5-7-2021 at Mavericks

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The good news on Friday was that the Cavaliers didn’t suffer the third-quarter blues. The bad news was that they went into it down by 25.

The Wine &amp; Gold got back on the road, but the results weren’t much different than those on the homestand – dropping their ninth straight, a 110-90 decision on Friday night in Dallas.

J.B. Bickerstaff’s shorthanded squad actually outscored Dallas, 53-48, after intermission. But Cleveland also scored just 19 and 18 points in the opening two periods – shooting 31 percent from the floor before the break.

The red-hot Mavericks – now winners of 9 of their last 12 – came into Friday’s contest with some serious postseason implications on the line – locked in a three-way fight with the Lakers and Blazers for what’s turned out to be the coveted 6th seed out West.

The Cavaliers continued to limp towards the finish line and have now dropped three straight double-digit decisions to Dallas – the team they’ll face on Sunday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

After having his streak of 20-plus point games snapped at 15 on Wednesday night against Portland, Collin Sexton got right back to business, leading Cleveland with 27 points, going 9-of-18 from the floor and 9-of-11 from the stripe, adding four boards and four assists.

Cedi Osman tallied double-figures in his fifth straight game, following up with 22 points on 8-of-19 shooting, adding five boards and a team-high seven assists.

Isaac Okoro also got back into the double-figure scoring mark after an off-night against the Blazers – finishing with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 2-of-4 from deep to go with five boards.

Unfortunately, that trio comprised the entire group of Cavaliers in double-figure scoring. The Mavs actually only had three players in double-figures themselves, led by Luka Doncic’s 24-point, eight-rebound evening.

But Rick Carlisle’s bench boasted a 40-12 edge over Cleveland’s second unit, which proved to be one of the biggest differences the game.

Miss any of the action? Find all the highlights and photos in the Game Tracker.

Cedi Osman drives in from midcourt, spins in the paint, and puts up a shot that somehow goes in as he falls to the hardwood.

The Mavericks didn’t need a big first half push to take their insurmountable lead into the locker room – they simply took advantage of a cold-shooting Cavaliers team that went 1-for-9 from long-range in each of the first two quarters.

Dallas took its first double-digit lead of the game with 3:02 remaining in the first quarter and was up 25 at intermission.

The Mavs pushed their lead to as much as 29 in the third quarter before Cleveland used a 17-7 run to briefly get it under 20.

By the Numbers - 13.4 … Cedi Osman’s scoring average in 24 games this year as a starter – with four games of 20-points plus – upping that mark to 17.2ppg (along with 5.4apg) over his last five games.

Coach J.B. Bickerstaff, on the difference in Friday night’s loss in Dallas …

"We had some good looks, we just didn’t knock them down. I thought we made them take some tough shots, but they’ve got tough shot-makers. Doncic made tough shots, Hardaway can make tough shots. So I think the shots, the field goal percentage was what hurt us the most."

Enjoy the best broadcast calls of the night from Cavaliers Radio Network's Tim Alcorn and Rafa Hernandez-Brito from Power 89.1.

The Wine &amp; Gold are definitely in the homestretch now – with just five games remaining in the 2020-21 regular season.

On Sunday, the Cavaliers tip off a three-game homestand – the final home contests of the year – welcoming these Mavericks to town. On Monday, it’s a date against the Playoff-hungry Pacers in the second half of the back-to-back. On Wednesday, the Cavs close out their home schedule against the Celtics.

Cleveland closes out the campaign next weekend – facing off against the Wizards in Washington on Friday followed by a visit to Brooklyn in the Sunday finale.

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On Friday night, following a fruitless five-game homestand, the Wine &amp; Gold get back on the road, seeking to snap an eight-game skid in the first of a home-and-home series against the Mavericks.

Playing their final six games of the regular season – three at home, three on the road – the Cavs are coming off a one-sided loss to Portland the night after leaving everything on the floor the previous night in an overtime loss to Phoenix. Cleveland rallied to get within striking distance near the end of the third period, but the Blazers closed the quarter on a 15-3 run to essentially seal the deal.

