang and White were docked with offsetting technical fouls.
Later, Niang fouled out with 4:39 left. Neither he nor the Cavs fans in attendance agreed with his fifth and sixth foul calls. He finished with 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field.
The Cavs trailed by as many as 17 points in the second quarter, but they earned their first lead of the game with 10:40 remaining in the fourth quarter when Niang made a 3-pointer on an assist from sixth man Caris LeVert. The play gave the Cavs a 79-78 edge.
Below is some information about the third quarter.
Cavs behind Bulls 76-71 at the end of the third quarter
At times, the Cavs have played as if they were in a trance.
Through three quarters, the Cavs never held a lead against the Bulls.
Actually, Cleveland never even tied the score at any point in the first three quarters. No, 0-0 doesn't count.
Cavs miss some golden opportunities vs. Bulls in the third quarter
The Cavs trailed the Bulls 73-68 during a timeout with 1:46 left in the third quarter.
It's been tough sledding for the Cavs on offense.
Some examples in the third quarter: Allen missed a dunk with 6:39 left, Mitchell missed a layup with 5:49 remaining and Niang was called for an offensive foul while setting a screen a split second before Mitchell shot a 3-pointer, which went in after the whistle blew with 4:37 left and the Cavs trailing 63-61.
Below is some information about the second quarter.
Cleveland Cavs trail Chicago Bulls 49-43 at halftime
The Cavs narrowly avoided their lowest first-half scoring total this season.
The dreaded number is 42 points. The Cavs have produced it twice this season, going 1-1 in those games (a 108-105 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Oct. 27 and a 105-102 win over the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 26).
In the first half, Mitchell led the Cavs with nine points on 3-of-10 shooting from the field to go along with five assists. Allen and Okoro had eight points apiece.
Forward DeMar DeRozan led the Bulls with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor in the first half.
Cavs All-Star Donovan Mitchell remains in the game after a brief scare in the second quarter
Mitchell took an arm to the head while driving to the basket and remained on the floor for a while shortly before the Cavs took a timeout with 8:25 left in the second quarter.
Mitchell stayed in the game. Bulls forward Torrey Craig is the one who whacked Mitchell's head, but Craig was not called for a foul.
Below is some information about the first quarter.
Cavs trail Bulls 32-25 at the end of the first quarter
The Cavs were behind 32-25 at the end of the first quarter.
After a lackadaisical start, the Cavs showed some life. Their top offensive highlight of the opening quarter was Mitchell's four-point play with 3:18 remaining.
The Cavs will need better defense, though. The Bulls outscored them 16-12 in the paint and shot 13 of 22 from the field (59.1%) in the first quarter.
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley continues to shoot (and make) 3-pointers
Since returning to game action on Jan. 29 from arthroscopic knee surgery, Mobley is 8 of 14 on 3-pointers.
The figure includes the wide-open 3-pointer Mobley made with 5:15 left in the first quarter to cut the Bulls' lead to 17-13. Mitchell recorded an assist on the play.
Cavs come out flat and trail Bulls 8-0 to start the game
The public address announcer reminded the home crowd right before tipoff the game would be televised nationally on ESPN, but the Cavs were flat out of the gate.
Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff called timeout with 9:43 left in the first quarter after the Bulls started the game on an 8-0 run.
Below is some pregame information.
What is the injury report for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Chicago Bulls?
The Cavs listed Garland, reserve forward Dean Wade and backup shooting guard Sam Merrill as questionable to play due to illness.
But Garland started as usual. Wade and Merrill were sidelined.
Backup point guard Ty Jerome (ankle surgery) remains out.
The Bulls ruled out guard Zach LaVine (foot), point guard Lonzo Ball (knee) and forward Patrick Williams (foot). They listed Caruso (toe) as questionable and Craig (toe) and shooting guard Dalen Terry (knee) as probable.
Caruso, Craig and Terry played.
What is the history between the Cavs and Bulls?
The Cavs are 101-132 in their all-time regular-season series with the Bulls, but Cleveland has won the past seven meetings, including three this season.
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How can I watch, stream or listen to Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Chicago Bulls?
The game had a national TV audience on ESPN. It was televised locally on Bally Sports Ohio and broadcast on the radio via WTAM (1100-AM), WMMS (100.7-FM) and WNZN (89.1-FM).
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Cavs defeat Chicago Bulls entering NBA All-Star break