One of the evening’s highlights was the appearance of longtime fan favorite, Anderson Varejao, who inked a 10-day deal and fared well in the action – grabbing six boards in six minutes of work.

The Mavericks have been red-hot as they try to cement their Western Conference Playoff status outside the Play-In Tournament. They’ve won eight of their last 11 games – and if they hadn’t played Sacramento three times in that span, they wouldn’t have lost any. Dallas has also won its last two, including a narrow home victory on Thursday night against the Nets.

The recent history between tonight’s two opponents slants heavily towards the hosts – with Dallas taking each of the previous four, the last two meetings in one-sided fashion. They’ll square off again on Sunday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Luka Doncic has faced the Wine &amp; Gold three times in his three-year career, and he’s done all kinds of Luka stuff in all three.

In those three games, the No. 3 pick in the 2018 Draft has averaged 31.3 points on 55 percent shooting to go with 10.7 boards and 11.7 assists per – two of those, double-doubles, and a triple-double.

The Cavs don’t need to feel bad. The two-time All-Star, who just turned 22 in February, does that against everybody. He’s already the Mavericks’ all-time leader in triple-doubles (46) and recently joined Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook as the only players in NBA history to put together a 30 / 10 /20 triple-double – netting 31 points, 12 boards and 20 assists in a win over Washington.

The MVP candidate is almost un-guardable, but Cleveland’s rapidly improving rookie Isaac Okoro will likely be the man who gives it a shot.

The rugged youngster has been outstanding of late, but even he’s not impervious to the NBA grind – finishing with seven points the night after going off for 32 in an overtime loss to the Suns, scoring his squad’s final five points in regulation.

During Okoro’s career-long recent stretch of six games in double-figures, the Atlanta native averaged 16.3 points on 47 percent shooting.

Okoro’s streak wasn’t the only one to come to an end on Wednesday night.

Collin Sexton had run his 20-point scoring streak to 15 games in that overtime thriller against Phoenix – finishing with 29 points to go with seven boards and a team-high seven assists. But, like Okoro, the Young Bull didn’t have his legs the following night, tallying 15 points on 6-for-15 shooting.

But Sexton’s run was impressive. Taken five picks after Luka back in 2018, the former ‘Bama standout averaged 25.8 points per during that 15-games stretch, shooting 50 percent from the floor to go with 4.3 assists and 4.3 boards per.

Dallas is one club that Sexton has not had his usual success against. In four career meetings, he’s only topped the 20-point mark once and has struggled to shoot the ball in three of those four contests.

Josh Richardson will likely get the start on Friday night, but Sexton will also see plenty of Jalen Brunson, who’s been playing very well on both ends of the floor of late.

Over the Mavericks last six games, Brunson – who’s started just one of them – has averaged 13.3 points on 52 percent shooting, 62 percent over his last three games.

If the Young Bull hopes to top the 20-point plateau on Friday night, he’ll have to contend with Villanova product drafted 25 spots after Sexton in 2018.

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Where to Watch &amp; ListenTV: Bally Sports Ohio Radio: WTAM 1100, 89.1 WNZNCavaliers LIVE begins 30 minutes prior to tipoff with postgame coverage immediately after.

Friday night in Texas starts a home-and-home between the Cavs and Dallas Mavericks. This is the first meeting between the two this season, and their season series wraps-up on Sunday back in Cleveland.

On Tuesday, Cleveland hung close with the Suns and took them to overtime. Wednesday was a different story, as the Wine &amp; Gold looked gassed and never really got on track against the Portland Trail Blazers. The Cavs cut the lead to 10 in the third, but the Blazers late surge put the game away in the final quarter-plus. Kevin Love led the way in scoring with 18. Cedi Osman, Dean Wade, and Collin Sexton were also in double figures.

Cavs: Collin Sexton, Isaac Okoro, Kevin Love

Mavericks: Luka Doncic, Josh Richardson, Tim Hardaway Jr.

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5‑7‑2021 at Mavericks